Feedback and comments to OpenSpace-Online (long)

Tue Jan 21 11:44:44 PST 2003

Lisa:

Gabriela and I had a great conversation on holding space online vs. face
to face during OSonOSinOZ.  Check the proceedings of the online portion
of the event for the conversation:
http://www.openspaceworld.org/wiki/wiki/wiki.cgi?FacilitatingOpenSpaceOn
line <http://www.wsd1.org/nijimahkwa/Principalsmessage.htm> 

Chris

---
CHRIS CORRIGAN
Consultation - Facilitation
Open Space Technology

Bowen Island, BC, Canada
http://www.chriscorrigan.com
chris at chriscorrigan.com
-----Original Message-----
From: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU] On Behalf Of
Gabriela Ender
Sent: Tuesday, January 21, 2003 2:57 AM
To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
Subject: Feedback and comments to OpenSpace-Online (long)

Dear Lisa, dear David, dear colleagues!
last Friday / Saturday we have had a  follow-up (OSonOS in Australia) by
using the OpenSpace-Online real-time software. Open Space Colleagues
from all continents participated, everybody (other than Thomas Herrmann
- it was his third OS-Online) was new in that online method. Thomas and
his colleagues decided in Australia to have a four hour conference, and
the goal and title leaded us to choose the CLASSIC variant (without a
convergence phase). Thank you so much Thomas for your great work as an
OpenSpace-Online Organizer!
>From our view it was very good. The technique run again very stabil and
fast. In front of the event during the preparation time, and during the
real-time event we had nothing to do with serious support. There was
only a misunderstanding in using the right version. Unfortunately three
of the participants wanted to use the version from June, 2002. As we
found the reason, they installed the new one and could log-in and
participate quickly. (Sorry to Peggy, Helen, and Larry - we learned from
that!) In front of the conference David from Australia wrote to us:
"Gabriela, I just wanted to congratulate you on the clarity and
attention to detail in your instruction sheets for the online
conference. Extremely clear and logical and with all the appropriate
information you need (such as the url) clearly present and visually
linked. Great work! David"

This feedback is very helpful, because English is not our first
language, and for us it is very important, that we don´t produce
misunderstandings, and that "normal" users can manage everything alone.
We were really happy about this feedback, and about the fact, that it is
from "all" over the world easy to find access to the conference.

In the meanwhile many colleagues gave us feedback regarding their first
impressions (conference and documentation). Thank you so, so much for
all your compliments, and also for the tips. We collecting every tip and
suggestion. THANK YOU! Some of you asked me to write about some
experiences with OpenSpace-Online in the OSList. If you are interested
in general news, and invitation to public OpenSpace-Online conferences I
think it would be better to sign-in in our mailing-list, and to have
single conversations about details beside the OSList. But sometimes it
could be good to share special discussions with other OST colleagues.
Lisa Heft asked me to write something about an interesting question.
Lisa, thank you so much for your wonderful feedback and for your
question:

"Gabriella and Colleagues - I l-o-v-e-d participating in the recent
online OS!  Even though I am a kinetic+graphic learner and need all
those other senses working to do my best work.  You sure did well with
the graphics, with \'facilitation\', with designing a very OS-like
conferencing method! .... I have a question for you, Gabriella -- you
know how a \'live\' facilitator \'holds space\' during an event -- can
you share with us on OSLIST or directly to me (whatever is preferable)
how you hold space in this method / format?"

I want to make it short - but that would be in my own language easier
;-) Sorry for the long text!

When I got my deep flash with a real-time conference software in 1999 -
I saw this software in a very complex way. I saw, that the "space
holder" has to be at the same time the virtual conference center, the
real-time process (between 2,5 to 8 hours), the graphics, the ongoing
orientation (for each single person and for the whole group), the
principles and process of OST, the goal-oriented leaded structure, the
freedom for each participant, the virtual facilitaor COMOSO, a
comfortable and fast technique, a good access for many "normal" computer
users. All that BASED on the philosophy and values of "passion and
responsibilty"! 

It was my goal, that nobody (organizers and participants) must know OST,
that nobody needs a special methodological background or introduction in
front of such online conference. AND it was my goal, that each organizer
is free from third parties - also from internal or external, or special
trained online moderators. From my view and inner feeling it was
impossible to create such software with the permanent need of online
moderators. I felt that this would bring me away from my vision, which
should support freedom, independence, selforganization, passion, equal
democrazy, and self-responsibility. I felt that online-moderators would
/ could "sabotage" (unconsious or consious) the selforganized group work
on issues and themes. I felt, that in the future I/we never will be able
to control the quality of online moderators, and how they would/could
"manipulate, controll, and intervene". So, I decided to take care in
front of all by developing a tool - a space - in which groups are free
and safe to explore their own ressources, to be able to take
responsibilty for passion and interest. PLEASE know, that my thougths
about online-moderators regarding other online tools is very different.
I also see, that it can make verry much sense(!) to have online
moderators, e.g. in so many asynchron online spaces, which are more open
for many days, weeks, or month. But it was not my goal to create an
asynchron tool.

I felt from the first second, that the biggest challenge of all will be
the successful integration of a such virtual facilitation. I had the
deep, deep believe, that it will work. That task took most of our time -
that made this project in the background so very complex. In the front
all seems to be so easy - that is good! In the meanwhile I/we/others
KNOW - it works - everytime! And that makes me, and my team really
happy! 

AND if there would be the case, that no or very low energy will be in an
OpenSpace-Online - that can have many reasons. Who invited? How did
he/she invited? Did the participants came voluntary? Was the
sponsor/organizer really open for new results? Was the title of the
event still a current topic? Did the organizer choosed the right variant
(with or without convergence)? What was the bigger frame? What were/are
the givens? With all that questions I want to tell you, that I see
bigger new tasks for Change Facilitators and Leadership people.
OpenSpace-Online works very fine with that virtual facilitation. Our
tool is "only" a "few-hour-event". The main question is, how people are
using this little, but powerful tool. In worst case you will have no
passion and low energy during that few hours. But if people use that
tool, because they are really interested in working together - it works
very good. The experts are the participants - for example the CEO, or
the consultant is during this time one of the others. He/she is also
free to say this or that. It is up to them, who and in which way they
pay attention for single person or the whole group. Otherwise it depends
on the application field. It makes a big difference, if it is an
internal group of a company, a community, a network, or a public online
conference.

Lisa, your question is a good in order to explain my view from future
process facilitatings and the future role of change facilitators. The
challenges regarding communication in general became bigger and bigger.
One big task will be to build bridges between offline and online
communication, between different cultures, to create individuell designs
of collaboration, learning and change processes, to combine online and
offline methods, and to support clients to find their best own
architectures, and to help them to became more and more independent with
that all! 
Hope, that was a bit interesting for some of us. 

I am sending Love and Peace to all of you! 
Gabriela Ender

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
OpenSpace-Online GmbH - The Power of People
Resselsteig 30, 12209 Berlin, Germany  
eMail: contact at OpenSpace-Online.com  
website: http://www.OpenSpace-Online.com 
phone:  +49-(0)30-772 31 69    
fax:  +49-(0)30-77 39 20 21    

OpenSpace-Online® Real-Time Conference System
Coaching, Consulting & Change Facilitation
Open Change Network / List of Change Facilitators Worldwide
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
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