Once Margaret Thatcher described consensus as to the opposite of leadership.  She felt that consensus is an abdication of leadership obligations; true leaders take you somewhere the group otherwise would never go. I believe, the need to “build consensus” can be an excuse to avoid making hard but necessary decisions.  Read about tough decisions At best it could be a well-intentioned but naive effort to achieve an impossible unanimity.  Regardless of the cause, the search for consensus can leave the organization locked in inactivity. At one…