In the Genuine Contact way of working, one focus is on developing and continually regenerating a life-nourishing climate within which the organization and its people do their work. There are many considerations for what makes a life-nourishing climate. One is having a chosen decision-making method that is clearly described and well-understood by all members of the organization. It is especially beneficial if this decision-making method is participatory – that stakeholders have a chance to participate in the decisions being made that will affect them or that they are expected to implement.

In the international Genuine Contact Organization, we have a well-defined decision-making matrix and a highly participatory process.

Decision-Making Matrix

Our decision-making matrix describes who makes what kinds of decisions and when. It is developed based on an understanding that:

  • Authority for decision-making should be devolved within an organization, ensuring that the people who are doing the work are also able to make the decisions needed to get the job done.
  • Organizations are best served by having clear givens (non-negotiables) within which decision-making can happen. Givens are often determined by the formal leader or leadership team who has accountability for the performance of the organization, or may be determined collaboratively with members of an organization. These givens provide a container within which there is room for innovation, creativity, carrying out of authority, and making decisions. There are 5 Foundational Givens of Genuine Contact determined by the founders Birgitt Williams and Ward Williams, and additional Operating Givens determined collaboratively for work that happens within the Genuine Contact Organization.
  • Opportunities for discussion about the decision with those who have experience with the topic can lead to more sound and holistic decision-making. Therefore, we build in regular opportunities for mentoring and feedback within the regular work of the organization.
  • For improved implementation, the people who will be responsible for implementing the decision should participate in making it whenever possible, including during the development of the proposal for decision. Therefore, we use participatory work processes frequently, including in the decision-making process.
  • For improved monitoring and adjustment, those making decisions are encouraged to share the decisions they made and what they learned during implementation. This allows everyone involved to harvest learning and make improved decisions in future based on that learning.

The GCO’s decision-making matrix is organized by groups of people and the kinds of decisions they can make.

Members of the Genuine Contact Organization

Members of the Genuine Contact Organization are able to make decisions about how they conduct their work independently. When members come together in working partnerships, they make their own agreements about how decision-making will be done.

Their decisions must satisfy the Foundational Givens of Genuine Contact. They are able to make all decisions related to their work independently using the decision-making method of their choice.

They are supported in their decision-making through mentoring opportunities – whether real-time at a mentoring circle, via email in Google Group discussions, or through 1:1 mentoring with another colleague.

They are encouraged to share their experiences of working the Genuine Contact way to support the collective learning of all members and to improve future decision-making about the Genuine Contact way of working.

Authorized GC Trainers

People who have completed the Train the Trainer module and all of its prerequisites are authorized to teach these modules. As authorized GC Trainers, they are able to make decisions about the workshops they offer – public or in-house, online or in-person, the number of participants, the cost for participation, the facilitation design for the workshop, and more considerations are all up to the individual GC Trainer. GC Trainers who work together in partnership to offer GC Program workshops make their own private agreements about how this decision-making will be done.

Their decisions must satisfy the Foundational Givens of Genuine Contact. They are able to make all decisions related to their training using the decision-making method of their choice.

They are supported in their decision-making through mentoring opportunities – whether real-time at a mentoring circle, via email in the Google Group discussions, or through 1:1 mentoring with another colleague.

They are encouraged to share their facilitation designs and experiences facilitating GC Program modules with other Trainers to support the collective learning of all GC Trainers and to improve future decision-making about workshop facilitation.

Individuals, Project Teams, and Working Groups working IN the GCO

The international Genuine Contact Organization is a learning playground where members participate in the work of the organization as an opportunity to learn the inner workings of a Genuine Contact Organization first-hand. Members might take on work individually, as short-term teams who come together to complete a specific project (eg: the Strategic Plan Refresh Team), or as working groups that continue their work over a long period of time (eg: the Leadership Action Team).

Each individual, team, or group is able to make decisions for the purposes of completing their scope of work. The person/people doing the work make decisions about which decision-making method to use and are encouraged to use 5toFold as the GCO’s chosen decision-making method whenever possible and practical.

Their decisions must satisfy the Foundational Givens of Genuine Contact and current Operating Givens.

They are supported in their decision-making through mentoring opportunities – whether real-time at a mentoring circle, via email in the Google Group discussions, through 1:1 mentoring with another colleague, or with the Director of the GCO. They are also supported in their decision-making through cross-team collaboration, ensuring that work being done in the organization is able to take into consideration other work being done that may be of influence.

They are encouraged to harvest their learnings regularly throughout the completion of the scope of work and to share this learning harvest with other members of the organization in future mentoring opportunities to support the collective learning of all members and to improve future decision-making about project development and working the Genuine Contact way.

Stewards of Genuine Contact (GC Co-Owners)

As Stewards of Genuine Contact and leaders of the Genuine Contact Organization, GC Co-Owners are responsible for making decisions that:

  • will have an impact on the approved organizational budget
  • will have an impact on the organization as a whole including new operating givens
  • require a change in the Strategic direction or updates the strategic plan
  • are meant to essentially change any of the existing business assets and structure such as workbooks, operating givens, logo etc.

Their decisions must satisfy the Foundational Givens of Genuine Contact and current Operating Givens including the Decision-Making Operating Given that describes their decision-making process. In this process, the decision-making is done using 5toFold for decision-making. There is no quorum of Co-Owners that must attend for the decision to be made. Co-Owners trust that those who are able to attend the decision-making meeting are the right people to make the decision and will support the results.

They are supported in their decision-making through mentoring opportunities – whether real-time at a mentoring circle, via email in Google Group discussions, or through 1:1 mentoring with another colleague. They are also supported in their decision-making by participating in the proposal development process.

They are encouraged to harvest their learnings after making decisions and to share this learning harvest with other members of the organization in future mentoring opportunities to support the collective learning of all members and to improve future decision-making about the Genuine Contact way of working.

Director

The Director of the Genuine Contact Organization makes decisions according to the authority described in the Director Job Description.

The Proposal Process

The proposal process is only required for decisions that are made by Co-Owners, though it can be a helpful framework for decision-making for Members, Trainers, and those working in the GCO. This proposal process describes how 5toFold decision making is used within the Genuine Contact Organization. It is designed based on the Evolutionary Spiral. This guides the person or small group developing the proposal through 6 turns of the spiral.  Depending on the scope of work, the 6 turns of the spiral can be accomplished quickly or can be developed over several months. The proposal process has 6 steps to cover these 6 turns of the spiral: 

  1. Discernment: Drafting proposal (small group work with your chosen team)
  2. Readiness & Engagement: GCO Proposal Development Meeting based on the proposal draft (all GCO members invited to participate)
  3. Construction: Finalizing proposal based on initial draft and input from the GCO members (small group work with your chosen team)
  4. Construction: Decision Making Meeting including possible adjustments to the proposal as presented by the small group (all GCO members invited to participate + Stewards making the vote)
  5. Implementation: Based on the steps of implementation identified in the proposal, the sponsor begins implementing the decision, with supports from functional teams and the proposal working group as needed. Implementation is supported through participation in the Leadership Action Team.
  6. Monitoring & Adjustment: Considerations for monitoring and adjustment were developed during the proposal development phase. It can happen within the small group that is implementing the work and/or during the monthly Leadership Action Team meeting

Decision-Making within a Learning Playground

Our decision-making approach creates a rich environment for developing leadership capacity through real organizational practice. We work with an explicit decision-making matrix that clarifies what kinds of decisions can be made by whom – not just formal leaders, but members at every level of the organization. This transparency creates confidence and empowers people to exercise authority in their work, while our six-phase proposal process (based on the Evolutionary Spiral) offers members hands-on experience developing complex organizational decisions with built-in mentoring, cross-team collaboration, and opportunities to harvest learnings throughout implementation. Whether you’re making decisions independently, participating in proposal development, practicing 5toFold with your peers, or supporting others through the Leadership Action Team, you’re building the capacity to lead collaborative decision-making in your own organizations and communities.