Consensus is Killing Your Organizational Change—Part I
Posted by Todd VanNest on Tue, Jan 25, 2011
In helping get Change Leaders and their teams “unstuck,” I often find that them in the middle of a bog, waiving a white flag from the cab of their muddied truck, up to the hubs in muck—putting a whole new meaning to achieving “stickiness” in organizational change. As part of working through how they got into their current state, they invariably share their sheer amazement that they or the organization ended up in this spot (again) given all the things they did in the name of Organizational Change Management and modeling desired values. Not the least among these righteous acts was consistently driving for Consensus.
Somewhere, there must be an optimal balance a Change Leader can manage between (a) increasing participation (in the name of adding diverse inputs to solutions, modeling openness, and building ownership), and (b) driving, relying upon, and striving for consensus.
Here’s a key “swing thought:” Distinguish between “Means and Ends.”
Consensus is (just) a tool for Change Leaders. Unanimity of purpose and a general acceptability or agreement on how we work are not the same. Again, consensus is a useful tool for moving forward and making decisions, i.e., leaning forward based on an “acceptability” of a direction or decision in the face of alternatives--not as a criterion that must be met before progress can be made or projects may proceed, or heaven help us, a desired “culture”. Think about the biggest influencers you know—the Church…your favorite NFL coach. Do they motivate others to perform (or change) and build ownership of new practices without the holier than thou Consensus? Uh…Yes!
When at our best, we know it’s a tool, to be applied as simply one option, fit to those decisions where this method works best. Still, guidance found in Organizational Change Management, and Operating Principles and Organizational Values that highlight consensus, allow us to get sucked into over-utilization of Consensus.
If you sense that you may be in this trap (over-utilizing Consensus) today:
__AUDIT YOUR PROJECT’S KEY DECISIONS (typically found in a Governance Map, RACI/Responsibility Matrix, and/or Project Plan (identified by diamond boxes and Y/N outcomes on a flow chart). Assess the decision context and assume you must choose “2 of 3 outcomes” from among decision Speed, Accuracy, and Buy-in. Only consider utilizing Consensus where solution ambiguity is high (e.g., there is no favored solution or ways to deploy it among many options) and buy-in is most important.
(note: ambiguity in the environment is not a case for consensus)
__USE EVEN MORE sub-committees or ad-hoc “Working Teams” to put details to any solution or carry out detailed steps. Be clear about their charter and expected outcomes so that the larger group can extend trust.
__EXAMINE OPTIONS THAT IMPROVE PRODUCTIVITY, identifying where your drive for understanding and ownership can be served just as well (or better!) with enhanced communications (including enhanced listening!) and transparency rather than defaulting to Consensus decision-making as a way to achieve these ends.
In Part II (next week’s post), I will share specific ways to hard-wire avoidance of Consensus Over-Utilization into any change project. You may find that these tips allow you to sleep easier and move forward with greater speed.
Helpful links:
Execution: http://www.amazon.com/Execution-Discipline-Getting-Things-Done/dp/0609610570
Change & a Sense of Urgency: http://www.amazon.com/Sense-Urgency-John-P-Kotter/dp/1422179710/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1281753710&sr=1-1
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