Getting a group of people onto the same page is complex and time-consuming.
First you have to combine everyone’s ideas into a potential solution.
Then you have to convince everyone that it’s the best solution.
Then you have to convince everyone that everyone else has agreed to it.
This last step - getting stakeholders to recognize that a decision has been made - is often the hardest.
In some cases there are multiple layers to this: agree on what the problem is, then what a resolution looks like, how to get there, who’s going to do it…
You’re pushing your stakeholders to adopt a common story.
Different people have different styles for this - some involve lots of one-on-ones, while others try to get everyone into the same room most of the time.
A successful approach usually applies a strategic mix of both, and involves as much listening as talking.
What’s you consensus-forming strategy?