100-Metodos-de-Qualidade-Total

30 100 METHODS FOR TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT
Method 5
Consensus reaching
Purpose
To give a team a methodical way of examining alternatives to reach a
collective conclusion which all team members can accept.
When to use
When a team is examining different courses of action or choosing possible
solutions to a problem.
How to use
There are six steps involved:
1 All team members think individually what the options are and each
makes a list of his or her own ideas.
2 Participants are invited in turn to read out their suggestions. These are
recorded on a flip chart. Participants are not allowed to discuss the
ideas at this stage.
3 After everyone has listed their suggestions, group members are allowed
to add to the list any new ideas as they think of them.
4 The group leader then checks that all suggestions are understood and
seeks clarification if necessary.
5 The ideas are counted. Everyone individually assigns them points. If
there are 12 ideas, start with 12 points for the most important.
6 Participants now reveal their own top choices which are recorded on a
flip chart. The discussion then starts and the ideas that the majority
choose are debated until consensus is reached.
If necessary, the procedure is repeated with a reduced number of ideas.
Benefits
People often cling to their own ideas and are reluctant to consider the
suggestions of others when making a decision. The technique permits a
decision to be made without taking a final vote that can leave some team
members feeling isolated. The procedure allows a group to reach the best
solution - not a compromise solution - and to harness all members'
commitment to making the solution work. The technique works best in
groups of 8-12 people.