Post in Building consensus online/definitions?[Scanned]

2008 Feb 07 17:09 UTC

We use online processes for gathering and collating qualitative comment
from large numbers of people.  We developed our own technology because
of exactly the problems Christoforos identifies with using forums.

As regards the meanings of consensus, one commonly used by practitioners
in the consensus building field is "what people can live with" - in
other words, an individual may not be enthusiastic about something but
still feel that the overall advantages of everybody agreeing outweighs
any reservations they themselves may have.

We have used online processes, for example, for the drafting of
documents (such as shared guidelines) that need the endorsement of many
organisations.  In that situation there is often recognition that the
perfect is not achievable and that a liveable consensus is better than
nothing.

There is still the question of how to analyse large numbers of
submissions.  The most we have handled is about 25,000 and it is pretty
time-consuming just to read them before you even work out what to do
with them.  A million?  Forget it.

Andrew Acland

Director | Dialogue by Design
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