[OSList] Control, Perceived Control, and the Loss Thereof

Mon Sep 12 08:57:59 PDT 2011

Dear All,

Thank you for your responses,  stimulating discussion and ideas as I move along this journey of discovery.

Best Wishes,

Keith.

From: oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org [mailto:oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org] On Behalf Of Suzanne Daigle
Sent: 11 September 2011 11:19 PM
To: World wide Open Space Technology email list
Subject: Re: [OSList] Control, Perceived Control, and the Loss Thereof

Reading rapidly through this thread about loss or perceived loss of control that senior leaders (and many others including me still) struggle with, I feel compassion.

Having worked with many leaders, many very good folks, knowing the expectations placed on them, roles they did not always ask for and knowing that they are under the microscope, resented and admired depending on where the wind blows, often isolated because people place them on a pedestal whether consciously or not, I feel compassion.

The opportunities for them to engage as we do, as many others do, talking out loud, going deep, exploring what self-organizing and shared leadership means, etc, these are not as available to them in their everyday life as it is to others. Society does not judge kindly when leaders speak from a place of uncertainty, just being human.  They are quick to criticize while spouting the opposite to all who will listen.

As I reflect on the rich conversations and the learning for me on this OS list which has become a second home, I ask myself, who do they talk to, these senior leaders, sharing doubts, asking questions, exploring how leadership can be different.

I didn't "get Open Space" right away.  It took me a while and actually, I will be wrestling and rejoicing with all that it brings in my life for the rest of my life. Plus the stakes for me were nowhere near what they are for leaders today.

So without fixing, hand-holding or steering, I just think about how hard it must be for leaders sometimes, knowing that it will appear hugely risky when they decide to go ahead with Open Space and all that it invites. When they do proceed,  I admire them much knowing the courage it took because everyone is always watching and judging! True they are not perfect, some are power hungry but I have also known many who are judged that way when in fact once you got to know them beyond the title, the responsibilities and the persona, they are like you and me and all of us.

As I was reading between the lines what we expect of our leaders in this shift to a different way of leading, it made me think of those folks, those leaders that I worked with and for, people who had to shut down mills because they were too old and we just couldn't justify the investments. It affected people's lives and entire communities. They painfully carried the weight of those decisions.

So it makes me pause and reflect that whatever we say to them in describing Open Space, how little or how much, tis not easy. Hopefully they, these leaders, will feel our genuine intention that in the end that we all want the same thing, organizations that are vibrant and successful albeit more chaotic with less control.

If Palestinians and Israelis could do it, with a little help from us, I'm sure these senior leaders can be convinced to try their hand at this too!  It's in the way we present the case for action and on that, I am still learning!

My humble thoughts,
Suzanne

On Sat, Sep 10, 2011 at 6:07 PM, Harrison Owen <hhowen at verizon.net<mailto:hhowen at verizon.net>> wrote:
Keith wrote: "Loss (or perceived loss?) of control is also something that some senior leaders struggle with."

True - and not only in Open Space. It may be my own perversity, but I find this to be a very useful struggle which may bring these folks to a deeper understanding of themselves, the organizations they serve, and the world in which we live. The actual truth of the matter (and for sure my personal experience) is that control of the sort they are afraid of losing never was theirs to begin with. Agonizing over  something the doesn't exist is not only a little silly, it also bespeaks of something approaching delusion, if not delusion itself. The pain of their agonizing is to be regretted, but it is a self inflicted wound, and unfortunately its impact is not limited to the nervous executive(s). It can (and often does) effect the entire organization in adverse and sometimes lethal ways. Space closes, innovation withers, agility get clunky - and organizational health shows critical signs of decline in terms of loss of productivity, efficiency, effectiveness - to say nothing of employee morale and self-respect. Not a pretty picture.

Given all of the above, I find that a little struggle is not only good for the soul but may also have a positive impact on the bottom line. Under the best of circumstances the nervous executive will discover Open Space to be a personally liberating experience. He/she will discover that good and powerful things can and do happen without benefit of his personal supervision. He/she will be amazed at the competence and quality of fellow workers, all of whom were presumed to possess limited understanding and intelligence. I remember one older, very senior executive who characterized himself as an "unreconstructed control freak," standing in the corner while 500 of "his" folks literally saved the company. He had a quizzical smile on his face and repeated, almost as a mantra. "Amazing. And they don't even seem to know that I am here."

Of course, there are those who will hang on until death. But even under those circumstances it usually turns out the Open Space worked just fine, even amazingly so - but what happened afterwards was a different story. In one situation, the 300 employees worked well and hard producing some 8 million dollars addition to the bottom line through new products and a series of cost savings. Job well done. But come Monday Morning, the CEO went back to his old ways of micromanagement. For the first several months, folks tried to help him understand, but six months along it became clear that his understanding and capacity for learning was minimal. In the 7th month, The Board fired the CEO. The decision was a no-brainer. The CEO's continued presence was going to cost some 8 million. Out!

There is no question in my mind that there are massive good works to be done coaching executives through their addiction to control. And it really is an addiction, I think, and should be treated as such. Those in the "Addiction Business" will tell you that, of the many barriers and difficulties to be faced and overcome - The Enabler is a major obstacle to health. Enablers are typically good hearted souls who in the name of sympathy, empathy and compassion do little things, and large, to effectively shield the addict from a direct confrontation with his/her addiction. I more than suspect that when we seek to shield an executive from the possibility of losing control in Open Space, we are doing something of the same sort, and for sure we are not doing anybody a favor. Should our efforts take the form of assuring people that "certain" items/issues will be kept carefully under protective cover (read "control"), that constitutes promises we can't keep. If the items/issues are truly important to somebody (other than the nervous executive) - they will be present, one way or another. If not in a "session" then for sure in some back hall conversations where it is most likely that they will fester and grow.

Pre-work, as Lisa Heft is wont to tell us, is important. But I find that (at least in the case of executive fears) it can be pretty straight forward. I simply describe what Open Space is and the kinds of results I have witnessed, making little reference to how it works - unless asked. In most cases we proceed directly to operational concerns: Theme, location, dates, etc. But in the event that the conversation moves to issues of control and the perceived lack of same, I tend to call for a time out, suggesting that maybe they need some more time to think about their needs and the appropriateness of Open Space. If I don't think they have heard me, I put it a little stronger. I suggest that they think about any other way to achieve their ends. And should they run out of options, call me back. I run about 50/50 on the call backs. But when they call they are ready to go. So am I.

Harrison

Harrison Owen
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Suzanne Daigle
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