SV: Advice for an OS for learning & sharing for software developers

[Lise Damkjær]

Hallo Harold,

As an engineer and open space-freak I have to answer your beautiful
challenge! I do understand your questions, but calm down, I'm sure the
engineers will surprise you (and probably themselves aswell)!
The theme should at least engage yourself - and be a question, that you and
your colleagues don't know how to answer, but really want to know it! Don't
be afraid of making the question too difficult - in open space no question
is too difficult.
Maybe you should expand your own thinking of engineers - don't you recognize
them as ambitious, deeply involved in their own stuff, resultoriented as
well as "reserved" - My guess is that you can give them a theme building
upon the believe that they are deeply concerned about something, concerned
enough to speak and suggest sessions - and hold your own suggestions until
at least 15 other suggestions are raised...

I'm sure open space will work and you will do a good job!

Lise
Copenhagen, Denmark

-----Oprindelig meddelelse-----
Fra: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU] På vegne af Harold
Shinsato
Sendt: 14. januar 2008 17:26
Til: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
Emne: Advice for an OS for learning & sharing for software developers

Dear Open Spacetronauts,

This is my first post to the list after an excellent training in San
Francisco in OS Facilitation from Lisa Heft.  With a one day OS coming up
that I'll be facilitating in February, I'm a little daunted by the process
of building the invitation and the theme and I have a few questions of how
to manage things during the event.

Some background, we used to be an independent engineering organization of
about 50 software developers, QA, documentation, and managers in several
locations in the U.S. and Europe.  We used to hold a conventionally
organized "Summit" with 2 tracks of presentations intended to share
information about the industry and our own work.  We would submit
suggestions and management would choose the presentations.  A few of the
sessions would be interactive, but most were powerpoint talking heads.

Last July our 150 person company was acquired by a 5000+ person company,
which is being acquired by SAP, (40,000+).  Even though we've been
"assimilated", we're still fairly intact as an engineering organization. 
I've been given the ok to hold one of the three days of the Engineering
Summit as Open Space.  It's a great chance to open up great conversations
about the strains and opportunities around the integration with a larger
company.

My questions for anyone who has done anything similar: How do I build an
invitation and a theme to best engage the participants?  Engineers are often
fairly reserved.  How can we best prepare them and get them engaged to
suggest conversation topics when the actual Open Space happens?  How can I
get them thinking outside the box of a PowerPoint lecture?  Is it possible
I'll need to suggest some topics to get them started?  Is it ok to talk
about possible topics in the invitation without overtly pushing and driving
the agenda?  Do I have to hold back from suggesting topics during the agenda
building session itself, even if I'm not in management.

Thanks so much for any help.

         Happy 2008!
         Harold

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