Unofficial veto power is the idea that one person (or, less frequently, a small subset of a group) has the power to stop progress. And that power is not granted to them by the rest of the group, any document, or cultural norm. “Progress” is a broad term, here. It’s allowing the group to make – or even consider—decisions. In some type of rational fashion. It’s abiding by decisions that are made. That veto power can be exerted in a variety of ways: from refusing to participate in the process, to leaving a meeting in progress, to insisting on more and more information, to denigrating every suggestion made. What to do about it?

First, be on the lookout for this behavior; avoid being solely focused on the issues to be addressed. Second, don’t let too many small incursions slide; that can worsen the situation. Third, challenge the use of unofficial veto power; firmly and politely. All of these actions are easier for an outside professional with no stake in the outcome, but if that’s not an option it is likely still worth the effort.

Do you have comments or suggestions about a topic or guest? An idea or question about conflict management or conflict resolution? Let me know at jb@dovetailresolutions.com! And you can learn more about me and my work as a mediator and a Certified CINERGY® Conflict Coach at www.dovetailresolutions.com and https://www.linkedin.com/in/janebeddall/.

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The challenge of unofficial veto power