On "Failure"

[Denise Tennen]

thanks for sharing these, it is very useful.

Denise
On Jun 3, 2010, at 11:12 AM, Ralph Copleman wrote:

> Harrison and all,
>
> I've had a few that sort of fell flat.
>
> One involved a group concerned about availability of services for  
> senior citizens across an entire US state.  Two-thirds of the room  
> consisted of seniors themselves and, frankly, a lot of them ran out  
> of energy about an hour after lunch.  So they sat around, a number  
> slumping in chairs with eyes closed.
>
> Another involved an exploration of customer service issues for an  
> airline.  Lots of corporate leaders from the airline present, along  
> with their booking agents (this pre-dates internet booking sites),  
> frequent flyer customers, and corporate travel execs who make  
> travel policy for their companies.  A great mix, actually.  We were  
> set to go from 8:00 a.m to 4:00.  About 2:00, a group of  
> participants more or less seized control of the meeting somehow (I  
> wasn't in the room when it occurred) and got everyone to agree to  
> shorten the meeting by a full hour.  When I returned at 3:00,  
> someone simply informed me, and asked that I begin the closing  
> circle.  So that's what I did.  I never found out what actually  
> happened.
>
> Not sure how to think about that last one, since I never found out  
> how it all developed, but the following one is more like a true  
> failure.
>
> I was asked to convene a two-day open space gathering for about 200  
> folks from around the US.  It would be the annual meeting of an  
> association of a certain type of public health officer (cannot  
> recall the details).  The whole thing was pretty dead from the  
> outset –– I mean 200 people posting a total of only 15 sessions for  
> two whole days!?  I found out the theme was all wrong.  The  
> planning committee chose an idea that turned out to have no juice  
> for the association's members.  I had spent hours in conference  
> calls with the leadership group and the planning committee, and  
> they'd assured me that the idea they chose was at the heart of the  
> challenges facing them and their organizations.  Turns out that was  
> dead wrong.  Nobody else cared.  I don't know how I might have seen  
> through this situation ahead of time.
>
> I essentially agree with you, H.  If the conditions are  
> appropriate, it will work.  But, if the three experiences above  
> teach me anything, it's clear that stuff can always happens.
>
> Ralph Copleman
>
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