Why and How Group Votes Work

For each Category, there is one Group that is responsible for managing it. Each of these Groups has a minimum of three Officers that are responsible for the Category's creation and for Waymark reviews to that Category. If a Group falls beneath the 3-Officer minimum, it will be in probation and new Waymarks will not be allowed to post to the Category until the 3-Officer minimum requirement is satisfied again.

When an Officer reviews a Waymark, he/she has a choice of approving, declining or sending the Waymark to Group Vote. When an Officer approves or declines a Waymark, no other acknowledgement from other Officers is required. The Officer is encouraged to write a comment when approving and required to write a comment when declining. When an Officer isn't sure whether to approve or decline a Waymark, he/she can send it to Group Vote.

Group Vote is a term of three days where the Officers can all review, vote and comment on the Waymark based on the three options: Approve, Decline and Abstain. The Group Vote can last for the full 3-day term or it can end when enough votes have been cast to establish a majority. A Waymark must have a 50% Approve vote to be Approved. Abstain votes do not register for or against the Waymark in the vote. In the situation of an equal Approve and Decline vote, the result will render an Approve.

For example:

If three Officers vote, Abstain, Decline and Approve, the Waymark will be Approved.

When an Officer calls a Group Vote for a Waymark, it can be for one of a few reasons:

1. He/She just doesn't want to decline the Waymark and would rather have the other Officers come to a consensus on the decision;
2. He/She is generally curious what the other Officers would decide in the same situation. By calling the Group Vote, the Officer is opening a dialogue and unifying how certain Waymarks will be handled;
3. He/She really wants the poster to make the changes that are necessary. By bringing in additional opinions, the posting Waymarker is presented with the views of a few (to several) people offering encouragement. It is less likely to be viewed as a rejection or an otherwise negative experience with multiple people giving encouragement for improvement.

Group Vote is a very useful tool that can be used to improve a Category and keep Officers consistent when reviewing waymarks.