This study examines staff perceptions of implementing Shared Decision Making (SDM) in Coordinated Individual Care Planning (CIP) in community mental health services. SDM promotes active service user involvement in planning support and treatment. The intervention was applied across three Swedish regions, each with a test site. Focus group interviews with trained psychiatric staff were analyzed using thematic analysis. Four themes emerged: learning-oriented responses, ongoing development, implementation challenges, and potential solutions. Findings raise questions about service user involvement in CIP and emphasize the importance of reconsidering professional power dynamics to enhance collaborative practice.