Key Steps of a Consensus Process

1. How to do an internal agency’s assessment
2. How to do an external stakeholder’s assessment
3. How to select and work with a facilitator or mediator
4. Establishing a representative group
5. Establishing ground rules
6. Disclosing timing and funding constraints
7. Phases of work
8. Finalizing the Agreement

KEY STEP #8: Finalizing the Agreement

Plan for implementation beginning with the assessment:

Agencies should keep implementation in mind as they identify the participants and plan the overall process, work plan, and ground rules. Parties frequently overlook the implementation phase in the up-front planning, and the activities required to carry out and monitor the agreement do not get done.

Key decision makers and constituencies informed:

The facilitator works with participants to determine the best mechanism for keeping agency leaders and constituency groups informed and getting their feedback on issues and tentative agreements.

Different stakeholders usually make decisions in different ways. Some groups are hierarchical - representatives report to leadership who then decides. Some take votes and decide by majority rule. Other groups won't adopt their representative's recommendations until every member has accepted them. Some governments, such as town councils, may meet once a week and require advance notice before taking action. Thus, it can take several weeks for an agreement to be ratified.

The late mediator Frank Gaffney used to ask each representative at the organizational meeting to describe how his or her group made decisions and how long that took. Gaffney said people were always surprised by the answers and the different approaches to decision making. These different needs regarding ratification can be incorporated in the ground rules.

Ingredients for successful implementation:

There are a number of ways to improve the chances of implementation and to motivate participants to stay engaged throughout implementation. For example, a signing ceremony can showcase the achievement and give parties credit for their efforts. Such events give some public ownership of the outcome and the publicity can also make it harder for parties to back out. It is not necessary to wait until the end of the process to have a party. Celebrating success along the way can also build momentum. Studies of successful projects universally come up with the strategy of: Do something - - Celebrate again! When an implementation effort is designed with immediate, doable steps that are immediately publicized or celebrated, it creates positive momentum that influences people to stay engaged.