How to Spot Fake Consensus in Leadership Meetings

Overview
This LinkedIn post outlines the common pitfall of mistaking silent agreement for true consensus in leadership meetings. It explains why fake consensus occurs, cites research, and provides actionable techniques for leaders to surface real disagreement and capture decisions in writing.

Key Takeaways

• Silent agreement often masks hidden dissent, leading to execution failures.
• Real alignment requires clarity on goals, conviction in tradeoffs, and commitment to outcomes.
• Practical steps: name the moment, force dissent, write decisions live, and assign a responsible owner.

Who Would Benefit

• CEOs and senior executives who run decision-making meetings.
• Engineering managers and technical leads responsible for team alignment.
• Anyone involved in product or project governance seeking better decision capture.

Frameworks and Methodologies

• Decision Transparency Framework (name the moment, force the disagree, write it live, assign a spine).