Unasinous · Originally published
Picture this: The meeting ends with a unanimous decision. You think that's a job well done and thank everyone for all their hardworking and effort. Six months later you're behind schedule and over budget and the board is breathing down your neck. Another three months goes by, your product launch has failed, and you're checking your savings account to see how long you've got to find a new job.
Sound familiar?
Now... rewind to that meeting.
The presentation looked convincing. The programme dashboard was green. The supplier was confident, your team had worked incredibly hard, and everyone understood how important it was to get this over the line.
You asked whether there were any concerns. Nobody raised anything substantial. You approved the launch.
What you didn’t establish was whether everyone had reached the same conclusion for good reasons, or simply accepted the same reassuring story.
Unanimous agreement didn’t make the decision wrong. But it didn’t make it right either.
You thought you’d reached a unanimous decision. What you’d actually reached was an unasinous one.
Unasinous means united in ignorance. Not a room full of idiots, but a room full of capable people backing the same mistaken assumption. You might know it better as designed by committee, or groupthink. Each person took comfort from everyone else’s confidence, without checking what that confidence rested on - you’d mistaken agreement for evidence.
Next time, these five questions.
1. What are we actually agreeing to?
“Ready to launch” sounds clear until you ask everyone what it means.
The supplier means the system works. Your team means the work is finished. The board assumes customers can use it.
Spell out what needs to work, for whom, and what shortcomings you’re prepared to accept. Make sure you’re approving the same thing.
2. What’s the evidence?
Three reports saying the same thing might all come from one supplier’s assessment. That’s one opinion repeated, not three independent checks.
Follow the claim back to its source. What was tested? What passed? What wasn’t covered?
“Testing is complete” isn’t necessarily the same as “the product is ready”.
3. What would change our minds?
Agree what would make you proceed, pause or change course before the results arrive.
Don’t move the goalposts because the answer is inconvenient. Equally, don’t keep objecting once a concern has been properly resolved.
The evidence should be allowed to change everyone’s mind, including the sceptic’s.
4. Are we fixing the right problem?
The supplier missed another deadline. Perhaps they’re underperforming. Perhaps your requirements keep changing, or they’re waiting for a decision from you.
Check before choosing a remedy.
Replacing the supplier won’t fix a problem you’re about to hand to their replacement.
5. What happens next?
A list of concerns isn’t a plan.
Should you proceed, run another test, reduce the scope or stop? Who needs to do what, and by when?
Make the findings useful to the person who has to explain what’s happening on Monday.
Useful challenge, not another argument
You don’t need somebody who can find fault with everything. You need somebody who can identify what matters, investigate it properly and help you decide what to do.
Sometimes your plan stands up. Sometimes it needs changing. Either way, finding out while you still have options is worth more than being told afterwards what you should have asked.
At Unasinous, we ask the awkward questions, follow the evidence and help put the findings to work.
We’re not there to win the argument. We’re there to help you make decisions you can stand behind.
Preferably before you start checking your savings account.
Unasinous. The devil’s advocate your business needs.
Have a decision that needs testing or a reassuring report that leaves you uneasy? Start there. You don’t need a polished brief.