Consensus Through Conversations

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CHAPTER 7 Toward High-Commitment Decisions

Making the choice to bring people together—to decide together— is an act of courage for a leader. It is a bold and, in some corners, radical admission that formal leaders don’t have all the answers. It is recognition that sometimes the function of a leader is simply to convene. I say “simply” convene, but as should be obvious from this book, convening is neither simple nor easy when it comes to issues that really matter.

Some days are harder than others. I recall facilitating a critical decision meeting with 24 senior company leaders who had gathered from around the United States and Asia. The meeting lasted for nearly ten hours because the group felt it could not disband without a clear direction ...