One thing I would change
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If I could change one thing about communication in American work culture, it would be to decide who decides.
There’s only 4 ways to make a decision:
Command – "Here's the decision."
Consult – "I want your input, then I'll make the decision."
Consensus – "We'll keep talking and talking and talking until everyone agrees."
Vote – "Majority decides."
I work with organizations across industries and across the country, from Fortune 100 firms, to government, to small nonprofits, and in my experience, teams seem to default to consensus decision making.
To me, consensus is a four-letter word.
It leads to decisions that are too slow, watered down, and equally unsatisfying for everyone.
Plus, it’s one of the big reasons we have an accountability problem. People get to hide behind, “well, we decided!”
We default to consensus because we want to be nice, collaborative, and respectful, but...how many times have you been in a meeting where someone later says privately, “that’s the dumbest idea I ever heard” then 6 months later when the idea fails, they say: “I told you so!”
Well maybe it would have worked if you helped!
When organizations instead use consultative decision making, a single individual will have to own the outcome.
And guess what? When everyone knows that at some point they too will have to stick their neck out and own a big decision for their area of responsibility, they will be more likely to support yours, even if they disagree.
This is the way.
First, identify the decision making method that’s appropriate for the situation.
Company picnic? Let’s vote. We’re not voting on company strategy.
Second, announce the decision making method up front.
"I want to hear everyone's perspective, then I'll make the best decision I can by Thursday."
Watch status transactions go down. Less one-upsmanship. Because people understand how they can contribute.
Here’s another reason more people will support consultative decisions even if they disagree: because humans are more likely to buy in when they’ve had a chance to weigh in.
People don't need every decision to go their way. They need to know how the decision will be made.
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