[OSList] Open Space with Agile: Failure patterns

Fri Sep 27 18:31:33 PDT 2013

I learned this phrase in the context of meditation, Arno. I've heard
meditation teachers say about meditation practice that if we just "do the
practice" we'll get the results… usually this is in contrast to simply
talking about the practice or listening to teachings. This is akin to
saying "anyone with a good head and good heart can do open space…"  anyone
who does the practice can get the same results that os
teachers/practitioners, from harrison onward, have gotten.  Does this help?

On Friday, September 27, 2013, Arno Baltin wrote:

> Hi!
>
> I like this conversation about what OS is. And this practice notion is a
> bit complicated. I as non Enlgish speaker I looked for the meanings of the
> word and got confused. Could you Michael say it in other words what you
> mean that OS is practice (first of all). Especially when I read "do the
> practice" I cant understand the meaning.
>
> Be well,
>
> Arno
>
>
> *    *
>
>
> 2013/9/25 Michael Herman <michael at michaelherman.com <javascript:_e({},
> 'cvml', 'michael at michaelherman.com');>>
>
>> When I hear folks simplifying open space into a tool or technique, my
>> usual response is to point out that circle is a tool, bulletin board is a
>> tool, etc.  Open Space is a *practice*, incorporating a number of these
>> different tools.  And hopefully, my use of them together is getting more
>> and more skillful over time.  To me, "practice" includes the suggestion
>> that we do it once, as best we can, and then we try again, and again,
>> learning and refining as we go.
>>
>> My felt sense of this is a little different from "values and principles"
>> though I don't think calling OS or agile or scrum that is incorrect.  For
>> me the difference is that I hold values and principles, but practice is
>> something that *holds me*.
>>
>> I also like to suggest that open space is a robust practice, a sufficient
>> practice.  Everything that's needed is there in the basic story and
>> mechanisms.  We don't need to do anything more, add in different things.
>>  Just do the practice and we get the experience, get the learning, the
>> performance, the self-organizing, the breathing.
>>
>> Thanks for your story, Harold.
>>
>> M
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>>
>> Michael Herman
>> Michael Herman Associates
>> 312-280-7838 (mobile)
>>
>> http://MichaelHerman.com
>> http://OpenSpaceWorld.org
>>
>>
>>
>> On Mon, Sep 23, 2013 at 12:58 PM, Peggy Holman <peggy at peggyholman.com<javascript:_e({}, 'cvml', 'peggy at peggyholman.com');>
>> > wrote:
>>
>>> Harold,
>>>
>>> Thanks for bringing your knowledgable and eloquent perspective.
>>>
>>> Great to see these two communities working through an understanding of
>>> each other.  With you and others as translators, I think Agile is in good
>>> hands.
>>>
>>> Peggy
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>     __________________________________
>>> Peggy Holman
>>> Journalism that Matters
>>> 15347 SE 49th Place
>>> Bellevue, WA  98006
>>> 425-746-6274
>>> www.journalismthatmatters.org
>>> www.peggyholman.com
>>> Twitter: @peggyholman
>>> JTM Twitter: @JTMStream
>>>
>>> *Enjoy the award winning* Engaging Emergence: Turning Upheaval into
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>>> Check out my series on what's emerging in the news & information
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>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> On Sep 23, 2013, at 7:53 AM, Harold Shinsato <harold at SHINSATO.COM<javascript:_e({}, 'cvml', 'harold at SHINSATO.COM');>>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>>  Harrison,
>>>
>>> About your statement "Open Space is a terrible way to introduce some new
>>> process, and especially to assure 'buy in'".
>>>
>>> You're clearing going directly against the heart of what Dan is trying
>>> to promote. Maybe I invite disaster for myself by speaking an alternative
>>> view from what you are saying given your founding status of this community
>>> - but perhaps given my 12+ years working in the Agile space - I have
>>> something worthwhile to say.
>>>
>>> Harrison, you've been opposed to calling "Open Space" a tool. And I hear
>>> Lisa Heft (the best Open Space trainer) talking about it being a tool all
>>> the time.
>>>
>>> I agree with both of you. Open Space is most emphatically *not* a tool
>>> at it's heart. It's a set of values and principles. But it is also
>>> definitely a tool. Or as Dan says, a 'game'. A beautifully designed game.
>>>
>>> Agile is most DEFINITELY not a process. It's a set of values and
>>> principles. You can see this in the Agile Manifesto<http://agilemanifesto.org/>- especially the first item, we value Individuals and Interactions *over*
>>> Processes and Tools. Yes, the Agile community applies many very specific
>>> tools and processes. And very heated debates happen around the application
>>> (or misapplication) of those tools and processes, such as Scrum.
>>>
>>> But oddly - even Scrum isn't *Really* a tool or a process. At the heart
>>> of Scrum is also a set of principles and values. If you want to get a sense
>>> of this - go to the end of the first book on Scrum, by Schwaber & Beedle
>>> "Agile Software Development with Scrum" - where it lists the 5 values of
>>> Scrum - Commitment, Focus, Openness, Respect & Courage. Or read Tobias
>>> Meyer's "The People's Scrum". Very powerful assertion and meditation on the
>>> core values and how to apply the processes to get
>>>
>>> Open Space has already been used with great success to introduce,
>>> promote and sustain Agile in the world through many uses of Open Space in
>>> conferences such as the AgileOpen, Coaching Camps, and Open Agile Adoption
>>> such as what Dan Mezick is explaining. From my vantage point, Open Space is
>>> critical for helping the values and principles to be successfully absorbed.
>>>
>>> From my vantage point - Open Space Technology's values and principles
>>> are eternal and aren't going away. The Universe won't suddenly stop
>>> self-organizing. If anything, we'll only get better at understanding and
>>> dancing with Order and Chaos. This dance, with the help of Open Space
>>> Technology the Game (or Tool) has changed my life and infused it with
>>> spirit. I'm eternally grateful to you, Harrison, to Lisa Heft, and to and
>>> this community. And maybe Open Space Technology the game or tool will pass
>>> away. The same goes for Agile values and principles. They're eternal.
>>> They're not going away. The Process will never be more important than the
>>> Individuals. The People are always more important than the Game.
>>>
>>> BUT - there are powerful forces behind trying to adopt agile as merely a
>>> tool or a process, because it's easier to understand. And that invites
>>> failure - and it's the exact kind of failure you're writing about,
>>> Harrison, about how our creations are "inevitably clunky." To succeed, any
>>> implementation of Agile or Scrum needs to be able to self-organize -
>>> "Inspect and Adapt" is one of the anthems of the agile and scrum
>>> communities. I hope that the Open Space community will step up and help the
>>> Agile community to do that.
>>>
>>>     Thanks,
>>>     Harold
>>>
>>>
>>> On 9/22/13 10:45 AM, Harrison Owen wrote:
>>>
>>> Dan wrote: “I've learned that there are actually more ways to fail with
>>> Open Space in Agile adoptions than there are ways to succeed. There are
>>> many ways to stumble when trying this.”****
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Actually, Dan – I am not at all surprised. I learned a long time ago
>>> that Open Space is a terrible way to introduce some new process, and
>>> especially to assure “buy in.” Typically, problems arise because folks take
>>> Open Space seriously. Instead of buying into the proposed process, they
>>> begin to invent their own! Somewhere I wrote that OS was a great way to
>>> design a new accounting system, but a horrible way to “implement” it.***
>>> *
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> And just to be contrarian... I wonder whether the failure is a function
>>> of Open Space or Agile (and/or the SCRUM flavor of Agile)? As I think we
>>> have come to understand, Open Space is a total scam if people mistake it
>>> for some process we invented or “do.” It is simply an invitation to be what
>>> we always have been – self organizing. The process itself (SO) has been
>>> around for some time, and apparently has done quite well, witness the fact
>>> that we, along with all the rest of the Cosmos are here and seemingly
>>> functional. In a “face off” between a well functioning self-organizing
>>> system and any process we might have designed to create the system, install
>>> the system, or enhance the system – the designed process doesn’t have a
>>> chance. The reason is simple. No matter how wise, careful, diligent or
>>> skillful we may be – our creation is inevitably clunky. We may get the big
>>> blocks right, even some of the finer points, but at the end of the day we
>>> always miss the nuances – and as always, the devil is in the details. Put
>>> somewhat differently, our designed processes are always “averages” of what
>>> we think the process should look like. And “averages” do not exist anywhere
>>> in nature. To push an “average” on a natural system is always to make it
>>> function at some sub-optimal level, and usually to kill it.****
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> So maybe the order of precedence should go the other way? Use Agile to
>>> introduce Open Space, and then abolish Agile. Or, if you like ...
>>> Self-Organization is the natural agility. It doesn’t get any better than
>>> that. Or something****
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Harrison****
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> ****
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Harrison Owen****
>>>
>>> 7808 River Falls Dr.****
>>>
>>> Potomac, MD 20854****
>>>
>>> USA****
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> 189 Beaucaire Ave. (summer)****
>>>
>>> Camden, Maine 04843****
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Phone 301-365-2093****
>>>
>>> (summer)  207-763-3261****
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> www.openspaceworld.com ****
>>>
>>> www.ho-image.com (Personal Website)****
>>>
>>> To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of
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>>>
>>>
>>> *From:* oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org <javascript:_e({},
>>> 'cvml', 'oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org');> [
>>> mailto:oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org <javascript:_e({},
>>> 'cvml', 'oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org');>] *On Behalf Of *Daniel
>>> Mezick
>>> *Sent:* Thursday, September 19, 2013 11:26 AM
>>> *To:* oslist at lists.openspacetech.org <javascript:_e({}, 'cvml',
>>> 'oslist at lists.openspacetech.org');>
>>> *Subject:* [OSList] Open Space with Agile: Failure patterns****
>>>
>>> ** **
>>>
>>> Greetings to you,
>>>
>>> In Paris this week at the Global Scrum Gathering I plan to issue certain
>>> warning about specific failure patterns I have experienced when working
>>> with Open Space inside Agile adoptions. I can tell you right now that Open
>>> Space by itself is not a panacea for the complex problems associated with
>>> Agile adoption.
>>>
>>> Agile is actually a cover story about the wider act of bringing culture
>>> change (a new and unfamiliar game) to an enterprise situation (the old
>>> story we all want to cling to). The SPIRIT book pretty much spells out the
>>> problem.
>>>
>>> I've learned that there are actually more ways to fail with Open Space
>>> in Agile adoptions than there are ways to succeed. There are many ways to
>>> stumble when trying this. I'll be enumerating some of these subtle
>>> Agile-related pitfalls and traps in the Paris keynote on Tuesday, and in
>>> upcoming blog posts. Simply holding one or more canonical Open Space
>>> meetings (with full pre-planning and post processing) is not enough to
>>> neutralize the forces that oppose healthy and well Agile adoptions. The
>>> game mechanics, storytelling and passage-rite-structure elements must be
>>> present and robust for Open Space to be an effective tool in Agile
>>> adoptions. Open Space and these elements are composed in harmony with each
>>> other in the Open Agile Adoption technique.
>>>
>>> If you offer training in Open Space for Facilitators and/or Sponsors, I
>>> invite you to send me your links and I will make sure they are added to the
>>> list of resources I am beginning to compile at OpenAgileAdoption.com. I
>>> plan to list in the Paris slides some specific French-language OST course
>>> offerings from French-speaking instructors located in Europe, and Quebec.
>>>
>>> Kind Regards,
>>> Dan****
>>>
>>> --
>>>
>>> ****
>>>
>>> Daniel Mezick, President****
>>>
>>> New Technology Solutions Inc.****
>>>
>>> (203) 915 7248 (cell)****
>>>
>>> Bio <http://newtechusa.net/dan-mezick/>. Blog<http://newtechusa.net/blog/>.
>>> Twitter <http://twitter.com/#%21/danmezick/>. ****
>>>
>>> Examine my new book:  The Culture Game
>>> <http://newtechusa.net/about/the-culture-game-book/>: Tools for the
>>> Agile Manager.****
>>>
>>> Explore Agile Team Training<http://newtechusa.net/services/agile-scrum-training/>and
>>> Coaching. <http://newtechusa.net/services/agile-scrum-coaching/>****
>>>
>>> Explore the Agile Boston <http://newtechusa.net/user-groups/ma/>
>>> Community. ****
>>>
>>>
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>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> Harold Shinsato
>>> harold at shinsato.com <javascript:_e({}, 'cvml', 'harold at shinsato.com');>
>>> http://shinsato.com
>>> twitter: @hajush <http://twitter.com/hajush>
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>>
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>

-- 
Michael Herman
MichaelHerman.com
(312) 280-7838

Sent from my iPhone
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