consent

making decisions - who and how

Decisions in Circles are made by consent, including selection of people for Circle roles, except as required by law and/or as otherwise stated in the bylaws.

a. Meetings and decision making will generally proceed as outlined in the Consent and Meeting Process Summary Guide

b. Consent is defined as having no paramount argued objections.

i. Paramount objections are based on the purpose and responsibilities of a Circle and not on personal preferences.

ii. Argued objections have a clearly-stated rationale, allowing the Circle to collectively take responsibility for possible resolutions.

c. Before a decision can take effect, every member of a Circle must consent. Each Circle shall establish its own written policy defining a quorum for conducting business and its procedures for obtaining consent from absent members.

d. Inability to Reach Consent: If a Circle cannot achieve consent on a proposal within three meetings, the facilitator can delegate the decision to the next broader Circle.

e. The principle of consent shall not apply to all circle members in two classes of circle decisions:

Circle Elimination or Redefinition

The operations leader and representative(s) of the lower circle may participate in any discussion of dissolution or restructuring of their circle but their consent shall not be required for the higher circle to make a decision.

Personnel Decisions

A circle member or members about whom decisions are being made may participate in any discussions but shall be excluded from participation in consent decisions related to their own benefits of employment, compensation, or service.