The issues human beings now face go beyond solutions that many of us can conjure up. We need to make a collective shift as well as an individual one. This means learning to think with others and not merely on our own.
–William Isaacs
Decision-Making System Design
- Facilitation and Process Mentoring
- Decision Making Systems
- Participatory Design
- Communication Tools and Skills
Communities are about sharing – sharing our lives, sharing resources, sharing the earth – and sharing power. We all influence each other – we are all leaders in some area of life. In this world of tops-down hierarchies, sexism, agism and racism – intentional communities represent a refreshing oasis for co-creation and equality in relationships.
But that is easier said than done! With all our conditioning and fears – sharing power is not something we are used to doing. We have not been taught power-sharing systems – there are few models and a general lack of opportunities to practice the tools that do exist.
For communities of intent – decision-making training, skills and process must be grounded into well–crafted agreements that work for all. The design of a communities governance and decision-making system is one of the most crucial pieces to “get right” – to align with the spirit, mission and culture of the community.
We’ve seen all too often the pain and heartache caused when this piece is not in harmony with the rest of your community design.
The Core Consultants and staff of VillageLab – and many of our Associate Consultants – have extensive experience in the design of decision-making systems in the following areas:
- Formal and other types of Consensus
- Sociacracy
- Holocracy
- Dynamic Governance
Our primary goal is to ensure that this essential element becomes a bedrock foundation of your community – not a hidden structural conflict that could seriously hamper all your other great work! We look forward to working with you!
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Co-creation can be like magic – bringing forth the greater sum energy and ability from a group to produce extraordinary results. If you’ve witnessed or participated in such an event, it should be clear that this is not an automatic result. It can be easy, almost natural – child’s play! a dance! – in short bursts and novel situations. When complexity and commitment levels rise, it gets exponentially more difficult to sustain the magic and maintain coherence. Working, building, crafting together in a sustainable and flourishing way is an advanced art form, and one of the most important aspects of healthy community.
While many groups do survive and succeed through the “trial by fire” approach, figuring things out on the fly, that path has led to a lot of painful disappointments and hard feelings too. New community projects have approximately the same success rate as new business ventures: around 10% or less! There’s much that we can do – both for communities, and for new social enterprise models – to improve that statistic.
Decision-making and governance are an essential learning area for everyone taking part in a community venture – not just the ‘leaders’. In an era where we see individuals, institutions, and enterprises all moving away from rigid authoritarian power structures towards increased autonomy and self-organization, there is a great deal of learning and experimentation going on, building an understanding of what it takes to balance and steer all the dynamics of a collective entity or social organism within a larger cultural field.
It’s a big part of the evolutionary curve we’re riding today as a species, lots of new tools and ideas coming into play. Some of the most exciting experiments and innovation in community decision-making are coming from open source technology development communities online, using the power of digital connectivity to coordinate global initiatives with a dedication to the common good. Customized communication tools, voting systems, wiki knowledge bases and many other convenient information system options help make this feasible and efficient – things we all could seek to integrate for better awareness and coordination in the network environments of an increasingly connected world.
Much of the deeper work with interpersonal process and egalitarian governance is carried on in active communities of intent – and has been for many years. There’s so much to draw from, personally and collectively, as anyone who’s spent time in community, or even begun to research it, will recognize. Increasingly, this knowledge is available to others who can benefit from it, although nothing replaces direct experience in application.
To select and weave a workable set of patterns for participation and stakeholding in community takes great care, and ideally, experience. There are a growing number of training programs and even specialized institutes to cultivate certain skill sets in this realm, it can be beneficial to bring your whole group through some such training cycle together. Alternatively, invite expert coaches in to work directly within your group context. Capable facilitators and practitioners can provide excellent insights about appropriate solution sets and integrated systems for a given community environment – saving many harder lessens. They bring a level of wisdom that is not available through study alone!
Whatever the chosen course, group governance will continue to evolve over time, and with changes in the group structure. With good design and care, community decision making process can become a lively organic, and yes, magical experience for all, where collective intelligence and wisdom show up to lead the community into its full expression.