OS & Open Conferences

Mon Jan 10 06:35:41 PST 2011

Anne – You Sneaky Lady! And I suppose it may be a factor of increasing age and curmudgeonly disposition, but when faced with the suggestion of admixtures, alternatives, and/or dilutions of Open Space I obviously do not have your grace and patience. It really boils down to my aversion to wasting the participants’ time, the client’s time and my own. If there is something to be done that is worth while doing, the people who care are in the best position to accomplish the task, provided the essential time/space is available. In a word – Open Space. The suggestion that somehow “These Participants” will be unable to function effectively is to demean those people, consigning them to the bottom end of the intelligence/ability curve. Perhaps someday I will run into a truly aberrant group, but experience to date says that if the people fall generally within the classification Homo sapiens, they will do just fine. Of course clients, sponsors and facilitators do get nervous, but that is not the issue, though it may be the problem. I am reminded of the CEO of a large American corporation who reportedly said in reference to the employees, “Never turn the asylum over to the inmates.” With a corporate mindset like that it will not surprise you to learn that the useful mental and emotional space available in that place of work was minimal, closely paralleling an appalling lack of innovation and creativity. It should also come as a non-surprise to learn that when “the inmates” were introduced to open space, their performance was outstanding. Blew your socks off! As for the CEO – he survived. As a matter of fact, when last heard from he was laughing all the way to the bank to deposit the profits from the renewed innovation and creativity.

Yours timorously, 

Harrison

Harrison Owen

7808 River Falls Dr.

Potomac, MD 20854

USA

Phone 301-365-2093

www.openspaceworld.com

www.ho-image.com (Personal Website)

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From: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU] On Behalf Of ANNE BENNETT
Sent: Monday, January 10, 2011 7:19 AM
To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
Subject: Re: OS & Open Conferences

Hi Jon

I have indeed made fast and loose with OS form and process in such events - I appreciated greatly Lisa's skillful and instinctive list of key design and decision issues recently in response to the US+ 50 events extravaganza. I would add one of my typically esoteric points, which is about finding a way to be explicit about facsimile engagement which colludes with the starting nervousness and self-limits the experience and conclusions/perceptions of what OS is about...I feel it really is better to say "of course this is not the real thing/we are not doing the real thing because ...." and as one can expect a belated "but we could hack that/why did you under estimate us?" I embolden myself earlier on to push against the timorous prologue with the client....

Anne M Bennett

Champion Hill

London

  _____  

From: Jon Harvey <jon at jonharveyassociates.co.uk>
To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
Sent: Monday, 10 January, 2011 12:09:51
Subject: OS & Open Conferences

Dear all

I think I have managed to persuade a public conference producer to run (and charge for) one of their conferences using Open Space. I debated with her that the ‘talking heads’ type of conference with a smattering of workshops (which are usually mini plenary sessions too) could be so much more valuable and productive if OS was used. I said I would enquire if anyone else had done this – how did it go – what lessons did you draw?

This is something of a gamble I recognise, as this will not be quite the kind of issue that has to be solved yesterday kind of context. (Although given the current austerity measures which are sweeping across the UK public services right now – a lot of things have to be solved yesterday!) Also the people gathered will be a community of interest (ie they will all have signed up to come to the topic in questions) but not a community / group in any other way...

So what do people think – can this work – has this worked?

Many thanks

Very best wishes

Jon

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