No consensus for consensus

The adage that "two heads are better than one" is on the right track. In fact, research shows that consensus decisions reached by five or more people are most often qualitatively superior to individual, majority and leader decisions. Consensus decision making works - when properly used. However, having consensus decision making in the organization's arsenal does not necessary mean that it is regularly used to make the big decisions affecting the organization's future. In fact, organizations typically make strategic decisions without the leader obtaining consensus: In two-thirds of organizations the leader typically decides.