From time to time I watch groups struggle with decision-making. The key issue usually centers on the absence of any dialogue about how decision-making will occur in the group. I’m amazed at how many groups and the leaders of those groups dance around this issue.
Many groups will agree that they will use consensus to make decisions without really understanding what consensus means. Most groups believe that consensus means agreement when in fact it means that every one feels heard and can support the decision of the group even if each member may not agree with the decision.
The bigger issue is more akin to Will Carey’s TV show, “Whose line is it anyway? The question for the group is “whose decision is it? Is it the leader’s decision, the group’s decision, or a group member’s decision? Most of the angst that I see in teams around decision-making centers on this very issue. Think about your own work group. Does the group have clarity about whose decision it is in each area of the group’s accountability?