When the meeting cannot reach a decision, ask the decision-maker what information is missing. Write down the questions. Assign someone to answer each one and set a date to return to the decision.
That is the next useful outcome. Continuing the same discussion without new information is unlikely to resolve the gap.
Check who makes the call
A group can contribute without everyone sharing final decision authority. Name the decision-maker so participants know who will weigh the input and decide.
In the Mochary Method's issue template, the decision-maker reads the comments, acknowledges the contributors, and asks clarifying questions. Hearing people does not require adopting every suggestion.
Turn uncertainty into questions
Be specific about what prevents the decision.
Consider an illustrative software purchase. “We aren't ready” is hard to act on. “We need to know whether the tool can export our existing records” gives someone a concrete research task.
Other gaps might be the implementation effort, a resource conflict, or a tradeoff that hasn't been explained. Record the actual gap instead of asking everyone to “think about it.”
Assign the follow-up
For each question, record:
- The answer the decision-maker needs.
- The person responsible for finding it.
- The date it should be available in writing.
- When the decision-maker will review it.
Keep those actions in the team's tracker. Put the answers next to the issue so the next discussion starts with the new information.
Keep a time limit on discussion
Matt recommends time-boxing issue discussions according to their importance. If the decision isn't ready within that time, use the final minutes to define the follow-up.
A time limit is useful only if the group leaves knowing what happens next. Ending with “let's pick this up later” just recreates the same meeting.
Return to the original issue
At the next review, read the new answers and check whether they resolve the questions. Update the proposed solution if needed. When the decision is made, record it and the actions people agree to take.
The open issue should have an owner and a route to resolution, even while the answer is still uncertain.