[OSList] 1,000 participants in 4 hours

[Lisa Heft]

Hi, Ms. Sharon Joy -

Sounds like you could do one hour open, 2 one-hour sessions, one hour  
close.
Huge room. (double the size of the number of participants - like a  
huge conference / exhibit building). As for any OS meeting.

The process does not change, just the logistics.
You can put 'arena' signs around to show people where to walk to their  
numbered discussion sessions. Other colleagues here have used  
balloons, signs hung from the ceiling and more.

Not starting in a big circle. Instead, a small platform in the center  
for you (and you still work in / indicate the round), and let's say  
270 pre-set circles of 15 chairs. Huge long wall for agenda - or maybe  
one wall for one of the discussion time agenda items and one wall for  
the other time. People start by sitting anywhere. Then they will go to  
their groups once the first session starts.

Post-its pre-affixed to (or time + location already printed on) to  
large-size topic signs.
People come up to one of the 'topic sign making stations' (tables with  
blank topic signs fanned out, plus markers), write their topic and  
name, come to the microphone at the end of that table, announce, then  
walk up to post their sign on the agenda wall.

You keep indicating the next topic announcer (and next, and next) in  
the round. All that creating the circle stuff can still happen with  
your (large) OST guidelines posted in the round, you in the center  
indicating in the round, people sitting in pre-created circles-of- 
chairs in the round.

It can help to pre-print "topic" and "convenor" on the big blank topic  
sheets - because with so many people it simply helps people remember  
to put those two things on their sign.

Closing Circle - people are sitting anywhere - in their last group.  
You invite comment and reflection by inviting people to come up to the  
same microphones sitting in stands at the end of each topic sign- 
making table.

Documentation is as challenging in a short OS of 4000 people as it is  
for a short OS of 20 people: in only 2 sessions people do not tend to  
want to step away to write up their notes.
So you have to think about that part - does a team transcribe the  
participants' hand-written notes after the event to create the Book of  
Proceedings?
Do you give each group a graphic template that helps them map out even  
the unanswered questions (not just the 'results' or 'therefores'?) Of  
course that also depends on how the information and relationships  
generated at the event will be used post-event.

So: I've done quite a number of these super-huge ones, with several  
thousand participants. The process never changes. The conversation is  
as intimate as always. What changes are logistics - sight, sound,  
traffic patterns, enough room.

Sorry for the possibly short-sounding text here - I'm poking my head  
up to send this note while on a client deadline.

You are amazing and they are lucky to have you, my dear!

I am looking forward to hearing other ideas from others who have done  
super-big OS events...

Lisa

Lisa Heft
Consultant, Facilitator, Educator
President Emerita, Open Space Institute US
Fellow, Columbia University Center for International Conflict Resolution
Opening Space



On Jul 9, 2013, at 5:38 PM, Sharon Joy Chao wrote:

> Need to figure a way of convening a thousand government people to go  
> through an exploratory discussion on high performance system, all  
> under 4 hours.
>
> This happens next week down south in the city of Cebu. The focus is  
> on the Philippine government service, its performance management  
> system and how it can be truly essential, responsive and life-giving.
>
> Gail West, my OS mentor friend, has provided me with some incredible  
> suggestions on how to proceed and she also advised me to post on  
> OSList.
>
> Any thoughts on how best to proceed with a cast of thousand in 4  
> hours time?
>
> Maraming Salamat.
  
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