FW: needing some advice

Harrison Owen hhowen at verizon.net
Sun Jul 29 11:31:41 PDT 2007


Sure -- and with a little practice you can do several at once, which really
gets the opposition confused. They thought they were just dealing with one
person, but it begins to look like a whole army! 

Harrison

-----Original Message-----
From: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU] On Behalf Of Pankaj
Bhargava
Sent: Saturday, July 28, 2007 1:29 PM
To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
Subject: Re: needing some advice

That's an interesting way to look at it. In practical terms would I be right
in understanding that Jon needs to identify a team willing to act, get them
going, share the outcomes publicly and then move on to the next. And keep
doing this till it is a critical mass.

Regards

Pankaj

-- original message --
Subject:	Re: needing some advice
From:	Harrison Owen <hhowen at verizon.net>
Date:		28th July 2007 7:10 am

Jon -- I think you "OD Intuition" is working splendidly. The strategy
proposed by "the opposition" is pretty obvious. They want you to create a
management team which they can control (overtly or covertly). But you must
understand, as I am sure you do understand, that this is an argument you can
never win. So don't argue -- Do! What I mean is don't get all philosophical,
focus on program and practicality. Specifically -- identify the concrete
programmatic needs/opportunities which involve everybody -- and open space,
after space, after space. Keep moving. Fast!! And each time you Open Space,
drive towards action. Create a website where action plans can be displayed,
conversations continued, and concrete results (presuming there are some)
celebrated. This really all about transparency. If you keep everything
public (not hidden in some "management committee") folks will quickly see
what is working and/or not -- and who is doing what, or not. 

I had essentially the same situation you are facing (I think) some 30 years
ago. My responsibility was to implement a (US) Congressional mandate
requiring the divisions of a very large federal (health) agency to
collaboratively pursue some new program directions that they had never seen
as part of their mission -- and had no desire to change. I had no budget, no
(official authority) and I was essentially brand new to the agency. My
advisors told me that I must immediately get some budget, claim authority
and force the action. I knew that would be ineffective -- but more to the
point -- suicidal. Instead I moved fast, usually below the radar and opened
programmatic spaces that challenged and excited people. As soon as the
action would start and take some definitive form I got out of the way. At
the end of the first year and a half, we had something like 100 million
dollars of other people's money committed to the new  collaborative program.
Now some 30 years later, the whole thing has become essentially a new
discipline with departments in most medical schools, a journal, and a
professional society. But you got to keep moving, open space, and get out of
the way.

Harrison

-----Original Message-----
From: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU] On Behalf Of Jon Harvey
Sent: Friday, July 27, 2007 6:44 PM
To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
Subject: needing some advice

Hi all

I have a new job - where my role is to coordinate the collaboration of a 
number of independent but connected agencies - they share a common 
concern but are geographically distinct. But they (and the public they 
serve) would greatly benefit from closer working between them - either 
by creating new joint functions or harmonising their existing 
operations. This can and will increase effectiveness and efficiency.

At the moment - I have no team as such beyond a very capable PA and a 
chap who has been allocated to me - on a temporary basis. I am three 
weeks into this new role. I see my role as helping to create the 
conditions into which these sovereign agencies (with some very forceful 
people at their helm) feel able and trustful enough so that they cede 
some of their autonomy and establish some new (arms length) business 
units. To date (before my arrival) - a number of business cases had been 
produced for taking this strategy forward.

My dilemma is this (and your perspectives would be helpful): I am 
getting pressure from one (and one other) of the more 'pushy' agencies 
to recruit and establish a programme management team that would (in 
effect) wrest control of these embryonic collaboration projects away 
from the agencies themselves and place it under the mantle of the 
regional programme team. The argument being that only with this level of 
'support' and 'drive' would the projects come to fruition. My OD bones 
are telling me otherwise - as I think I want to keep the space open - 
and have the ownership of the projects resting very firmly with the 
agencies themselves - in other words I think they have to own their own 
collaboration initiatives (not the central / regional team).

So am I wrong to sticking with my OD intuition?

If not - what should be my arguments for going for a more facilitative / 
hands off and slimmer team - that works in an open and OD way? (We have 
a critical meeting next week - and I fear there will be attempts to 
bounce me into the more directive programme team model - before I have 
had the chance to test the water some more - as the other agencies may 
also be thinking the same....)

It's is a bit complex I know - and I know I have also talked in some 
oblique code for the sake of confidentiality (I am afraid) - but your 
insights would be valuable. I can't think of a bunch of wiser kindred 
people than you lot on the OST listserv - who might be able to offer me 
some helpful / cogent / challenging advice...

In advance - thanks.

Jon

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>From  Mon Jul 30 13:26:44 2007
Message-Id: <MON.30.JUL.2007.132644.0100.>
Date: Mon, 30 Jul 2007 13:26:44 +0100
Reply-To: cliodhna at flowstone.org.uk
To: OSLIST <OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU>
From: cliodhna mulhern <cliodhna at flowstone.org.uk>
Subject: Re: advice found!
Content-Disposition: inline
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<P><SPAN style=3D"COLOR: #800080; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Hello Jon</SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: Arial">You have had some brilliant advice on=
 this Jon and I have loved reading this email string as I am in this situat=
ion myself more than occasionally...</SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: Arial">I have little more to add except some=
 reassurance for you...start as you mean to go on...show them whom the=
y have reruited...don't let them pull back from the commitment to change th=
ey made when they selected you...</SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Meanwhile a little African Proverb I =
learned at the weekend:</SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style=3D"COLOR: #800080; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><EM>If you want to go=
 faster, go alone. I</EM><EM>f you want to go further, go together.</EM></S=
PAN></P>
<P><SPAN style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Cliodhna Mulhern <BR>
</SPAN><SPAN style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: Arial">flowstone <BR>
+44(0)7929 328513 <BR>
<BR>
<SPAN style=3D"COLOR: #800080">"When people in leadership begin to serve a =
vision infused with a larger purpose, their work shifts naturally from prod=
ucing results to encouraging the growth of people who produce results." <BR>
<BR>
Presence: An Exploration of Profound Change in People, Organisations and So=
ciety by Peter M Senge, Otto Scharmer, Joseph Jaworski, Betty Sue Flowers <=
BR>
</SPAN></SPAN><BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<B>On Sun Jul 29 16:56 , Jon Harvey <ONLY.CONNECT at VIRGIN.NET>sent:<BR>
<BR>
</P></B>
<BLOCKQUOTE style=3D"PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5p=
x; BORDER-LEFT: #5167c6 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px"><DEFANGED_META http-e=
quiv=3D"Content-Type" content=3D"text/html;charset=3DISO-8859-1"><DEFANGED_=
BODY text=3D"#000099" bgcolor=3D"#ffffcc"><SPAN style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: Helve=
tica, Arial, sans-serif">Hi all<BR>
<BR>
Many thanks for your energy, insight and wisdom - I found all of you contri=
butions most helpful... <BR>
<BR>
I like your ideas, <B>Harrison </B>- neatly summarised as as "keep moving, =
open space, and get out of the way"! I liked you ideas, <B>Barry </B>to go =
local and work stealthily (with integrity) and get it all happening, I like=
d your ideas, <B>Avner </B>to loosen the agency boundaries and get the peop=
le with passion together and make progress. I like your ideas, <B>Pankaj </=
B>to get the results out into the open and exchanged. I liked your ideas, <=
B>Wendy </B>about harnessing the passion of conflict into a new direction b=
y 'placing a pebble' in the flow. I like your ideas, <B>Funda </B>and <B>Ke=
rry </B>to establish a virtual reporting hub.<BR>
<BR>
So much advice and support - many many thanks.<BR>
<BR>
(Keep it coming of course!!)<BR>
<BR>
atb<BR>
<BR>
Jon</SPAN><BR>
* * =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=
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>From  Mon Jul 30 12:01:49 2007
Message-Id: <MON.30.JUL.2007.120149.0400.>
Date: Mon, 30 Jul 2007 12:01:49 -0400
Reply-To: 76066.515 at compuserve.com
To: OSLIST <OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU>
From: douglas germann <76066.515 at compuserve.com>
Subject: Facilitator must be part of the conversations
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8
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Hi--

Peggy Holman's Change Handbook has a description of Conversation Cafés,
which raises the question: why would it be good for the facilitator to
take part in the conversation? What would be the advantages of taking
part?

After all, it appears that the host in Conversation Cafés does take
part, in circle process does take part, and in The World Café may take
part in the conversations.

The risks it seems to me: the facilitator is seen as the one with the
answers, simply because of standing at the front/center of the room; the
temptation, even subconsciously, to push your own agenda because of that
standing position.

But the advantages might outweigh: one more voice heard; a more
inclusive whole to the group.

We seem to avoid taking part in the conversations: Harrison takes a nap;
Michael only does it in a middle time slot.

Could we have a conversation about why it would be good to participate,
please?

			:- Doug.

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