During the proposal process, there is first a stage called “opinion collection,” where the proposal is posted on a forum to see how others respond.
Gerard Endenburg from the Netherlands proposed a concept called Sociocracy, which provides a more comprehensive approach to collecting opinions.
- Understanding the issue: Study the background of the issue, list the key factors involved, and ensure the solution not only meets the needs but also avoids creating new problems in the future.
- Gathering ideas:
- Identify relevant dimensions to ensure the considerations are compatible and connected.
- Collect ideas from everyone, not only about the issue but also related perspectives.
- Integrate the opinions; 1-2 people (ideally including stakeholders and the proposal leader) should sort and integrate the collected ideas.
- If new issues arise, go back to the first step and reorganize.
- Present the proposal: Once the integration is complete, proceed with the proposal submission.
This is similar to our current opinion collection method but with some differences.
This method ensures that each proposal is shaped by collective wisdom, and having people participate in the discussion enhances community engagement, preventing situations where many people are unclear about the content when it’s time to vote.
Based on this approach, the current opinion collection method could be supplemented with the following practices:
- When collecting opinions, proactively invite people you think are relevant to the topic, including those you or the community regard as experts.
- Set a goal for your opinion collection. For example, if you think at least 5 people should participate in collecting opinions for the proposal, make an effort to invite more than 5 people.
- Design a reasonable timeframe—not too rushed but also not endless. Generally, two weeks is the minimum, but if the number of participants is large, four weeks could also be considered.
- When collecting opinions, provide a list of dimensions. For instance, allow people who join the discussion later to more accurately and enthusiastically offer opinions. You could first list out the “projects that should remain unchanged as a priority” and then ask others to add to this part, which will greatly improve efficiency.
- Invite another highly engaged participant to help organize the final proposal content.
在提案的过程中，会先经过一个「意见收集」的阶段，也就是贴到论坛上看看其他人的回应。
荷兰的Gerard Endenburg曾经提出一种叫全员参与制的概念中，对于意见收集有些更加完整的补充。
- 理解问题：研究问题的背景，列出背景中的关键因素，确保解决方案既解决需求，又不会在未来带来新的问题。
- 收集想法：
- 整理出相关维度，确保考虑的事项彼此兼容且相关。
- 收集大家的想法，不仅针对问题，还包括其他相关的观点。
- 整合意见，由1-2位（最好包括利益相关者和提案领导者）对收集的意见进行排序和整合。
- 若有新问题，返回第一步重新整理。
- 提出提案：整合完成后进入提案程序。
跟我们现在的收集意见方式类似，但是有些不同。
这个方法可以尽可能让每次提案都是透过集体智慧，而且众人参与提案的讨论也有助于整个社区的活跃度，避免很多人要投票时，对投票的内容不太清楚。
根据这个方法，现有的收集意见方式可以补充以下方法
- 收集意见时，主动邀请你认为跟这个主题相关的人参加讨论，其中包含你认为或是社区认为的专家对象
- 为你的意见收集设定一个目标，例如你认为这个提案至少要5个人参与意见收集，请努力邀请到超过5个人参与
- 适当的时间设计，不要过于仓促，但也不要无止无尽，一般来说两周是一个最短时间，但如果人数多，四周也是可以考虑的
- 收集提案时，提出维度列表，例如，让后续加入讨论的人可以更准确且踊跃的提出意见，例如可以先把自己想到要「优先考虑不变动的项目列出来」，然后请求其他人可以针对这个部分进行补充，这样效率也会提升很多。
- 邀请参与度最高的的另一个人一起协助整理最后提案内容
参考
https://www.sociocracyforall.org/participatory-proposal-writing/