Consent Decisions: Simple. Not Easy.

Consent is not consensus.
It is not harmony.
It is not “everyone is happy.”

Consent means:
We move forward unless there is a reasoned and relevant objection.

That sounds simple.
It isn’t.

Consent shifts the question from:
“Do you agree?”
to
“Is this safe enough to try?”

It increases speed.
It distributes responsibility.
It treats people like adults.

But only if we are willing to give up control.

Here are a few tensions I often observe:

Hidden consensus behaviour
People still try to convince everyone. Discussions drag on. Energy drops. Consent becomes theatre.

Pseudo-objections
Personal preferences are framed as organizational risks. “I wouldn’t do it like that” suddenly sounds strategic.

Unclear domains and mandates
If it’s not clear who decides what, consent turns political very quickly.

Fear of experimentation
Consent only works in a test-and-learn environment. If mistakes are punished, objections multiply.

No preparation, no framing
If people don’t understand why they are in the room and what kind of decision is being made, resistance is predictable.

Weak facilitation
Consent is easy to explain and hard to facilitate. Without experience, discussions spiral or get dominated.

Power dynamics in disguise
In formerly hierarchical organizations, managers often struggle most.
Preference is expressed as an objection. Influence is framed as protection. Control hides behind “concern.”
And one practical rule that changes a lot:
Let the strongest opinion speak last.

A few decisions we have taken using consent:

Which ERP we choose
The key users decided together with the project team.
Not management. Not hierarchy.
The people closest to the work made the call.

How we work together
We defined our team credo — and adopted it by consent.
Not everyone’s favorite version.
But safe enough. Clear enough. Ours.

For smaller topics?
We run fast consents directly in our team chat.
If the domain is clear and the risk is limited, we don’t need a meeting.

Consent is not reserved for strategy workshops.
It works in daily operations.

Consent is not about avoiding conflict.
It is about making objections visible and workable.

It requires maturity.
Clear domains.
Psychological safety.
And the courage to step back when you used to step in.

When done well, consent is more than a decision rule.
It is a cultural statement:
We trust each other enough to move.

When the right people decide, they care differently.
And that changes execution.

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