Gathering Information #10 Nominal Group Process

June 30, 2014

Ava S. Butler
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“Our group needs some discipline. A few outspoken people seem to be
infl uencing the thinking of the other meeting participants. If we are to
truly benefi t from everyone’s ideas, we need to fi nd a way to eliminate
this type of pressure. Do you have any ideas?”
#10 Nominal Group Process
What is Nominal Group Process?
Nominal Group Process is a technique that allows meeting participants
to express themselves without immediate outside infl uence. The
process involves having each group member individually think and write
down their thoughts about an issue or problem before presenting them
to the group verbally.
Nominal Group Process provides the time for participants to collect and
articulate their own thoughts before they hear other perspectives. This
creates fuller participation and assures that the most persuasive
individuals in the group do not impact and alter the valuable input of
the whole group.
When Do I Use Nominal Group Process?

 When you want to make sure individuals are doing their own
thinking

 When you want to be sure that you hear from everyone in the
meeting group

 When you need a method to collect maximum ideas in minimal

time

How Do I Use Nominal Group Process?

1. Introduce the issue or problem under consideration and the Nominal
Group Process technique. You might say, for example, “Before we can
solve this problem, we need to clearly understand it. Each of you has a
slightly diff erent perspective of the problem because of your diff erent
experience and areas of expertise. In order to fully understand
everyone’s point of view, let’s use a technique called Nominal Group
Process. This technique will allow us to each spend a few minutes
thinking quietly and individually about the problem. We will then share
our perspectives with each other so that we will have a more complete
picture to consider.”
2. Ask each member to write down their ideas about the specifi c
problem under consideration. Present the issue as a specifi c question or
set of open ended questions, and post your questions on chart paper or
an overhead. For example: “We’re having a problem delivering our
goods on time. When does it happen?” “What is the cause of the
problem?”
OPTION: Meeting participants can be asked to come to the meeting
already prepared to share this information.
NOTE: Do not ask more than two questions or the process will be too
slow. Do not use this method with big groups. Consider Card Clusters,
a technique where individuals silently write their ideas on sticky notes
and then cluster them into categories, instead.
3. Ask each participant to concisely share his or her thoughts, facts, or
ideas with the group.
a. Chart each person’s comments, one chart for each question asked.
NOTE: Post all charts around the room when the pages are full. (The
participants will need them as visual aids later on.)
b. Allow other participants to ask questions for clarifi cation, but they
may not evaluate or elaborate further at this time.
OPTION: Hold off on all questions for clarifi cation until after all ideas
from all participants have been documented.
4. Review all the shared information.
OPTION A: With input from the group, make a summary list that includes
all information while eliminating duplications.
OPTION B: Review all information and select three or four that are most
worthy of further exploration. Consider using Multivoting, where you
give each participant a fi nite number of votes to place on their
priorities, to accomplish this.
OPTION C: Ask the group for their reactions and conclusions. For
example: “What patterns do you see? In what areas do we have general
agreement? In what areas are there signifi cant disagreements? What
conclusions can we draw from this information? What additional
information do we need to gather?” Chart the group’s responses.
5. Summarize your fi ndings and determine how to proceed to address
the uncovered issues and the problem overall.
OPTION: Defi ne the problem with one statement that deals
comprehensively with all the information gathered. Use that statement
as a basis for problem solving.
In Summary:
Nominal Group Process is a technique for gathering problem-solving
information from all meeting participants individually and later
evaluating and prioritizing that information as a group.
1. Introduce the issue or problem under consideration and the Nominal
Group Process technique.
2. Ask each person to write his or her ideas to the question/s you have
posed.
3. Ask each participant to share his or her responses to the questions.
Chart their responses.
4. Review the information as a group.
5. Summarize your fi ndings and determine how to proceed.
Source:
A.L. Debecq and A.H. Van de Ven, “A Group Process Model for Problem
Identifi cation and Program Planning”, Journal of Applied Behavioral
Science, 7, 1971.