Earlier this week, we looked at the Abilene Paradox- a trap that groups often find themselves in when making decisions. The paradox, a common pitfall of group decision-making, can be identified by looking out for the red flags discussed in the post, but how do you guard against it?
- Identify Groupthink signals within your organization. Common signals include:
- Failure to create a plan B
- Excessive rationalization of decisions
- Pressure to conform
- Self-censorship of alternate opinions
- Make room for disagreement
- Encourage your people to stand up for their convictions
- Know how to manage conflict and keep it healthy
- Avoid language that plays on our tendency to agree with groups, such as:
- “Is anyone vehemently opposed to this?” Anyone slightly opposed won’t speak up
- “So we all agree, right?” Instead ask if anyone has anything to add
- “Where are your pom-poms, Ted?” If Ted offered constructive criticism, he probably won’t do it again
- Don’t use “rule by committee” where everyone must agree
- People are incentivized to agree, even if they inwardly don’t believe in the idea
- Unanimous agreement is rare and requires an inordinate amount of time to reach
- Re-configure groups
- Subgroups
- Different leaders
- Create avenues for staff to voice their opinion
- Anonymous Hotlines
- Ask people on-on one
- Blatantly ask if it’s a “trip to Abilene”
We all want to avoid pouring our resources into bad ideas. By putting in the effort to root out groupthink, you will not only become a more effective leader, but your team will be more motivated and will have more reason to take ownership of the projects they work on.
