Making Meetings More Efficient: The Power of Straw Polls
Efficient decision-making is the cornerstone of productive meetings. One tactic often used to improve this process is the use of straw polls to gauge opinions before delving into detailed discussions. Straw polls can streamline the decision-making process, for instance by quickly revealing that all group members are in agreement, and can improve the quality of the outcomes. Let's explore how managers can harness the power of straw polls, particularly multivoting, to make their meetings more efficient and effective.
The Benefits of Straw Polls
Straw polls are preliminary votes taken to see where people stand on an issue before engaging in detailed discussions. This technique is widely used in various settings, from juries to corporate boardrooms. Research from Michael Johnson of the University of Washington and his colleagues suggests that straw polls can significantly impact the quality of group decisions, depending on the voting method employed.
Different Types of Straw Polls
Researchers identified three primary types of preliminary voting methods:
Plurality Voting: Each participant selects one option. This method is common but often the least effective in reaching optimal decisions.
Ranked-Choice Voting: Participants rank options in order of preference. This method can provide more nuanced insights than plurality voting.
Multivoting: Participants have a set number of votes they can allocate across different options. Each participant allocates those votes among the different options to reflect their degree of certainty/preference. This method was found to be the most effective in leading to better group decisions.
Why Multivoting Works Best
Multivoting stands out because it encourages deeper consideration of each option before discussions begin. In a study simulating counterterrorism teams, groups using multivoting were more likely to identify the most threatening suspect correctly. This method requires participants to process information more critically, leading to more thoughtful and informed discussions.
Multivoting also helps mitigate "groupthink," a phenomenon where the desire for harmony or conformity results in an irrational or dysfunctional decision-making outcome. By allowing participants to express varying degrees of preference, multivoting keeps the decision-making process open and encourages diverse viewpoints.
Steps for Effective Use of Straw Polls in Meetings
Here are key steps managers can take to implement straw polls, especially multivoting, in their meetings:
Introduce the Concept: Explain to your team the purpose and process of straw polling. Emphasize that it’s a preliminary step to gauge initial opinions and foster deeper discussions.
Choose the Right Method: Depending on the decision at hand, select the appropriate voting method. For most scenarios with a manageable number of options, multivoting is recommended.
Set Clear Guidelines: Provide clear instructions on how participants should allocate their votes. For example, if there are three options, give each participant ten votes to distribute as they see fit.
Conduct the Poll: Have participants submit their votes anonymously to avoid social pressure and bias.
Analyze and Discuss Results: Review the distribution of votes with the team. Use this as a starting point for a detailed discussion, focusing on why certain options received more or fewer votes.
Encourage Open Dialogue: Foster an environment where team members feel comfortable discussing their reasoning. This helps uncover underlying insights and promotes a thorough evaluation of all options.
Make the Final Decision: After the discussion, conduct a final vote if necessary. The initial straw poll should have helped clarify preferences and facilitated a more informed decision.
Practical Applications
Multivoting can be particularly useful in scenarios such as:
Hiring Decisions: When choosing among a few candidates, allow team members to distribute their votes based on their assessment of each candidate’s strengths.
Project Prioritization: For teams deciding which projects to pursue, multivoting can highlight the most promising initiatives.
Strategic Planning: When evaluating strategic options, multivoting can help surface the most viable paths forward.
Conclusion
Straw polls, especially multivoting, are powerful tools for enhancing decision-making efficiency in meetings. By encouraging deeper initial consideration and reducing groupthink, they lead to better, more informed outcomes. Managers should integrate these methods into their meeting protocols to foster a more effective decision-making environment.
Implementing multivoting may require a shift in how meetings are typically conducted, but the benefits far outweigh the effort. By leveraging this approach, managers can ensure their teams are making the best possible decisions, ultimately driving better results for their organizations.
