[OSList] Virtual Open Space

Tue Jan 31 08:49:08 PST 2012

Hello All.

This is long. Just a warning. 

I mostly lurk. My wife, Elaine Hansen, posts more than I do, and was Suzanne Daigle’s partner on the Global Conversation around Brene Brown’s work, which you can learn about  here:

http://global-conversation.posterous.com/

I was one of the conductors on the call, getting people into small groups so they could talk. One of the coolest features, I thought, was the visual recording.

Before going any further I just want to say that even though I don’t participate very often, I love the conversations that occur on this list-serv – the sense of respect and community inspires me, and there have been some posts (often from Harrison)  that overwhelm me (in a good sense.)  

Something to know is that I really like virtual. I work pretty much virtually all the time – occasional on-sight meetings are necessary, but most of the time I don’t need to be in an office to do my work. Elaine and I use MaestroConference to host monthly meetings we call A Small Group in the Clouds in which our intention is to give people an experience that is like the A Small Group meetings started by Peter Block in Cincinnati.  

>From my perspective, the critical issue in virtual space (or in-person space, for that matter) is creating and holding a safe vessel.  I believe the critical issue in creating a safe vessel is the ability to replace advice, fixing, saving, rescuing, and advocacy with curiosity.

And finally, I have lately been taking to saying that I am not a purist. I will mix whatever “technologies” I need to mix (ASG, Open Space, World Café, Art of Hosting) to create an event that participants find valuable. 

I also start from the place of what can technology provide, rather than what are the limits of technology.  On the Global Conversation, we had people from Toronto to Taiwan.  (I am not sure that was literally true, but I know that we had people in those time zones) And they didn’t have to pay anything except telephone charges. The folks at MaestroConference have several options available for international connections.

In our ASG in the Clouds events, I  have found that technology pretty much can disappear when you get people in small groups with a powerful question to start the discussion and curiosity reigns. 

If you do want to check out MaestroConference,  I would appreciate it if you would use our affiliate link to start the process. 

 <http://maestroconference.com/specials?w=home&p=HansenRD> http://maestroconference.com/specials?w=home&p=HansenRD

It won’t cost you anything more, and may lead to some payment for us.  MaestroConference costs $47 for 50 lines, $97 for 100 lines, and $187 for 200 lines.  

The only thing I have seen in the list-serv discussion that I have a radically different perspective on is that MaestroConference is not designed for moderated discussions but rather for un-moderated discussions.  It is true participants have to be moved to the group of their choice. But there are some options available to give participants the opportunity to choose (if not actually control)  what group they join and ways to make it possible  move to another conversation or to just find a “space” to hang out.

To provide some answers to David’s questions. 

- How can you do a virtual open space?

>From what I can tell, depending on your needs and budget, you may have to mix technologies. 

One platform that, according to their website, is a one-stop shop is Blackboard. I don’t know much about Blackboard, except that I tried to get on a Blackboard webinar with Thiagi  a while ago and it was impossible to get it started, so I didn’t join. I was able to go back and watch the webinar later, but was disappointed. Interaction occurred through chat, which I don’t like at all. The site says two-conversation is possible, however. 

The design in the discussion I saw using the FreeConferenceCall, Free ScreenSharing, and Google Docs is an option. I think that would work. 

I think MaestroConference can work.  The telephone is a pretty low barrier, and there are ways to allow question to be formulated by the group and allow people to choose what group they want to be moved to, and ways to get them to other groups or put them in a space to hang out, as I said. Elaine and I are beta-testers on a MaestroConference interface that would allow you to see pictures of who is in your group with you. You would need to add something like Google Docs in order to have a space for collaboration. Or maybe what used to be PBWiki. It has a new name now, but I forget what it is.  Or maybe a Wordpress site that has a plug-in to allow people to share documents and comments. I don’t know if there is a Wordpress plug in that would allow for white boards, but there maybe. Perhaps Basecamp from 37-signals, but I think that costs. 

- What's the same and different vs. a in-person open space?

One thing that I think is different is that getting started can take more time. Another is that judging the energy of the room is difficult. This is where distance and technology are a barrier. The lack of visual clues can make it difficult to  connect right away and hard to tell when people are ready to talk or are getting bored or are losing energy. 

We remind people to give their name when they start to talk and to say Done or Complete when they have finished. 

What’s the same is that conversations can become rich and meaningful. It goes back to the question and the ability to be curious. 

- What considerations are important in selecting a technology platform?

For me, the most important consideration is can participants actually talk to each other and can they break into small groups. The one-to-many webinars just don’t work for me. And I find chat abysmal. 

- What are your tips and suggestions for what may work and what may hinder?

I would suggest getting real clear on the purpose of the event rather than focusing on the conversational technology you want to use. From there, figure out a design that allows you to achieve that purpose. The design is both about the flow of the virtual conference and the design for the technologies (both the conversational technologies and the technology technologies) you want/need to use. 

What may hinder is the need for multiple ways to join the conference. I am used to it, so I often forget that people can get flustered if they have to do too many things to participate, such as call in over the telephone and then connect to FreeScreenShare  and then Google Docs via computer.

What also may hinder is trying to be completely rigid about the orthodoxy of the conversational technology. Virtual is not exactly the same as live.  Because of my experience with MaestroConference (and attending webinars that don’t work) I think I can design a conference that comes close, but it’s not going to be the same. 

You can respond here with questions (of course) or  email  me.  

eric at hansen-rd.com 

Eric Hansen

 <http://hansen-rd.com/> Hansen Resource Development Inc

Email: eric at hansen-rd.com

LandLine: 513.829.4734

Mobile: 513.238.5399

Skype: ehansen66

Fax: 513.829.5414 

iStock_Medium-stones-wee

...in the end, it is the reality of personal relationship that saves everything.

Thomas Merton

From: oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org [mailto:oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org] On Behalf Of Diane Gibeault
Sent: Sunday, January 29, 2012 7:59 PM
To: World wide Open Space Technology email list
Subject: Re: [OSList] Virtual Open Space

I agree whole heartedly with Harrison and others that OS in person is much much better. 

The next best thing is when you can hear people with the help of the internet or other systems. Seeing them is also possible but requires more technical support.  

I enjoyed the telephone "virtual" OS Suzanne Daigle organized recently. Since tone is an important element of communications it really brought each one of us in the room. We had a choice of topic eventhough the number of group members was limited so we could all have air time. This was a pilot but there was a feeling and spirit that is very close to OS events in person. With more time for group discussions, I think there are real possibilities for this format ...when you can't have the best ...ie being all there in person.

This group on Linked in may be a relevant resource - just came across it.

 <http://www.linkedin.com/groupsDirectory?itemaction=mclk&anetid=2971222&impid=2971222--1&pgkey=gyml_hp&actpref=rec_gyml&trk=rec_gyml&goback=%2Egdr_*2_*2> Virtual Facilitation SUBGROUP

This subgroup of the Professional Facilitators Network is sharing knowledge and experiences about Virtual Facilitation.

Diane

  _____  

From: Harrison Owen <hhowen at verizon.net>
To: 'World wide Open Space Technology email list' <oslist at lists.openspacetech.org> 
Sent: Sunday, January 29, 2012 4:18:04 PM
Subject: Re: [OSList] Virtual Open Space

My experience in this area is pretty limited, prompted I suspect by early experiences with “Cyber-open-space” in which it seemed that the technology overwhelmed the spirit. But I would guess that things are a lot better now, which is good. The one thing I can contribute is some experience with simultaneous multi-site OTS’s. We had three large (100 person) working groups in three cities divided by 3 time zones – which I thought was going to be a major problem. It wasn’t. Everybody just adopted the middle time zone for the duration of the gathering and it worked like a charm. Each site worked just like Open Space per usual, but as issues were posted anywhere they were then displayed in the other sites on video screens. The convener of each session (wherever) also gave their email address, so anybody choosing to join a group from a distant part used that to communicate. The convener (or somebody in the group) also provided online (email) a running summary of the discussion. Of course this involved a lot of laptops and full wifi. I am not sure that I liked it, but the participants seemed to, and they got the job done – which was a technical design project. Would I suggest doing it again? I am not sure.

Harrison 

Harrison Owen

7808 River Falls Dr.

Potomac, MD 20854

USA

189 Beaucaire Ave. (summer)

Camden, Maine 20854

Phone 301-365-2093

(summer)  207-763-3261

www.openspaceworld.com

www.ho-image.com (Personal Website)

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From: oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org [mailto:oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org] On Behalf Of David Osborne
Sent: Sunday, January 29, 2012 10:19 AM
To: World wide Open Space Technology email list
Subject: [OSList] Virtual Open Space

Hello All,

I am wondering if others could share experiences with virtual Open Space events? I have a diverse group of somewhere between 20 and 100 people that I would like to bring together in a virtual open space to address a somewhat urgent and important issue. I have questions such as...

- How can you do a virtual open space?

- What's the same and different vs. a in-person open space?

- What considerations are important in selecting a technology platform?

- What are your tips and suggestions for what may work and what may hinder?

I'm anxious to hear about other's experiences and am appreciative of your sharing.

David

David Osborne

dosborne at change-fusion.com

www.change-fusion.com

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