The Workflow: Putting It All Together

Now that you understand Commitments, Decisions, and Actions, let's see how they work together in practice. This guide walks you through the complete workflow from meetings to planning to tracking progress.

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The Big Picture

During meetings → Capture Commitments and Decisions

In planning sessions → Create Actions

As work unfolds → Track, update, and learn

Each tool serves a different purpose at different stages of your group's work. Understanding the rhythm helps you use them effectively.

Step 1: During Meetings

Keep Your Ears Open

Listen for two different kinds of commitments:

Work your group tracks internally → These become Commitments

• "I'll send out the meeting notes by tomorrow"
• "I'll schedule the venue tour by Tuesday"
• "I'll update the contact database this Friday"

Strategic agreements → These become Decisions

• "We're launching a pilot youth cohort in Chicago and Atlanta by June"
• "We're shifting 50% of newsletter content to feature youth voices starting in April"
• "We're expanding partnerships by adding 10 new organizations by September"

The key question: "Does this need to appear on organizational reports, or can we track it internally?"

Capture in Real-Time

For Commitments:

When someone says "I'll handle that," capture it in the Meeting Space:

• Who is doing it
• What they're doing
• When it's happening

Example: "Alex will schedule venue tour by Tuesday"

For Decisions:

When your group reaches a strategic agreement, capture it in the Meeting Space:

• What was agreed to
• Who is responsible
• When or how it will happen

Example: "Launch pilot youth leadership cohort in Chicago and Atlanta by June. Director of Programs owns this work."

||Important: Only capture straightforward strategic agreements as real-time Decisions. If the decision is complex and needs more deliberation, use Group Voting instead (see Step 1B below).

Before the Meeting Ends

Read back what you captured to confirm everyone's on the same page:

"Okay, let me confirm what we captured today:

Commitments:

• Alex is scheduling the venue tour by Tuesday
• Jordan is updating the contact database this Friday
• Wei is sending the draft newsletter by March 25

Decisions:

• We're launching the youth cohort in Chicago and Atlanta by June, with the Director of Programs leading this

Sound right to everyone?"

This takes 2 minutes and prevents weeks of confusion.

After the Meeting

Use Email Results Now

The Meeting Space has an Email Results Now feature. Use it to send:

• Commitments people made
• Decisions the group agreed to

People respond better to clear action lists than long meeting notes.

Step 1B: For Complex Decisions, Use Group Voting

Some strategic decisions are too complex to agree on in the moment. They need time for people to understand, space to debate and shape the proposal, and a clear process for building genuine agreement.

That's when Group Leads use Group Voting.

When to Use Group Voting Instead of Real-time Decisions

Use Group Voting when:

• The decision needs detailed explanation
• Multiple stakeholders need to weigh in and shape the outcome
• Time for consideration will improve the decision
• Building genuine agreement matters more than speed
• The stakes are high and you want thorough vetting

Examples:

• Choosing between several program expansion options
• Committing to a major budget allocation
• Deciding on a significant organizational policy change

The Group Voting Process

1. Create a detailed proposal

• Brief description (what you're proposing)
• Detailed explanation (context, rationale, implications)
• Make it as clear and complete as possible

2. Set up voting

• Choose voting method (Consent, Consensus, or Majority)
• Select voters for this round
• Add any voting agreements (like maximum rounds)

3. Vote

• Team members review the proposal and vote
• Results show whether agreement was reached

4. Workshop if needed

• If the proposal doesn't pass, use the workshop space to:
• See who voted what and understand concerns
• Discuss together what would need to change
• Revise the proposal based on feedback
• Make changes visible to all voters

5. Vote again (if appropriate)

• Launch another voting round with the revised proposal
• Repeat as many times as needed to reach agreement

6. Convert to a Decision

• When the proposal passes, convert it to a Decision with one click
• This Decision appears on strategic reports, just like real-time Decisions

Learn everything about Group Voting →

Step 2: In Planning Sessions

Planning happens in the Planner, where you create Actions that show your strategic execution plan.

Review Your Context

Before creating Actions, review:

• What Decisions has your group made?
• What organizational strategies is your group responsible for activating?
• What strategic work needs to happen?

Create Strategic Actions

Actions aren't just to-do items for Decisions. They're your broader strategic execution plan.

Related to a Decision:

Decision: "Launch pilot youth cohort in Chicago and Atlanta by June"

Actions that support it:

• "Recruit 15 youth participants for Chicago cohort by May 1"
• "Develop youth leadership curriculum by April 15"
• "Secure program facilities in both cities by May 15"
• "Finalize partnership agreements with co-facilitators by April 1"

Ongoing strategic work:

Actions not tied to a specific Decision:

• "Maintain relationships with 15 key partner organizations throughout the year"
• "Conduct quarterly community listening sessions in three neighborhoods"
• "Produce monthly data reports on program outcomes"

Both types of Actions are valid. They all show strategic work that activates organizational strategy.

Keep Actions Strategic

Good Action (strategic):

"Secure $150K in funding for youth programming by June 30"

Not an Action (doesn't need organizational reporting):

"Jordan drafts the grant budget by March 10"

The grant budget work is important, but your group can track it internally. It could be a Commitment if your group needs visibility to it.

Ask yourself:

• Does this connect to organizational strategies?
• Would leadership care about this work?
• Is this the kind of work we want visible on strategic reports?

If yes to all three, it's probably a good Action.

Step 3: As Work Unfolds

Track Commitments

Check in at meetings:

• Did Commitments from last meeting get done?
• If not, why not? What got in the way?
• Does the Commitment need to be remade with a new timeline?

Address patterns:

If Commitments consistently aren't happening, investigate. Is the person overcommitted? Are priorities unclear? Is there a capacity issue?

Update Decisions as You Learn

Decisions are living—expect them to evolve.

When you learn new information that affects a Decision:

1. Update the Decision in the system
2. Add notes explaining what changed and why
3. Share the update with your group

Example evolution:

Original: "Launch youth cohort in Chicago, Atlanta, and Phoenix by June"

Updated: "Launch youth cohort in Chicago and Atlanta by June. Phoenix launch delayed to September due to partner staffing changes"

Notes: "Phoenix partner's Program Director resigned. New Director starts in August. We're building Phoenix cohort with their full participation starting in fall to maintain partnership quality."

This isn't failure—it's adaptive planning. Learn more about how Decisions evolve →

Track Action Progress

Update Action states regularly:

• Active - work is underway
• Closed: Complete - it's done
• Closed: Not Doing - you decided not to pursue this

Don't leave everything as "Active" forever. Mark things Complete or Not Doing so your group can see real progress.

If an Action isn't progressing:

• Is it blocked? By what?
• Do you need to break it into smaller Actions?
• Is it still strategic, or have priorities shifted?
• Should it be marked "Not Doing"?

Honest tracking helps your group learn and adapt.

Practical Guidance by Role

For Group Leads (Conveners and Sponsors)

During meetings:

• Listen for both Commitments and Decisions—they're different
• Ask clarifying questions: "Does this need organizational reporting?"
• Read back what was captured before the meeting ends
• Use Email Results Now to share clear action items

In planning:

• Review Decisions and organizational strategies
• Create Actions that show strategic execution
• Check: Are these truly strategic? Connected to organizational priorities?
• Keep work that doesn't need organizational visibility in Commitments

As work unfolds:

• Check in on Commitments—are people following through?
• Update Decisions when you learn something new
• Track Action progress—mark things Complete or Not Doing
• Share learning with leadership and other groups

For All Team Members

During meetings:

• Be clear when making commitments
• Distinguish between work you'll track internally and strategic agreements that need organizational visibility
• Speak up if a Decision or Commitment isn't clear

Between meetings:

• Follow through on Commitments
• If you can't, let the group know as soon as possible
• Share new information that might affect Decisions

In planning:

• Contribute to Action planning
• Help ensure Actions are truly strategic
• Be honest about capacity—don't create 50 Actions if you can only handle 10

As work unfolds:

• Watch what's actually happening
• If a Decision isn't working in practice, speak up
• If an Action is blocked, communicate it
• Embrace learning and adaptation

Common Workflow Questions

"How often should we review Actions?"

Monthly at minimum. Some groups review weekly. Find a rhythm that keeps you honest about progress without creating administrative burden.

"What if we forget to capture something during a meeting?"

Add it afterward. Better late than never. But build the habit of capturing in real-time—it's more accurate.

"Can we change a Commitment to a Decision later?"

Yes. If you realize something is more strategic than you thought, move it. The tools are here to serve your work, not the other way around.

"What if we disagree about whether something is strategic?"

Discuss it. Use the question: "Would leadership care about this specific agreement, or just about outcomes?" Over time, your group will develop shared judgment.

When Things Get Confusing

"We already decided this!"

Response: "Let's look at what's actually happening. What have we learned since then? Does the Decision need to update?"

"That's too detailed for a Decision."

Response: "You're right. Should we capture this as a Commitment instead? Or create an Action in the Planner?"

"Is this really strategic work?"

Response: "Let's test it. Does it connect to organizational strategies? Would leadership care about this work specifically? If yes, it's probably strategic."

The Complete Picture

Meeting Space:

• Capture Commitments your group tracks internally
• Capture strategic Decisions
• Use Email Results Now to share

Planner:

• Create strategic Actions
• Track Action progress
• Update as work unfolds

As reality teaches you:

• Follow through on Commitments
• Update Decisions when you learn
• Mark Actions Complete or Not Doing
• Build institutional knowledge

Together, these tools help your group:

• Track work effectively within your group
• Make strategic agreements visible
• Show how you're executing on strategy
• Learn and adapt over time

The Bottom Line

The workflow isn't complicated:

1. Capture Commitments and Decisions during meetings
2. Create Actions during planning
3. Track, update, and learn as work unfolds

What makes it powerful is using the right tool for the right purpose:

• Commitments for work your group tracks internally
• Decisions for strategic agreements
• Actions for strategic execution

Do this consistently, and your group's work becomes visible, your strategic alignment becomes clear, and your organization can see where strategy is actually being activated.

Learn about Commitments → | Learn about Decisions → | Learn about Actions → | Explore how Decisions evolve →

Updated on: 05/01/2026