Our interest in sociocracy stemmed from our study of nonviolent communication1, in particular, we were curious about its application across organizations and in "third spaces2", where people come together to build community.
Sociocracy3 is a dynamic governance approach that empowers peers looking to get things done, balancing equality, belonging, and effectiveness. It was integrated as a governance system by Gerard Edenburg in the Netherlands in the 1980s and has roots in natural systems, Quaker decision-making, and cybernetics. Today, sociocracy and its variants support municipal governments, school communities, cooperatives, non-profit organizations and movements.
We facilitate multidirectional collaborations that involve public agencies, non-profits, community knowledge-bearers, and civic institutions with shared goals. These partners come together to create temporary spaces where the public can share knowledge and experience a sense of belonging. Facilitating these collaborations through a sociocratic approach helps balance power across organizations, keep track of goals, build forward momentum, and brings greater transparency and structure to our work. When "every voice is heard" different kinds of agency can be acknowledged, enhancing our accountability to one another and to our work.
"Good governance is quiet"
— Ted Rau, co-founder, Sociocracy for All
The practices that we have found most helpful include formation of meeting circles or groups with clear domains (ensuring we can make decisions on the topics we bring to the table), proposal shaping for more complex needs, and consent decision-making. Meeting facilitation skills are very valuable. This includes co-creating agendas (available to all in advance), integrating rounds (everyone gets a chance to speak), and maintaining a backlog and action item log. Strategically incorporating feedback loops, such as evaluations at the end of meetings or when reaching milestones, along with surveys and comment cards, keeps us open to learning and improving our performance.
The backbone of our collaborations, the Partnerships Framework or Memorandum of Collaboration (MOC)[add link], is a relational tool developed by our team. We are excited to share that this tool now integrates sociocratic principles to guide collaboration across organizations. In the coming years we look forward to more opportunities to integrate sociocracy into our work.
References
[1] Nonviolent communication (NVC) is a communication process developed by psychologist Marshall Rosenberg, its purpose is to "fully value everyone's well being, and to create a certain quality of connection where everyone’s needs can be met through natural giving". Learn more at: https://www.cnvc.org ↩
[2] Third spaces are environments that are not either home or work, where people gather to learn, socialize, and build community. These often overlap with civic spaces such as community centers, libraries, and other public venues, could also include faith spaces and include virtual and in person formats.↩
[3] Sociocracy, basic concepts and principles: https://www.sociocracyforall.org/sociocracy/ ↩