[OSList] Private vs Public OST Differences?

Daniel Mezick via OSList oslist at lists.openspacetech.org
Fri Oct 17 04:31:56 PDT 2014


Greetings Christine,

Thanks for your detailed reply. I must admit, I have no experience 
whatsoever with doing quasi-public OST events arranged for guilds, 
industry-associations and the like. I'm clueless!

As such, my opinion does not have much (if any) validity about those use 
cases. I do have some theories however, and I hope I can ask some 
questions about OST for guilds & industry associations...

I see it like this:

(1) At one extreme end of the spectrum, there is the very private, 
business-org-specific event. A kind of big-family system.

(2) At the other extreme, there is the totally public conference that 
anyone can attend, if they pay the money...

      * It is an event that has some Open Space of varying quality, in
        1/2 day, full day or multiple day formats.
      * It may of may not have a Sponsor, it may of may not have
        Proceedings. It may or may not have posters on the wall. If it
        has Proceedings at all, they are often late.
      * "Agile" conferences are commonly at found at this end of the range.


My theory is that quasi-public OST events for and with guilds, industry 
associations and the like lie somewhere in the middle of these two 
extremes. And I can certainly imagine (theorize) how these events take 
on the look, feel, tone, temp and flavor of the very private, 
business-org-specific event. They might even effectively BE private 
events. It's not like anyone with the fee (if any) can just waltz into 
the meeting right?


And so, for now, I want to set these quasi-public OST events aside, 
and/or characterize them as private events. Is that OK?






And so, referring to (1) and (2) above, I continue to see very huge 
differences between these two ways to use Open Space.

Like, the difference between Night and Day.


Here's one of those very striking differences: in public-conference 
events where OST is an add-on in 1/2 or full day formats, getting good 
Proceedings is difficult. Or impossible. The Proceedings are typically 
late and poorly formatted, or more commonly: /non-existent./

Yet inside private events, you can't pull the people off the task of 
Proceedings creation. The task attracts them like a magnet. They 
typically wave off any offers of help and take an absolutely huge 
interest in the Proceedings generation. They rivet on it.



And this is just one example. There are many more BIG differences. And 
so I continue to assert that for public-conference events where OST is a 
full day or 1/2 day add-on, a Barcamp or Unconference can and does get 
equivalent, similar, as-good results.

Stated another way, Barcamp and/or Unconference can never do what Open 
Space does for organizations. And that's because Open Space is optimized 
for enabling "development and transformation in organizations. "

And those other two aren't.


Daniel

PS I realize some public, paid, Agile conferences that feature all-day 
Open Space do a very good job with Proceedings. Yet this is clearly the 
exception, and not the rule where Agile conferences are concerned.




On 10/15/14 11:43 AM, Christine Whitney Sanchez wrote:
> Daniel and all,
>
> In my experience, public events have the same buzz and meaningful 
> results as an in-organization OST.  I’ve facilitated a number of them 
> that were sponsored by a group of organizations in the community.  For 
> instance, Vibrant Phoenix 
> <http://vibrantphx.com/next-actions/top-ideas/>, was a very productive 
> economic development OST, sponsored by two mayors of large 
> municipalities and several local businesses.  One of the business 
> sponsors agreed to be the contact for folks who wanted to take their 
> “actionable ideas” to the next level.  However, there was no budget 
> and no infrastructure to really keep folks connected the the ideas 
> they cared the most about.
>
> This is where the public open spaces generally fall short.  Because 
> the ongoing action is not the core mission of any of these 
> organizations, it is hoped that the participants will self-organize 
> going forward.  With very few exceptions, this does not happen.  I 
> believe that sponsorship for the work after the OST is what is called for.
>
> The Collective Impact 
> <http://www.ssireview.org/blog/entry/channeling_change_making_collective_impact_work> model 
> speaks to this.  It’s nothing new, really, but does represent a simple 
> way to talk about the necessary conditions for sustaining collective 
> action.  I now include my version of this model when I talk with 
> potential sponsors to shine the light beyond the meeting so that we 
> can discuss their intentions for providing backbone support for 
> self-organized action going forward.
>
> I especially love public Open Space events and look forward to working 
> with sponsors who see the meeting as merely the first small step in 
> collaborative action.  There is so much potential!
>
> Warm wishes from a sunny autumn morning in the rain-greened desert,
>
> Christine
>
> Christine Whitney Sanchez, M.C.
> Phoenix,AZ, USA •+1.480.759.0262
> www.innovationpartners.com <http://www.innovationpartners.com>
>
> Facebook <https://www.facebook.com/ChristineWhitneySanchez> | LinkedIn 
> <https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinewhitneysanchez> |Twitter 
> <https://twitter.com/CWhitneySanchez>
>
> On Oct 15, 2014, at 6:33 AM, Daniel Mezick via OSList 
> <oslist at lists.openspacetech.org 
> <mailto:oslist at lists.openspacetech.org>> wrote:
>
> Greetings To All,
>
> I notice that there are many big differences between 
> public-conference-type OST events, and OST events arranged for 
> organizations.
>
> Do you also notice this? Maybe I am imagining this....just making 
> stuff up...
>
> ...maybe not. In many key dimensions, I experience these differences 
> as striking. Even disturbing.
>
>
>
> And so I have been poking around inside the GUIDE (3rd edition) and I 
> notice that, in some spots, the implication is that the discussion is 
> about a public event. Up to page 18 for example, this implication is 
> clear:
>
>
> <THE GUIDE PAGE 18>
>
> Working With The Client if you ARE NOT the Sponsor
>
> "To this point I have assumed that you (the reader) will be the 
> sponsor and facilitator of the Open Space, and therefore */it is your 
> decision as to whether or not to proceed/*...(/emphasis added./)
>
> </THE GUIDE PAGE 18>
>
>
>
> My current belief is that having the same person in the Sponsor role 
> **and** the Facilitator role is probably a very bad idea for an OST 
> event /inside an organization/. For the typical public-conference 
> event on the other hand, this seems to work just fine. Kinda like a 
> Barcamp or Unconference....
>
>
> Another current belief I hold is that OST is the essential tool for 
> creating "Development and Transformation in Organizations". It is best 
> suited for use in organizations.
>
> It is interesting to note how the Barcamp and/or "Unconference" 
> formats seem to get the same or as-good results as Open Space, in the 
> public conference setting.
>
> Not so inside organizations! In fact, as of now, I don't think Barcamp 
> or Unconference has any chance whatsoever at being effective in 
> bringing about Development and Transformation in Organizations the way 
> Open Space can. Something about the Sponsor?
>
> Daniel
>
>
> -- 
>
> 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 
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-- 

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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