The Wisdom of Consensus Building

At MARC we stress the importance of making important labor relations decisions by the consensus method, believing a group’s solutions will provide different viewpoints, information and experiences that result in better end decisions. 

As I was catching up on national news today, I saw that the US Supreme Court has ruled on the issue of whether the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) authorizes the President to impose tariffs.

SCOTUS held 6-3 that the IEEPA does not authorize tariffs.  Therefore, presidential tariffs based on that statute were invalidated.

That relegates those tariff decisions to the Congress. 

Justice Gorsuch wrote, “…most major decisions affecting the rights and responsibilities of the American people (including the duty to pay taxes and tariffs) are funneled through the legislative process for a reason.  Yes, legislating can be hard and take time.  And, yes, it can be tempting to bypass Congress when some pressing problem arises.  But the deliberative nature of the legislative process was the whole point of its design.  Through that process, the Nation can tap the combined wisdom of the people’s elected representatives, not just that of one faction or man….” 

Sure, our Congressional decisions are not usually a consensus – they reflect numerical, majority votes and compromise.  But the arguments in favor of group decision-making are the same – that more people working together will create better results than one person working alone most of the time.

When we make quick, individual decisions, we run the risk of having made them when our emotions are running in high gear – a surefire recipe for error.  Who among us hasn’t made a hasty, angry remark to a child or a spouse that we later regret?  Use MARC’s “professional pause” concepts to ensure that emotions subside before decisions are made. 

In my labor relations career as a management-side consultant, I was relieved when a contractual issue, grievance, or disciplinary decision had been the result of a thorough, group-made, consensus decision.  That usually meant that precedent and history were factored in; emotions had subsided; and that differing viewpoints were vigorously discussed to make sure the resulting decision was the best one possible.

Of course, there are many pitfalls for group decision-making also.  Group-think can sink decision-making when a “group” is so homogenous that it is really no more than the opinion of one individual.  Or, a dominant and intimidating leader can create a group of “yes persons” who are afraid to speak truth to power.  And a group can be lazy, giving only lip service to consensus-building, and contaminated by confirmation bias and other psychological traps. 

But I will take a well-formed consensus decision formed by trained leaders using good protocols over one person’s decree almost any day.

An excellent book on this topic is James Surowiecki’s The Wisdom of Crowds, where he argues that large, diverse and independent groups with no special training or knowledge often make better decisions than an elite expert operating alone or with just a few other experts. 

Surowiecki writes that a “wise crowd” has four characteristics;  1) Diversity of opinion; 2) Independence such that members are not influenced by others; 3) Decentralization so people can bring their own special knowledge and talents to a problem, and 4) Aggregation, being a mechanism to reach a collective decision.

We are experts at helping companies make labor and employee relations decisions wisely with MARC training and use of MARC’s operational tools.  The other facilitators and I have been through the ringer making these decisions – in my case for over 40 years – so we have seen a lot of things go well and a lot of things crash and burn.  I share my “crashes” with the trainees, painting a vivid picture of failures large and small, so they avoid the same mistakes.  And I illustrate the things that went well – where fairness and strong leadership produced good results. 

And that is a big reason I love facilitating MARC classes – to help everyone make better labor relations decisions that are fair, consistent, legally compliant, risk-mitigating, and likely to advance trust and engagement in your company and its relationships. 

I always complete a MARC class feeling I’ve made a difference – that leaders in the class will make better employee decisions and as a result thereof, people will have better lives, both at work and at home.  Who could want more than that?

Just click Contact Us on this website, or call MARC Vice President Gary Kleckner 216-973-7323 to get started down the path to better decision-making.  You’ll be glad you did.