Consensus Decision Making > Steps to Reaching Consensus

Purpose: To guide a team through the process of reaching consensus

When to Use: Whenever making a consensus decision

Whom to Involve: All team members

Tool: Steps and Tips

First, review the meaning of consensus and the process of achieving consensus. Then agree on a targeted time period to reach consensus.

1. Identify Areas of Agreement

2. Clearly State Differences

• State positions and perspectives as neutrally as possible.
• Do not associate positions with people. The differences are between alternative valid solutions or ideas, not between people.
• Summarize concerns and list them.

3. Fully Explore Differences

• Explore each perspective and clarify.
• Involve everyone in the discussion - avoid a one-on-one debate.
• Look for the "third way": make suggestions or modifications, or create a new solution.

4. Reach Closure

5. Articulate the Decision.

• Ask people if they feel they have had the opportunity to fully express their opinions.
• Obtain a sense of the group. (Possible approaches include "go rounds" and "straw polls," or the Consensus Indicator tool. When using the Consensus Indicator, if people respond with two or less, then repeat steps one through three until you can take another poll.)
• At this point, poll each person, asking, "Do you agree with and will you support this decision?"

Tips for consensus building

Do's

• Try to get underlying assumptions regarding the situation out into the open where they can be discussed.
• Listen and pay attention to what others have to say. This is the most distinguishing characteristic of successful teams.
• Encourage others, particularly the quieter ones, to offer their ideas. Remember, the team needs all the information it can get.
• Take the time needed to reach the point where everyone can agree to support the group's decision.

Don'ts

• Do not vote. Voting will split the team into "winners and losers" and encourage "either-or" thinking when there may be other ways. Voting will foster argument rather than rational discussion and consequently harm the team process.
• Do not make agreements too quickly or compromise too early in the process. Easy agreements are often based on erroneous assumptions that need to be challenged.
• Do not compete internally; either the team wins or no one wins.