Max/Mix was: Experience with geeks in OST forums

Harrison Owen owenhh at mindspring.com
Mon Dec 24 05:37:25 PST 2001


At 12:36 AM 12/23/2001 -0500, Bruce wrote:
>Ah... right Harrison - I was forgetting how Kathy does it.
>We just plunk the "max mix" in a room and let them fight it
>out.. :)  I guess I'm calling any "representative" group
>that has been select as a cross section (vs selected by
>having a passion for an issue) a max/mix.

One of the essential keys to Open Space, in my experience, is voluntary
self selection. -- which insures that people are there because they care to
be there. Or if they don't care, they at least understand who is making
them miserable. I find that the closer we come to genuine voluntary
self-selection, the more powerful and effective the group. Of course there
are always those who say -- what about those with "important" areas of
expertise/authority/resources -- should they not be compelled in some way
to come? And yes, it would be nice if they were present -- but
expertise/authority/resources alone are insufficient -- some one has to
care to use them. This isn't about purity of the process, it is really
about simple pragmatic self-interest. It works. At a deeper level, I find
that there is also an opportunity for real learning. Suddenly it becomes
clear that our infatuation with experts has some short comings. Sure
knowledge is useful, but people who care find knowledge, and experts who
don't care tend to hide knowledge... etc, etc.

>Sometimes - and not always - when we have been asked to work
>with a group the "management" is leary of Open Space - and
>one key concern is that if we get all the staff together
>they it will just turn into a pissing match.  I know that OS
>will work  - You know that OS will work and yet still the
>fear of chaos reigns.   In this case we did a max/mix
>session for 3 hours with 18 folk and did some small group
>work and some large group work and some dialogue and in the
>end got enough of a "preview" of the sorts of issues that
>the dept would raise in the larger session that the
>management team finally understood that a whole system event
>would not lead to chaos.  In the end we got one day of
>tables of eight (max/mix) and one day of OS and a half day
>of convergence and that was as much space as the group could
>open.  Before the max/mix session we were expecting 80 of
>the dept of 140 to show up (the rest had to provide support)
>after the max/mix session 135 people signed up for the 3 day
>off site and the group self organized an off site war room.
>
>I think it was a good thing.  The max/mix was a bit of a
>safety net for them and the OS was a great experience.  Next
>time I think they would be willing to go straight to OS.  It
>would be great if we could find more clients who were ready
>and willing to go right into OS but we haven't solved that
>puzzle yet.

You are a better man that I am Charlie Brown, and certainly a more patient
one. I figure if folks really want to make themselves miserable, and work
in painful and non-productive ways that is their choice. I guess this is
where being an "old curmuddgin" comes in. My life is too short and too
sweet,  and the global stakes are too high and too dangerous to waste time
with folks don't don't really want to get on with the business.  Thank
goodness there are people like you Bruce.

Harrison

Harrison Owen
7808 River Falls Drive
Potomac, MD 20854 USA
phone 301-365-2093
Open Space Training www.openspaceworld.com
Open Space Institute www.openspaceworld.org
Personal website www.mindspring.com/~owenhh

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