Language: Español
Sociocracy combines consent decision-making, a decentralized system of authority and intentional processes to improve our decisions and processes over time into a governance system that supports effective and efficient process while increasing connection, listening and co-creation among members.
Sociocracy is used in businesses, communities, nonprofits, cooperatives, grassroots groups and in education. See the sociocracy resources on this page to get started.
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Books from Sociocracy for All
Many Voices One Song
The practical sociocracy handbook written by the co-founders of Sociocracy For All. 300 pages full of real-life support!
Let’s Decide Together
The definitive guidebook for practicing sociocracy with children. Children can decide with sociocracy too!
Sociocracy topics
Each of these short summaries gives you an overview of the sociocracy resources for you to learn more.
More: Selection process | Writing proposals | Implementation
Making group decisions: consent
Consent is the default decision-making method in sociocracy. In consent, a decision is made when no circle member has an objection. Every person will consent if they can accept the proposal, and object if the proposal has negative implications with respect to the circle’s shared aim.
A group moves to consent in the consent process: presenting the proposal and clarifying questions, quick reactions and a round of consent/objections.
Different from blocking a proposal in consensus decision-making, objections are welcomed as valuable information and they can be integrated by modifying the proposal, its term or its measurements.
Circles and roles: who decides what?
Decisions are made in circles, a defined team of people working together towards their circle’s aim. Circle members make collective policy decisions in their domain and they define operational roles to empower individuals to take on responsibility and circle roles to self-manage their circle.
Circles are connected through parent circle/sub-circle relationships of nested domains, leading to a system where everything can be decided locally in the system, without centralizing power at the center. To make sure two circles are connected, we double-link them with two people as members in both circles.
Sociocracy resources on structure: Overview article on structure
Meetings with sociocracy
Sociocratic meetings are inclusive and efficient with a clear format:
- Opening: check-in and ADMIN
- Content of the meeting
- Consent to agenda
- Agenda items
- Review
- Check-out (meeting evaluation)
Facilitation is a focus of sociocracy. Rounds – the practice of speaking one by one – are commonly used in meetings to keep equivalence and focus. Rounds also make it easy to run virtual meetings in video calls.
Performance
All sociocratic processes are built on the basic idea of continuous improvement. Feedback is a way to improve what we do, both by creating feedback-rich organizations, a commitment to interpersonal feedback and formal, peer-oriented performance reviews. Other practices are: meeting evaluations in meetings, reviews for all policy decisions and for role selections.
Leadership in sociocracy is peer-oriented and based on accountability to own commitments and to the circle. Many people also combine sociocracy with restorative justice or Nonviolent Communication to align their practice with their values and to improve their effectiveness and communication.
Selection process
A sociocratic circle chooses together who will fill an operational or circle role. The most common process to choose that person is the selection process with nominations, change round and consent.
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More sociocracy resources: articles and videos
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A Journey Across India to Unleash Everyone’s Potential
Gnanasekar Dhanapal
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Breaking Out of the Nonprofit Industrial Complex
Sociocracy is an alternative form of governance in non-profits that supports broad participation and equity in decision-making.
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Sociocracy & Montessori
What do Sociocracy and Montessori have in common?
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5 Ways you’re already using restorative practices
Language: Español 5 Ways you’re already using restorative practices and how to become even more restorative when using sociocracy “Don’t tell anyone else we’ve trained, but this is by […]
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Sociocracy: The Worker Co-op Operating System
Language: Español Sociocracy: The Worker Co-op Operating System (By John McNamara. Originally posted on workersparadise.) Over the last couple of years, I have had the incredible opportunity to work with Sociocracy […]
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Blue Scorcher: A bakery worker cooperative in the US sociocracy case study
Language: Español This case study is helpful if you: are part of a worker coop in any sector or would like to see a tried and tested, established implementation of […]
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The Legal Documentation of Sociocracy
Language: Español The Three Essential Documents To start a legal entity using sociocracy, it is essential to understand legal documentation. In creating an organization there are three foundational and inseparable […]
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Accountability in Community
Crystal Byrd Farmer | 19:00 UTC
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Circles in sociocracy: an effective organizational structure
Circle structure in sociocracy: nested circles, linking, helping circles and special circles.
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Slime Mold Intelligence, Open Source, and Self-Organization
Slime mold may not be good at staying put, but it sure has one thing going for it – it doesn’t get stuck! You can learn secrets of self-organizing from this ultimate innovator
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Self-organization – A leap into the unknown
Language: Español Self-organization – a leap into the unknown ‘What?! Self-organization ?! What is self-organization? We have already practiced socialism in this country and it did not work for us. […]
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Closing & Networking: Day 1
Ted Rau | Sep 28th, 17:40 – 18:00 UTC.
