5 ms·

Just 6 should be fine, the rule is "not over half", so half is ok.

by Thorrez 6y ago

wmf 6y ago
It's generally good to have an odd number of people on any kind of voting board so that there aren't ties.
- alanbernstein 6y ago
  Conventional wisdom... But I wonder if that is really true. If a tie indicates a truly divisive issue, might it be better to be stuck with the tie, and be forced to find a compromise?
  - gwd 6y ago
    > If a tie indicates a truly divisive issue, might it be better to be stuck with the tie, and be forced to find a compromise? If 3 people prefer the bike shed to be "pale blue" and the other 3 prefer it to be "cornflower blue", does that make the color a "divisive issue"? Ultimately, even for an issue where people have very strong feelings on both sides, it's far more important that forward progress be made. At some point, standing around arguing is only going to be counterproductive. I gave a talk on a particularly divisive decision we had to make a few years ago: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C0kiy56hGm8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C0kiy56hGm8
    - alanbernstein 6y ago
      Sure, bike shedding is a problem in general. I've been fortunate enough to have avoided it so far in my life, so I don't have much to say about it. Anyway, my question was meant to challenge the assumption that "it's far more important that forward progress be made". If you're trying to run a business, it's hard to argue with of course.
      - gwd 6y ago
        > Anyway, my question was meant to challenge the assumption that "it's far more important that forward progress be made". So just to be clear, what I certainly don't mean is that action should always be taken quickly without a proper consideration. Having a discussion is obviously important for understanding all the potential pros and cons of the various decisions. Additionally, it's really important that everyone feel like their voice is heard and their needs and preferences considered. I'm talking about once all that's done. Sometimes you have a discussion, everyone basically understands what the other people want and where they're coming from, you're pretty sure all the relevant factors have been considered, and half of the people still prefer A, and the other half prefer B. At that point, further discussion is often counterproductive.
- d_silin 6y ago
  A better solution is to have an even number of people, but have a tie-breaker vote token that is passed around between everyone in round-robin fashion. In the event of the tie, the tie-breaker vote owner resolves it and passes the to token to the next person. In this manner, the decision bias is averaged out between all of the board members.
  - zaarn 6y ago
    And how exactly is that worse than an uneven number of people? If there is an uneven number of people there is no bias of a tie breaker to balance out.
  - gostsamo 6y ago
    Whoever schedules the agenda can game the system by arranging the token to be in a preferred holder when there is a important decision to be made. Might happen ones in ten years, but bitterness does not have half-life.

Just 6 should be fine, the rule is "not over half", so half is ok.

wmf 6y ago

It's generally good to have an odd number of people on any kind of voting board so that there aren't ties.

alanbernstein 6y ago
Conventional wisdom... But I wonder if that is really true. If a tie indicates a truly divisive issue, might it be better to be stuck with the tie, and be forced to find a compromise?
- gwd 6y ago
  > If a tie indicates a truly divisive issue, might it be better to be stuck with the tie, and be forced to find a compromise? If 3 people prefer the bike shed to be "pale blue" and the other 3 prefer it to be "cornflower blue", does that make the color a "divisive issue"? Ultimately, even for an issue where people have very strong feelings on both sides, it's far more important that forward progress be made. At some point, standing around arguing is only going to be counterproductive. I gave a talk on a particularly divisive decision we had to make a few years ago: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C0kiy56hGm8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C0kiy56hGm8
  - alanbernstein 6y ago
    Sure, bike shedding is a problem in general. I've been fortunate enough to have avoided it so far in my life, so I don't have much to say about it. Anyway, my question was meant to challenge the assumption that "it's far more important that forward progress be made". If you're trying to run a business, it's hard to argue with of course.
    - gwd 6y ago
      > Anyway, my question was meant to challenge the assumption that "it's far more important that forward progress be made". So just to be clear, what I certainly don't mean is that action should always be taken quickly without a proper consideration. Having a discussion is obviously important for understanding all the potential pros and cons of the various decisions. Additionally, it's really important that everyone feel like their voice is heard and their needs and preferences considered. I'm talking about once all that's done. Sometimes you have a discussion, everyone basically understands what the other people want and where they're coming from, you're pretty sure all the relevant factors have been considered, and half of the people still prefer A, and the other half prefer B. At that point, further discussion is often counterproductive.
d_silin 6y ago
A better solution is to have an even number of people, but have a tie-breaker vote token that is passed around between everyone in round-robin fashion. In the event of the tie, the tie-breaker vote owner resolves it and passes the to token to the next person. In this manner, the decision bias is averaged out between all of the board members.
- zaarn 6y ago
  And how exactly is that worse than an uneven number of people? If there is an uneven number of people there is no bias of a tie breaker to balance out.
- gostsamo 6y ago
  Whoever schedules the agenda can game the system by arranging the token to be in a preferred holder when there is a important decision to be made. Might happen ones in ten years, but bitterness does not have half-life.