Dynamic Governance (DG) is the way of the future. It’s closer to our “democratic” ideal and gives participants the maximum amount of power without anyone having power over anyone else.
*Developed by engineer Gerard Endenburg 40 years ago by trail and error using technical knowledge of systems theory, cybernetics, chaos theory, etc.
*Endenburg created at least thirteen innovations - many unique
*Can be used with any enterprise
*Fosters equality, social justice, and economic justice
*Also called Dynamic Self-Governance (DSG), and Sociocracy

Most of these benefits have been reported over and over by practitioners of DG:
*Reduces dysfunction
*Increases sense of belonging
*Fosters creativity and innovation
*Faster implementation of decisions
*Worker happiness/retention/enthusiasm/safety/attendance is high
*Adaptability of the enterprise is improved
*Improves selection of leadership
*Improves organizational effectiveness
*Fewer, shorter, better meetings
*One person or block cannot become too powerful
*Better focus on an enterprise’s aims
*High quality products and services
*Win-win-win for investors, management, and staff
*Improves client orientation

It is being used successfully in a large variety of enterprises around the world:
*Municipal police department
*Chain of hair salons
*Public school system
*Eldercare facility
*Medical research company (in my own Charlottesville, Virginia)
*Skateboard manufacturer
*Buddhist monastery
*The Compassionate Communication (NVC) movement
*U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC)

DG has four main elements:

Consent Decision-Making – looking for “no objection”
*For policy decisions only
*Uses ’rounds’ in which a person speaks without anyone else speaking
*An objection must be “paramount”
*An objection must have a reason
*The objection is used to amend the proposal
*Those experienced with consensus find consent faster and less contentious

Circle Processes
*Circles are semi-autonomous departments with their own aim
*Leading, doing, measuring
*Constant self-examination of input, transformation, and output

Double Linking
*A representative that brings power up the hierarchy
*This representative has the power of ‘consent’

Elections by Consent
*Brings out important information
*No one feels as though they lost
*Fun

Other elements
*Transparency – especially of financial information
*Vision, Mission, and Aims – agreed upon through consent
*Logbooks – for memory and continuity
*Connections - to outside the enterprise
*Remuneration – financial feedback to employees
*Self-ownership – the enterprise buys itself from it’s owners/investors

Difficulties adopting DG
*Requires more responsibility, commitment, and acceptance
*All issues come out on the table and skeletons come out of the closet
*People have to unlearn previous disempowerment - can take a year or more
*Can be disorienting - the enterprise constantly adapts to a changing environment