The Ethelo platform provided structure, supported fluid dialogue and fostered transparency in decision making.

In the first round of interactions, 50 letters of intent were assessed against three criteria;

• Measurable social/environmental impact
• Action orientation
• Support of innovation/sector development

Vancity’s team of experts evaluated each organization accordingly using Ethelo’s integrated panels for rating and social commentary.

After the first stage of voting, the panel evaluated the 19 remaining candidates against a more selective set of conditions. In this second stage, however, Vancity wanted to attach further documentation. For this purpose, within each organization’s assessment panel Ethelo provided links to PDF files such as budgets, project timelines, and letters of support.

Vancity’s local food team also wanted to incorporate the expertise of stakeholders from Metro Vancouver and the BCFood Systems Network. On the one hand, the platform’s social dialogue capability allowed obtaining external insights, leading to a more robust analysis. On the other, it simultaneously served to keep an orderly record of the conversations.

The platform also encouraged complementary forms of dialogue. Ideas did not always come when participants needed them, as some experts (not necessarily introverted) required time to process and record their thoughts. For reasons like these, Vancity is now set to expand its use of Ethelo into their Community Grants Program.

“Ethelo proved very convenient; we could access it anywhere at any time. It also made it easier to share ideas, post questions, and be more honest in expressing comments,” said Pochailo.

The Evirofund evaluation illustrates some of the challenges in finding consensus during complex decisions.

 There were more than 38,000 different ways that the granting committee could have distributed the $400,000 in awards to the 19 finalist organizations. By finding scenarios that simultaneously met the criteria and accounted for the insights of many, Ethelo’s platform identified the most strongly supported shortlists of local food projects.

Ethelo’s ranking of shortlists not only met the budgetary and geographical criteria, but it also maximized the decision’s “strength of support” (an internal metric that shows the level of support and unanimity in a team of experts choosing among multiple options).

Alongside the many comments registered within the platform, the shortlist became a key ingredient for the committee’s final meeting. The judging panelists selected 90% of the platform’s presented recommendations, indicating how Ethelo’s harvesting of the collaborative insights of the panelists became an essential ingredient for arriving at a more robust and highly-supported solution.