When I work with teams, I refer to Patrick Lencioni’s work from the Five Dysfunctions of a Team where he talks about the difference between Consensus and Commitment.
Consensus requires everyone on the team or around the table to agree on an issue. Whilst this is a nice idea…it’s too ‘nice’. Consensus is idealistic and inefficient. Instead, we can work toward getting commitment from the members of a team. The process of getting commitment involves giving all stakeholders the opportunity to contribute their ideas and opinions, and to have them authentically heard and considered. And if the team cannot reach consensus then the leader must make a decision based on the best interests of all – and be prepared to share their reasons. (You can apply this to the parent/child experience as well!)
What is then expected from the team is unwavering commitment. Commitment to the team’s decision even when they didn’t agree. Commitment doesn’t mean agreeing in the meeting, and then when confronted by a challenger outside the meeting saying something like ‘I know, I didn’t agree with the decision either!’ This undermines the leader, and the whole team, and is certainly not the work of a real team player – and of course the implication is a fractured effort in achieving the team’s goals.
BUT, what can really make a difference is when, as part of that process of achieving commitment, we can engage in deliberate debate, or what I refer to as Nonsensus!
There is so much power in the debate of intelligent and dedicated individuals who don’t agree – who can bring vastly different perspectives to a process – and where all parties enthusiastically engage in that powerful clash that pushes all involved to a higher place, and ultimately a more innovative and creative and well supported outcome.
In our, and many other cultures, this doesn’t happen automatically, we need to work at this process, and the leader and the team need to give each other permission to engage in this way. The team needs to explore and experiment with it, and fully understand the implications of not engaging in this way. Trust and vulnerability need to be a part of this process and using an external facilitator for a period of time can really assist the team to learn how to engage in this no-nonsense NONSENSUS…and really make your meetings and projects happen!
Go on, try it!
Michelle