Engage Real Debate among Your Peers, Volunteers and Staff

"We welcome dissent here." Executives and volunteer leaders love to say that, understanding that it is important to include debate and fresh ideas.

However, including isn't the same thing as welcoming. Like an "open door" policy where the boss is only open to a certain kind of interruptions, sometimes inviting debate can be a pro forma exercise before following through on a leader’s predetermined path.

A thoughtful piece in Stanford Social Innovation Review, "Teaching Disagreement Is Leadership Work," speaks to that challenge and offers some advice about how to move beyond rubber-stamping-with-room-for-disagreement into something more authentic. The authors' main point is that dissent is a deliberate practice, not simply an agenda item.

Please select this link to read the complete article from Associations Now.