In Sociocracy, who is responsible for timekeeping?

Everyone. The circle approves their agenda by consenting to it, ideally including time information for each agenda item. Everyone is responsible for keeping the meeting close to that agenda. If this is impossible, the agenda needs to be adjusted with everyone’s consent. By selecting a facilitator (by consent), the circle gives some authority to the facilitator for making operational decisions to allow the circle to stay in their agreed-upon time frame. For example, the facilitator might choose to time each member’s contribution in a round, or might choose to move to consent without a second reaction round, etc. The facilitator is generally asked to “police” the circle transparently, kindly and with consideration. The circle is asked to be considerate and intentional in how they follow the approved agenda.

For more information, check out our handbook Many Voices One Song chapter 5

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In our meetings, we ask somebody to volunteer to be time host and another one to be technical host for virtual meetings. Hence, the facilitator can focus on meeting flow.

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