Organizational Development Consultant and Leadership Coach

Ten Techniques to Make Decisions: #7 Three For/Three Against

September 17, 2014

“Because all sides of an issue don’t get equal discussion time, the most vocal and opinionated people in my group always seem to get their way. Is there a technique that can help me alleviate this problem?”

#7  Three For/Three Against

What is Three For/Three Against?

Three For/Three Against is a technique for assuring that all sides of an issue are heard.

By design, Three For/Three Against asks for both the pros and the cons for every option or issue being discussed. This insures that any decisions to be made are based on all of the information Continue reading

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Ten Techniques to Make Decisions: #6 Nominal Prioritization

September 16, 2014

“Our group is usually able to generate a list of goals and actions very easily. But after our meetings, we find that we are over our heads with too much extra work. As a result, nothing gets done. Is there a technique that will help us prioritize our ideas so that we spend our time on only the most important issues?”

#6  Nominal Prioritization

What is Nominal Prioritization?

Nominal Prioritization is a technique for measuring and thereby identifying the priority of issues, decisions, or action plans.

The demands placed on organizations are such that not all issues can Continue reading

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Ten Techniques to Make Decisions: #5 One Hundred Votes

September 12, 2014

“The groups I facilitate often need to prioritize their ideas. It would helpful to understand where the group’s true energy and priorities are so that our decisions are more likely to be implemented. Is there a technique I can use to accomplish this?”

#5  One Hundred Votes

What is One Hundred Votes?

There are times when all meeting groups need to establish priorities. One Hundred Votes is a technique for determining a group’s preferences among a number of different ideas or potential choices.

One Hundred Votes involves each participant distributing a total of Continue reading

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Ten Techniques to Make Decisions: #4 Dots

September 7, 2014

“There are times when we need a quick read on our initial reactions to potential decisions.  Is there a technique I can use to accomplish this?”

#4  Dots

What are Dots?

The Dots technique helps you visually ascertain a meeting group’s immediate reactions to proposed solutions or goals.

Dots can be especially effective when you want to accurately capture the personal sentiments of everyone within your meeting group.  Like Negative Voting, Technique #3 in this series, it allows for dissenting voices to be heard, while also allowing the group to understand who is feeling neutral on Continue reading

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Ten Techniques to Make Decisions: #3 Negative Voting

September 4, 2014

“A majority of our group generally agrees which solutions are best without too many problems. But sometimes I’m not so sure we are in complete harmony. Is there a simple technique that will help insure that we have full consensus?”

#3  Negative Voting

What is Negative Voting?

Negative Voting is a technique that identifies which people do NOT support a proposed decision, instead of those who do.

By identifying those who don’t support a given decision, the meeting group can talk to those people, discover their specific concerns, and identify methods to alleviate these concerns. By doing so, Continue reading

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Ten Techniques to Make Decisions: #2 Multivoting

September 1, 2014

“After we brainstorm, it almost always takes too long to narrow down our options to a few of the most realistic ideas for discussion. What can we do to save time in this situation?”

#2  Multivoting

What is Multivoting?

Multivoting is a technique for narrowing a wide range of ideas or choices down to the few most appropriate, feasible, and important. This technique saves time while still considering every idea that has been generated.

While Multivoting is not a technique for making a single, specific decision, it is a fabulous technique for prioritizing large amounts of information Continue reading

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Ten Techniques to Make Decisions: #1 Vroom Yetten Decision Making Model

August 27, 2014

Making decisions is a key activity in today’s participative meetings.  Once a problem has been defined, analyzed, and the potential solutions brainstormed, decisions must be made.  How can a meeting group or organization improve their quality of decision making and do so with a minimum amount of stress?  My next blogs provide ten techniques to ensure that the best decisions are made, the decisions are understood and agreed upon, and that when multiple decisions are made, they are prioritized for the most effective implementation.

The ten techniques to make decisions include:

  1. Vroom Yetton Decision Making Model
  2. Multivoting Continue reading
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Mission Critical Meetings: 81 Practical Facilitation Techniques

August 23, 2014

Most people believe that meetings are a huge waste of time — and they’re right. Though meetings are essential to the life of any organization, they tend to be boring, inefficient, and unproductive. But they don’t have to be. Mission Critical Meetings: 81 Practical Facilitation Techniques shows you how to plan and facilitate meetings that participants will look forward to. You’ll learn how to:

  • improve meeting productivity
  • boost creativity and teamwork
  • effectively gather information and brainstorm ideas
  • make and implement decisions
  • evaluate the effectiveness of your meetings

The impact of a well-run meeting extends far beyond the short-term enthusiasm Continue reading

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Managing the problem children in meetings

August 14, 2014

From time to time, I will share great tips and advise from my colleagues.  In my next few blogs, I will share insights from Clive Mallard of The Independent Consultant.   Today’s focus is on managing the problem children in meetings.  Enjoy!

A key role in a meeting is that of facilitator – the owner of the meeting process, from planning through to meeting follow-up. As an Independent Consultant you will often find yourself in this role and how you play it will directly impact whether you achieve the meeting objectives or not. One of the challenges you Continue reading
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Nineteen Techniques to Gather Information: #19 Road Shows

August 8, 2014

“We need to make significant changes in our organization in order to successfully compete in the future. Our leaders have a fair idea of the challenges we face, but we’d like to gather input from the employees in some way that will help us gain a full picture of our issues and opportunities, and also start to mobilize the organization for the changes ahead. What is the most effective way to accomplish this?”

#19 Road Shows

What are Road Shows?

While most meetings involve a smaller number of participants, Road Shows can involve whole departments, divisions or geographical locations Continue reading

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