Happy Birthday
Michael M Pannwitz
mmpanne at snafu.de
Fri Feb 12 13:53:49 PST 1999
Dear Gerard,
happy birthday to your open space institute in the
netherlands.
Being so close, we should keep each other posted on our
local meetings so that people have a chance to meet.
Our next gathering is on Saturday, February 27 from 1pm
till 7pm at Tietzenweg 132, 12203 Berlin. For details on
how to get there and who to stay with in Berlin contact me
via email. (This is also an open invitation to all you
others out there in worldwide open space).
We started gathering after a one-day, 12 hour open space
training on Oct. 31, 1997 that was attended by about 65
colleagues, about half from Berlin. We called the Learning
Exchange (Lerngruppe) "Large group methodology in
transformational processes" (leave it to the Germans!!!)
and have met 6 times since 1997, so our February meeting
will be number 7.
Our format has always been open space. All gather at 1pm
and set up the space, two volunteers facilitate (their
reward is a feedback from the group, about 14 to 20
colleagues each time, with about 35 on the list of
participants). One half of the time is on whatever has
heart and meaning to the ones that show up (always much
more than can be handled), the other half is an OSONOS on
the open space that just occured or other method stuff.
About two thirds of the group members also attended the
training with Harrison in November 98 in Berlin so that we
now have a broad base of trained people in Berlin. I think
that the members of the learning exchange have collectively
facilitated about 80 open spaces with lots upcoming in
Berlin this year. Its a sort of tradition that whoever
facilitates gets someone to be a
co-facilitator/apprentice/intern/whatever and one or more
to do some documentation on the process and participate in
the evaluation.
One of the issues I am working on is to get away from
facilitating single open space events in the sense of this
is a great method for conducting a meeting/conference or
whatever and to focus rather on the much larger potential
of open space as a way of being for organisations.
Hope you keep opening spaces in the Netherlands and invite
you to come invade our Berlin space.
Love
michael
PS: A 13-minute film was produced during the November 98
training. It is short but captures well both the spiritual
level of os and its practical power. It is in German. It
costs DM 150 (we produced 100 "first" copies to refinance
the production).
We also have a stock of "Open Space Technology" and
"Expanding Our Now" and the special open space issue of "At
Work" at discount rates.
In September, we have Marvin Weisbord and Sandra Janoff in
Berlin for a future search training. I will send you the
invitation in a seperate email so not to clutter up the
listserve.-
Pannwitz
Draisweg 1
12209 Berlin
Germany
Tel.: 49 30 772 8000
Fax: 49 30 773 92 464
Pannwitz
Draisweg 1
12209 Berlin
Germany
Tel.: 49 30 772 8000
Fax: 49 30 773 92 464
Pannwitz
Draisweg 1
12209 Berlin
Germany
Tel.: 49 30 772 8000
Fax: 49 30 773 92 464
>From Sun Feb 14 13:28:37 1999
Message-Id: <SUN.14.FEB.1999.132837.0600.>
Date: Sun, 14 Feb 1999 13:28:37 -0600
Reply-To: dwcox at pawnee.astate.edu
To: OSLIST <OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU>
From: David Cox <dwcox at pawnee.astate.edu>
Subject: OS and an Org Dev Course
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT
I shared this with a few folks on the listserv that I thought would be
interested in it, but have been encouraged to share it with the total
list. For what it's worth....
Dave Cox
Open Space and an Organization Development Course
David W. Cox, Arkansas State University
BACKGROUND
At the end of the second year of doctoral course work (EdD in
Educational Leadership), students take a capstone Organization
Development in Education course. This year (Spring 1999), I
included Harrison Owen's two Berrett-Koehler publications as two
of three texts for the course. I also provided the eleven students
with the Open Space listserv address and Open Space web sites.
Goals for the course included experiencing a self-organizing
system and exploring the potential of Open Space Technology as
both a meeting process and as a way of life in organizations.
COURSE DESIGN
The first three sessions were devoted to traditional OD topics. A
day and a half retreat, using Open Space, was held in lieu of the
next six class sessions. Five classes were left blank (Open
Space) on the syllabus. The plan was that these would be filled in
as a result of course planning during the retreat. The last class
session concentrated on nuances related to Open Space
implementation.
Just as proceedings are produced at an Open Space event, the
plan was to produce a set of proceedings for the course.
Discussion and recommendations were initiated at the retreat by
inquiry groups. These same groups then took responsibility for
researching the topic and facilitating the class discussion at a
regular class session near the end of the term. A record of the
class discussions and recommendations was made by the
responsible inquiry group and an electronic record was turned over
to me shortly after that particular class session. I compiled the five
reports into a set of course proceedings and gave everyone a copy
of our collective work at the final class meeting.
THE RETREAT
The eleven students and I left on a Thursday afternoon for a 3 hour
trip to a conference center in the Ozark mountains. (Financing
was shared between the students and the department.) The
students had read Harrison's books as background so they had a
rough idea of what to expect. Open Space officially opened at 8:30
on Friday morning. The following question, which I gave
considerable thought to, served as the theme:
"Under the broad topic of bringing about positive change in an
organization, what areas of inquiry do you have a passion to pursue
and for which you will take responsibility?"
The students self-organized in an hour and inquiry groups were up
and running at 9:30. Using blocks of 75 minutes, two working group
sessions were held prior to lunch and two sessions were held after
lunch. A laptop was used in each breakout area to record the
discussion and recommendations. The group convened for Evening
News at 4:00. The eleven students generated eight topics.
Saturday reading and prioritization started at 9:00. The students
were given six decals (numbered 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1) and were asked to
award at least six points to their first priority, five to the second
priority, etc. Or they could distribute their 21 points across the
eight topics in any fashion they so chose. Seven of eight topics
received priority points. Convergence started around 9:30 with
planning for the five Open Space class meetings in the syllabus.
The idea was to build toward the end of the course with our top
priority as the topic for discussion on our next to final class
meeting. (The final night was devoted to talking about Open Space
itself.)
Two topics were combined for the first class meeting subsequent
to the retreat. Two other topics were combined for the second
class meeting after the retreat. Three topics, one per class night,
were left for the remaining class sessions.
As it turned out all eleven students were on multiple inquiry groups.
One student was on two inquiry groups, six students were on three
inquiry groups, and four students were on four inquiry groups. The
seven priority topics were convened by seven different students.
Action plans were quickly developed when all eleven students
huddled around a picnic table and each topic was brought up in
priority order. The students involved with that particular topic spoke
up, action steps for moving the topic forward were quickly outlined,
and the total group moved on to the next topic until planning was
completed for the five subsequent class sessions.
The Talking Stick Ceremony was used to officially close the space.
We departed for home before noon.
OBSERVATIONS
The wording of the retreat theme, which I had worried about for
some time, seemed to work well. I will retain it for the future.
Everything seemed to happen at an accelerated rate at the retreat.
Probably because of the size of the group and because the group
members knew each other so well. They had been together one
night every week for two years as a doctoral cohort group.
While three breakout areas were provided, only two were used.
Again I suspect group familiarity was behind the tendency to break
into comfortable, pre-established groupings. I also did not observe
theLaw of Two Feet being exercised or the existence of
bumblebees/butterflies.
This mature group of doctoral students took advantage of the
freedom to learn. There was no hesitancy whatsoever in stepping
forward to post topics on the community bulletin board. The spirit
of learning emerged and students took responsibility for their own
learning. Students indicated the retreat experience exceeded their
expectations.
It continues to mind boggling to see inspired, self-managed work
groups engage in "high learning" and "high play." The course
contained content which emerged from the group rather than being
handed down from the professor! Open Space helped these
particular students experience leadership, vision, community, and
learning organization in totally new ways. And, Open Space
helped me teach Organization Development from a fresh, exciting
new perspective.
The students and I explored the potential of moving Open Space
beyond an innovative retreat format and a unique strategic planning
tool into a routine way of conducting the business of an
organization. On the way Open Space certainly provided a
convenient vehicle for giving the course "Organization Development"
new practical meaning.
*****************************************************
David W. Cox
Professor of Education and Dept Chair
P.O.Box 2781
Arkansas State University
State University, AR 72467
(870) 972-3062 Office
(870) 972-3945 Fax
E-mail: dwcox at pawnee.astate.edu
Home Page: www.clt.astate.edu/dwcox
******************************************************
>From Fri Feb 19 09:45:59 1999
Message-Id: <FRI.19.FEB.1999.094559.0800.>
Date: Fri, 19 Feb 1999 09:45:59 -0800
Reply-To: katyd at earthlink.net
To: OSLIST <OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU>
From: Katy Dreyfuss <katyd at earthlink.net>
Organization: Dreyfuss Enterprises
Subject: Time Sensitive: LGIE Facilitation Seminar Openings
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Greetings! 3 spaces have opened up in next week's seminar in San
Francisco -- Whole System Transformation: Facilitating Large Group
Interactive Events. Last-minute business schedule changes caused 3
participants to offer their seminar spaces to other interested
consultants.
If you are still interested, I've included information below, and would
be happy to answer any questions you have via email or phone.
If you know of anyone else who might be interested in participating in
the seminar, feel free to share the information. I can send/fax a
brochure, as well. You can register directly with me, or online at
www.tixtogo.com.
Enjoy your day! Thanks for your time,
Katy
-------------------------------
Dreyfuss Enterprises presents...
Whole System Transformation:
Facilitating Large Group Interactive Events
A Training Seminar led by Kristine & Roland Sullivan
Contents below:
I. Workshop Brochure
II. LGIE Webpage Articles and Audio and Video Tape Resources
Draft of Workshop Content and convenient accommodations near the seminar
site are available upon request.
I. Workshop Brochure
Whole System Transformation:
Facilitating Large Group Interactive Events
During this three day seminar in San Francisco's Financial District,
internal and external consultants will learn the basic skills required
to facilitate whole systems change events, with groups ranging from 100
to 2,000 participants. We will cover the elements crucial to the
success of large group events, including key principles of whole scale
events such as the microcosm of the whole, real time, max-mix groups,
critical mass, and systems theory.
You will discover how to involve large numbers of participants in
interactive working sessions to create alignment, commitment and action
for total system transformation. These methods can be applied to
strategy development and deployment, work design, re-engineering,
culture change, organizational learning and other group challenges.
Seminar Structure
We will meet for one afternoon, one full day, and one morning (February
24-26) in the Financial District of San Francisco. The teaching
methodology will include lecture, dialogue, participant interaction,
case studies, and application to participant situations. We will use
Open Form technology to encourage interaction among participants and the
presenters. The Open Form is a highly transferable skill set that is
widely used in large group work, and can be applied to most interactive
consulting projects.
Who Should Attend
Line managers and leaders of organization change will benefit from
attending this seminar, as will consultants and specialists in:
. Change Management
. Human Resources
. Training and Consulting
. Organization Development
. Quality Management
. Strategic Design
. Learning Organizations
. Re-engineering and Work Restructuring
Why Work with Large Groups?
Inviting "the system" into one room is one of the most effective
solutions to today's common problems concerning chaotic, random and
surprise change. Founded on basic tenants of human and group dynamics,
this process transcends all cultures, industries and types of
communities and organizations. People of extremely diverse viewpoints
can collaborate and reach a common understanding, which yields a
collective determination in identifying and accomplishing specific
goals.
We know it is possible to deepen the dialogue between leadership and the
entire organization. Top management often seeks interactive conversation
that identifies common ground and leads to committed action. Large group
work stimulates conversation and action more quickly, effectively, and
economically than small group facilitation. This cooperation is
possible between as many as 2,000 people working in the same room
simultaneously.
One of the goals of large group events is to release a collective energy
into the system. The event design must ensure a solid connection between
the direction provided by the Leadership Team and the emotional support
provided by the entire organization.
The skills learned in large group interventions transfer rapidly into
the organization for diffused implementation and continued
organizational learning. As a large group facilitator, you will have a
vital role in this change process.
Seminar Content
We will cover the intricacies of a total-systems change process and how
it produces increased effectiveness and profitability in an enterprise.
You will learn how to:
. Grasp the underlying theories that drive the success of an event
. Recognize organizational readiness
. Acquire and align commitment from top management
. Understand the role and responsibilities of the Design Team and
Leadership Team
. Create leadership alignment
. Involve critical masses of employees in making decisions which
directly change their working environments
. Master the logistics of the grand event
. Facilitate with unique skills required for large group
interaction
. Apply what has been learned from extensive international
experience
. Identify and activate next steps for specific organizational
implementation
. Define the consultant's responsibility for the group interaction
. Manage the paradox of control and flexibility
. Meet the real time needs of the organization
In addition, you will learn to implement the Critical Change Management
Steps at each phase of the transformation process, including entry and
start-up, assessment for readiness, action planning, designing a total
system intervention, team building and preparatory interventions,
linking the change process to on-going organization learning, and
techniques for evaluation and measurement of results.
Materials and Handouts
This workshop will be loosely based on the book entitled The Essential
Handbook: Behind the Scenes of Large Group Interactive Events written by
Kristine Quade-Sullivan and Roland Sullivan and others. Each participant
will receive a copy of The Essential Handbook upon registration.
About the Facilitators
Kristine Quade-Sullivan is a Registered Organization Development
Practitioner (RODP). Combining her background as an attorney with her
Master's degree in Organizational Development from Pepperdine
University, Kristine links her management experience with her skills in
coaching, facilitating, planning, and project management for whole
systems change efforts with groups ranging from 8 to 2,000.
Kristine has guided teams from over 75 varied client systems from
divergent areas within corporations, across many levels of executives
and employees. She has facilitated leadership alignment, culture
change, quality process improvements, organizational redesign, support
system alignment, and the creation of clear strategic intent that
results in significant bottom line results. Kristine has served as
President of many organizations, and currently serves on numerous
strategic planning teams and as a corporate quality examiner utilizing
the National Malcolm Baldridge Quality Award criteria.
Kristine teaches Organization Development and Team building at the
University of St. Thomas and Mankato State University. With Roland, she
leads the Large Group Intervention curriculum at Pepperdine University.
Kristine was named the Minnesota OD Practitioner of the Year for 1996.
She co-authored The Essential Handbook and is a chapter contributor to
Practicing OD: A Consultants Guide, published by Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer.
Roland Sullivan has worked for 34 years with more than 700 organizations
around the world, from Fortune 10 corporations to major government
agencies to small- and mid-sized clients. From 1965 - 1985, he mastered
the art and science of utilizing small team dynamics in the context of
total systems change. Since 1985, he and his partner, Kristine, have
become prominent leaders in the field of large group facilitation.
Roland earned a master's degree in Organizational Development from
Loyola University in Chicago and Pepperdine University in Los Angeles,
and has written and published more than 100 monographs and articles.
Roland wrote the best-seller book, Practicing OD: A Consultant's Guide.
His work has been translated into Russian, Spanish and Hindi.
Roland was honored by his colleagues as the Minnesota OD Practitioner of
the Year and was named as a Wisdomkeeper by the Minnesota Chapter of
ASTD. In 1988, he was named as on of the ten most innovative and
effective HR consultants in Minnesota. In 1997 at the 17th World O.D.
Congress in Colima, Mexico, he was named the International OD Consultant
of the Year.
Kristine and Roland together have facilitated over 14,000 participants
in large change meetings, usually in groups of 300-800. They have
championed large group work around the world with their consulting in
Mexico, Ireland, Malaysia, South Africa, Canada, Europe
and India. In addition to being two of the most prominent facilitators
of large group interaction events, they are also leading experts at
building executive teams.
Kristine and Roland have been frequent presenters at the Organization
Development National Conference, the Congreso Internacional de
Desarrollo Organizacional in Mexico, ASTD International Association of
Facilitators, OD World Congress and the OD Institute Conference. An
audio tape of their presentation on "Emerging Issues in Large Group
Facilitation" is available from ACTS (800/642-2287, #LG9820).
Kristine and Roland are under contract to co-edit the new
Pfeiffer-Jossey Bass series on leading edge work for the field of OD.
The series is scheduled to begin publication in 2000.
For additional information about Facilitating Large Group Interactive
Events, please contact
Dreyfuss Enterprises 415/647-2188 Katyd at earthlink.net
Location: San Francisco State University Downtown Center
425 Market Street, SF CA 94102 415/904-7746
Schedule: 1-5 pm, Feb. 24
9-5 pm, Feb. 25
9-1 pm, Feb. 26
Cost: $375: Includes materials & lunch Feb. 25
($385 if you register online at www.tixtogo.com, with credit card.)
II. Web Page Articles, The Essential Handbook, Audio and Video Tape
Resources
1. Web Page
Go to www.tmn.com/quantum for two articles that support the workshop
content. At first page click on table of contents then articles, then
Large Group Interactive Events. This is a summary paper on our approach.
For a paper with skills needed for large group work go to "What we do"
under table of contents and click on: Large Group Skills.
2. The Essential Handbook is indispensible for anyone who is creating a
Support Team for a Large Group Interactive Event. If a Support Team,
also called a Logistics Team, does its job well, a Large Group
Interactive Event will run seamlessly. Written by Kristine
Quade-Sullivan, Roland Sullivan and others, it is available for $49 plus
shipping ($5 in the USA). The Handbook is included in the price of the
seminar. Contact
Dreyfuss Enterprises at 415/647-2188 or katyd at earthlink.net for more
information.
You can purchase the Handbook directly from Dreyfuss Enterprises, or
online at www.tixtogo.com ($58 with any credit card).
3. Audio Tapes
The following case studies or presentations of our work can be ordered
from Acts at the following web site:www.iwc.com/acts
The 7th American Forest Congress -- Panel, 1996 ODN Annual Conference.
Tape number OD96050A
Culture Change Through the Large Scale Interactive Process - The Nash
Finch Co. Story, 1997 Large Group Interventions for Organizational
Change. Tape number LG9704
Emerging Issues-Dialogue with Kristine and Roland Sullivan. Tape number
LG9820
Behind the Scenes of Large Group Interactive Events - R & K Sullivan,
1998 Large Group Intervention Conference. Tape number LG 9820
Facilitation of Large Group Interactive Events at the International
Association of Facilitators 1998 Conference.
Tape number is IAF98 124.2 It can be purchased from CAL Tapes.
1-800-360-1145
4. Video Tape
The ABSA Case. An 8 minute video tape of an award winning case in a
large financial organization. Excellent overview of this new change
technology. Can be ordered from Roland Sullivan for $25 plus shipping.
Phone 612-474-8363 or email at Roland at tmn.com.
Roland Sullivan
Quantum Change Associates
20020 Vine
Deephaven, MN 55331
Phone 612-474-8363
Fax 612-470-0481
Web page www.tmn.com/quantum
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Katy Dreyfuss
Dreyfuss Enterprises
San Francisco, CA
415/647-2188
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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