Fist-of-Five Decision-Making

Open	(5) Full support (endorsed by member with no concerns)
Open	(4) Agreement (endorsed by member with minor concerns)
	(3) Reservations, but can live with it (endorsed with reservations/caveats)
	(2) Don’t like it, won’t block it (endorsed but the member registers their disagreement, though they will support the group’s decision)
	(1) Cannot support it (member does not endorse)

Images by Laura Reeny from the Noun Project

Fist-of-five decision-making requires members to vote along the fist-of-five scale (above). An initial fist-of-five may be taken early in a discussion, to help identify members with reservations; typically, those members voting three or below are given the floor to discuss their concerns and the group/team will see if any amendments can help address those concerns. If a member votes (1) in the scale, they are blocking the group/team from endorsing the item. This method is typically used for decision items that involve significant discussion and endorsement from all team/members, such as a policy or standardization decision; through synthesis and discussion of ideas and issues, common ground (though not necessarily unanimity) is established.