The Roman Voting Technique for Agile Teams

[UPDATED: July 2024]

This is one of my all-time favorite techniques for quickly arriving at a consensus for Agile Teams. I use Roman Voting ALL the time because it is fast, easy, and fun. I have even had people tell me that the Roman Voting technique was the most memorable and valuable thing they have learned from my classes. I would often explain that this technique was used to decide the fate of gladiators in Ancient Rome, which apparently is NOT true!

For me, Roman Voting is a simple up or down vote made with thumbs. However, many other thoughtful Agile practitioners (here, here, and here) allow participants to vote with their thumbs sideways. I am not saying these people are wrong; I am saying that I do not include this variation since it confuses this technique with the Decider/Resolution protocol.

Here is what I call a "clean" Roman Voting technique.

1. Everyone votes at the same time. A thumbs up signifies a "yes" (or agreement), while a thumbs down signifies a "no" (or disagreement).
2. Count the number of thumbs up and thumbs down. The proposal either passes or fails depending on the decision-making rule (consensus or majority rules).

This technique is a powerful tool for Agile Teams to reach a consensus quickly. By simplifying the decision-making process with thumbs-up and thumbs-down votes, teams can efficiently move forward with a clear direction. While variations exist, sticking to a clean Roman Voting approach can enhance clarity and effectiveness. Consider incorporating this technique into your Agile practices to streamline decision-making and foster team collaboration. Embrace the simplicity and efficiency of Roman Voting to enhance your team's decision-making process.

We discuss Roman Voting and other techniques you can leverage with your teams in our Certified Scrum live, in-person, and online training courses and in our on-demand Advanced Scrum Certification courses.

Did you know that games and quick techniques like Roman Voting can be powerful resources for your teams? We love to teach and use games to help product and agile teams in their everyday work. In fact, Applied Frameworks Co-Founder and Chief Innovation Officer, Luke Hohmann wrote an entire book (Innovation Games) about leveraging games and incorporating the outcomes in the product development process.