Method guide · Work with a structured grid
Agreement and Certainty Matrix
Compare the nature of a challenge with the way it is currently being handled.
- People
- 4–40
- Base procedure time
- 50 minutes
- Recording
- Shared record
Purpose: Make a decision; Organise and narrow ideas.
English guide
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How this method works
Place challenges on two axes—agreement and certainty—to identify mismatches between a challenge and the way it is handled. Use it when people seek the same solution despite facing different kinds of challenges, repeated analysis is not helping them choose a next move, or they are unsure where to direct resources. Provisionally place challenges in areas where a routine can work, expert analysis is needed, learning through trials is appropriate, or stabilisation must come first. Compare the current response with routines, expert examination, small experiments or initial stabilisation to reveal where the type of response has been mistaken. The result is a four-quadrant record of the challenges, current responses and one action to reconsider. Do not use it on its own to establish a definitive diagnosis or to delay emergency decisions.
Phase schedule
Minutes are cumulative from the start of the base plan, not a live timer. Read scaling for any additional time. Phase controls do not advance automatically.
Use the arrow keys, Home or End while these controls have focus. The complete phase schedule remains below, including without JavaScript.
- Read the axes0–5 minutes from the start (5 minutes)
Action: Read. Participation: Everyone.
Recording not separately specified for this phase
- Collect challenges5–15 minutes from the start (10 minutes)
Action: Collect. Participation: Groups of 3–6.
Individual record
- Choose positions15–25 minutes from the start (10 minutes)
Action: Position. Participation: Groups of 3–6.
Shared record
- Assess the fit25–40 minutes from the start (15 minutes)
Action: Assess. Participation: Groups of 3–6.
Shared record
- Share patterns40–50 minutes from the start (10 minutes)
Action: Share. Participation: Everyone.
Shared record
Facilitation steps
- For 5 minutes, read through the agreement and certainty axes, the four areas and the responses used in each area together.
- For 3 minutes, each person writes down current challenges, one per sticky note.
- For 7 minutes, bring the notes together in groups of 3–6 and make a shared list, retaining overlapping challenges.
- For 10 minutes, provisionally place each challenge on the four-quadrant sheet using the agreement and certainty axes.
- For 15 minutes, choose one important challenge and assess the mismatch between its current handling and a response suited to its area.
- For 10 minutes, collect each group's mismatch and one action to reconsider on the wall, then look together for recurring patterns.
If something changes
If
Five minutes after positioning begins, discussion of one note's position has gone back and forth more than 3 times.
Then
Leave small marks at both possible positions and compare the different responses first.
If
Seven minutes into considering an important challenge, no current response has been written down.
Then
Write just one meeting, approval or trial that has already taken place this week on a sticky note.
If
During whole-group sharing, at least two thirds of all the notes are in the same area.
Then
Choose two notes from that area and read together how their reasons for placement differ.
Preparation
Materials
- One A3 four-quadrant sheet showing agreement and certainty per group of 3–6
- Approximately 8 challenge sticky notes per person, 75 × 75 mm
- Approximately 6 differently coloured sticky notes per group for current responses
- One thick pen per person, medium tip or wider
- One wall or large paper surface for the whole-group display
Room and setup
- One island table per group of 3–6; distribute people evenly
- One wall for the quadrant sheets, visible to everyone
Adjust for people and time
With fewer than 4 people, there is little comparison of reasons for placement; shorten the activity to individual organisation. Up to 24 people, form groups of 3–6 with group sizes differing by no more than one, and use one quadrant sheet per group. Above 24, keep groups of 3–6, but each group moves only one important challenge to the shared wall. With 40 people, there are seven groups: allow 1 minute per group for whole-group sharing and read the remaining placements by walking along the wall.
Safety and non-applicable situations
Treat positions as provisional rather than definitive diagnoses. Do not let the mapping delay emergency action. If placement is disputed, keep both possible positions and compare the implications for the response.
Manuscript's recorded references
These translate the original manuscript's source and rights claims. They remain separate from any current-page notice below; they do not establish new verification.
- Liberating Structures Fieldbook (2026): Agreement and Certainty Matrix — Henri Lipmanowicz / Keith McCandless / Nancy White
https://www.liberatingstructures.com/agreement-and-certainty
Adaptation under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes made
- CC BY-SA 4.0
Current-page licence notice
This explanation is an adaptation for Taiwa no Fumen based on the official Liberating Structures page linked below. The manuscript's recorded references are listed separately from the web page checked on 17 October 2026.
Changes: the Japanese explanation and facilitation plan have been edited for Taiwa no Fumen. The English edition translates that Japanese manuscript; it is not a verbatim translation of the official page.
The LS-adapted text on this page, including this site's editorial and translation contributions, is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. When reusing it, credit the creators, identify the source and licence, indicate changes, and follow the licence's ShareAlike terms when sharing adaptations.
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Credits on the checked source page
- Developed by: Henri Lipmanowicz, Keith McCandless
Related work credited on that page: Brenda Zimmerman; Plexus Institute.
Source page checked on 2026-10-17: Agreement and Certainty.
Source lineage
- Original repertoire (2013): Henri Lipmanowicz, Keith McCandless
- 2026 Fieldbook: Keith McCandless, Nancy White
Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International · Legal code · Official source policy
This material-specific notice does not itself establish publication clearance. Preserved manuscript references above remain separate from the current page's credits and licence evidence.
Diagram, print, and video language
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Editorial provenance
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