[OSList] Authority Distribution in Open Space

Sun Sep 28 05:37:12 PDT 2014

Hi Harold,

You say:

/"..I struggle to translate is the concept of coercion and authority 
from the vantage of "it's all open space". Can we really be coerced? How 
are we all already "opting in" to empower the "authorities"?/

//

/"...Could we just be volunteering for the victim part of our stories?/

//

/"...I have some thoughts about this, but I wonder what you would say to 
such a challenge to the relevance of "authority" in OST?/

Hmmm...interesting questions for sure.

My current belief is that authorization dynamics are central to the 
general dynamics of Open Space. And if it is "Open Space all the time" 
then authorization dynamics as desribed in my essay are also there... 
all the time.

Regarding the Open Space meeting format: If we begin at the beginning; 
that is, at the start of arranging an actual Open Space event in an 
organization, we immediately work to identify and locate someone "duly 
authorized" by the organization, to do the things the Sponsor does, and 
say the things the Sponsor says. Someone to occupy the Sponsor role. To 
do that, the person occupying the role must have substantial authority 
in the organization, usually of the formal variety.

Right? Put another way: if the Sponsor is lacking in authorization, can 
they actually be effective? Larger question: Can the meeting still 
actually work? What about the post-meeting follow-through?

So here we see how /authorization shows up a the very start of any 
contemplated Open Space event inside an organization/.

One last thing: last time I checked, "victims" are kind of rare in Open 
Space. Something about the subtext of "the Law of 2 Feet...."

"...The Law of Two Feet concept was published in an article by Harrison 
Owen <http://www.openspaceworld.com/brief_history.htm>, a member of an 
organization advocating Open Spaces Technology, a model for organizing 
meetings that's based around open participation. Here's how Owen 
describes the rule:

"...Briefly stated, this law says that every individual has two feet, 
and must be prepared to use them. Responsibility for a successful 
outcome in any Open Space Event resides with exactly one person---each 
participant. Individuals can make a difference and must make a 
difference. If that is not true in a given situation, they, and they 
alone, must take responsibility to use their two feet, and move to a new 
place where they can make a difference."

http://opensource.com/business/10/8/darwin-meets-dilbert-applying-law-two-feet-your-next-meeting

Daniel

On 9/26/14 6:49 PM, Harold Shinsato via OSList wrote:
>
> Fantastic essay, Daniel. I'm a bit freaked out by Harrison talking 
> about his "translator" after diving into T.S.Kuhn's book where he says 
> paradigm shifts require "translators" because new and old paradigm 
> holders live in different worlds, where even common terms may be 
> fundamentally different.
>
> What I struggle to translate is the concept of coercion and authority 
> from the vantage of "it's all open space". Can we really be coerced? 
> How are we all already "opting in" to empower the "authorities"?
>
> Could we just be volunteering for the victim part of our stories?
>
> I have some thoughts about this, but I wonder what you would say to 
> such a challenge to the relevance of "authority" in OST?
>
> Thanks,
> Harold
>
> Daniel... You really did it! I think. Your language comes from a place 
> I don't know... which is to say that I probably wouldn't say what you 
> say in the way that you do (duh). BUT when I run my "translator" it 
> comes out sounding pretty good! So... I can't help with the questions 
> you have raised. Actually I think you are doing pretty well on your 
> own, and (hopefully) will incite others to a similarly riotous 
> performance. Thanks!
>
> Harrison
>
> Winter Address
>
> 7808 River Falls Drive
>
> Potomac, MD 20854
>
> 301-365-2093 <tel:301-365-2093>
>
> Summer Address
>
> 189 Beaucaire Ave.
>
> Camden, ME 04843
>
> 207-763-3261 <tel:207-763-3261>
>
> Websites
>
> www.openspaceworld.com <http://%20www.openspaceworld.com>
>
> www.ho-image.com <http://www.ho-image.com>
>
> OSLIST To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the 
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> *From:*OSList [mailto:oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org 
> <mailto:oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org>] *On Behalf Of *Daniel 
> Mezick via OSList
> *Sent:* Thursday, September 25, 2014 9:39 AM
> *To:* oslist at lists.openspacetech.org 
> <mailto:oslist at lists.openspacetech.org>
> *Subject:* [OSList] Authority Distribution in Open Space
>
> Greetings to All,
>
> For the past several years I have attended conferences of the Group 
> Relations community, and encouraged others to do the same. I've 
> studied their literature, and harvested some important learning as a 
> result. One of the things I have come to understand a little bit 
> better is the role of "authority dynamics" in self-organizing social 
> systems.
>
> Link:
> www.akriceinstitute.org <http://www.akriceinstitute.org>
>
> Over the past several years I've been using Open Space with intent to 
> improve the results of my work in helping companies implement Agile 
> ideas in their organizations. We do an initial Open Space, then the 
> folks get about 3 months to play with Agile (we carefully use the word 
> "experimentation" with management,) then we do another Open Space 
> after that, to inspect what just happened across the enterprise. The 
> initial and subsequent Open Space events form a "safe" container or 
> field in which the members can /learn/... as they explore how to 
> /improve/ together by /experimenting/ with new practices, and see if 
> they actually work. I call the process Open Agile Adoption.
>
> Link:
> OpenAgileAdoption.com
>
> This seems to work pretty good. It seems to "take the air out of" most 
> of the fear, most of the anxiety and most of the worry that is 
> created. The key aspect is /consent/: absolutely no one is forced to 
> do anything they are unwilling to do. No one is /coerced/ to /comply/. 
> Everyone is instead respectfully /invited/ to help /write/ the story, 
> and be a /character/ in the story...of the contemplated process 
> change. Open Agile Adoption encourages a spirit of experimentation and 
> play.
>
> The spirit of Open Space is the spirit of freedom. Isn't it? In the 
> OST community, we discuss and talk a lot about self-organization, 
> self-management and self-governance. The Agile community also talks 
> about these ideas a lot.
>
> So I have some questions. What is really going on during 
> self-organization in a social system? What are the steps? What 
> information is being sent and received? From whom, and by whom? Is the 
> information about /authority/ important? How important? Can a social 
> system self organize without regard to who has the right to do what 
> work? /How do decisions that affect others get made in a 
> self-organizing system?/
>
> Who decides about /who decides/? How important is the process of 
> /authorization/ in a self-organizing system? Is self-organization in 
> large part the process of dynamic authorization (and 
> /de-authorization/) in real time?
>
> What /is /authorization? Can self-organization occur without the 
> sending and receiving of authorization data by and between the members?
>
> Is Bruce Tuckman's forming/storming/performing/adjourning actually 
> decomposing the /dynamics of authorization/ inside a social system?
>
> The essay below attempts to answer some of these difficult questions. 
> I'd love your thoughts on it. Will you give it a look?
>
>
> Essay: Authority Distribution in Open Space
> http://newtechusa.net/agile/authority-distribution-in-open-space/
>
>
>
> Kind Regards,
> Daniel
>
> -- 
>
> Daniel Mezick, President
>
> New Technology Solutions Inc.
>
> (203) 915 7248 <tel:%28203%29%20915%207248> (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/>
>
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>
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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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