AGILE IN ACTION: Consensus Decision Making

Thursday, April 13, 2006

Consensus Decision Making

A unanimous agreement reached by a team is better than a decision made by any individual team member because it embodies an idea that's shared and supported by each team member and provides a solid impetus for action. Each team member has a veto because each team member needs to agree for unanimity. A team commited to reaching unanimous agreement continue the discussion until they arrive at a solution that takes all the team member's needs into account.

It can be difficult to reach consensus when the decision is binary, i.e. either yes or no. Consensus is not about making compromises nor about being coerced into a decision your not comfortable with. Using a gradient of agreement helps a team reach consensus even when some team members are not overly enthusiastic about the decision. It enables team members to express their support or opposition as a point on a scale.

Gradient of Agreement

Let the team devise their own gradient of agreement and post it where it's always visible. Here's one that I have used previously.

5 = Endorsement. I love it.
4 = Agreement with reservation. Basically I like it.
3 = Mixed feelings. I can live with it and support it.
2 = Disagreement. I have trouble supporting it.
1 = Veto. I can't support it and I don't think we should move forward.

To reach consensus all votes need to be 3 or above. Any below and the team needs to engage in conflict resolution to evaluate recommendations and alternatives that can lead to a consensus.

Voting

Here's 5 ways to conduct voting:

Have a show of hands.
Go around the room asking each team member to state their vote, and why.
Have each team member write their vote on an index card and then have everyone hold up their card at the same time.
Hold a secret ballot. Each team member write their votes on an index card. Collect the index cards and tally the score.
Have two rounds of voting. The first vote is preliminary and is followed by a discussion. The second vote is final.