jitske & deep democracy

Good conversations, better conflicts and the best decisions

In 2009, Jitske Kramer learned about Deep Democracy, became an instructor and worked with the Human Dimensions team to put the Lewis method of Deep Democracy on the map in the Netherlands.

Imagine that at the start of a strategic process, we didn’t say ‘I hope we can quickly reach an agreement.’ But instead: ‘how amazing it is to be here together with so many people, with so many different views, opinions and networks. With such diversity. Let’s use our collective wisdom, backgrounds and knowledge to the best of our abilities.’ What great things we might achieve together… But how to do this? How do we ensure that it is not always the same few people who talk during a management meeting? How do we ensure that all points of view are fully covered? That the larger whole is more important than individual egos? A keynote speech on the ‘wisdom of the minority’, with a special method that originated in post-apartheid South Africa. About sabotage, autocratic decisions, kings and sharks. Often painfully relatable and insightful. Based on the bestseller Deep Democracy.

‘The wisdom of the minority’

Thorough decisions and decisiveness

By incorporating the wisdom of the minority in a decision, fewer people will offer resistance and it will strengthen the quality of decisions. Obtaining a deep democratic mandate for your leadership will enable you to shift more quickly. Deep Democracy is a vision and method developed by Greg and Myrna Lewis, which leads to comprehensive decisions that enhance the decisiveness in a team or organization. By not avoiding differences and conflicting opinions but rather by involving them, we can make the undercurrent in groups visible and manageable. And then a decision-making process can be established with an eye for and appreciation of differing opinions. Without compromising and without glossing over conflicts.

video's deep democracy

deep democracy