We often see teams trying to make decisions—about process, or estimation, or tooling, or budget, or even who sits where—in a centralized, nonconsultative way. Leaders pursuing efficiency and correctness make fundamental decisions and then communicate them to the team, expecting enthusiastic adoption of the new plan. All too often, as with the cake-mix customers, the reaction is decidedly less positive, with reluctant compliance at best or flat refusal at worst.
