Thanks to the Agile 20xx conference folks, and to you Diane, for having this as a constant feature in my Agile 20xx experience!
Regards,
Harold
On 11/12/14 3:16 PM, Diana Larsen via OSList wrote:
One more story:Since 2008,, every year at the Agile 20xx conference there has been an area called "Open Jam" (in homage to a now defunct Music Festival analogy). It's usually prominently located near the main traffic patterns of the conference and arranged with a variety of sub-areas variously décor-ed with chairs of different kinds, some tables, some not, flip charts, markers and other supplies for easy access, etc.The "Open Jam" offers an opportunity each morning of the five-day conference to propose new, not-on-the-formal-program sessions that will run throughout the day. It's right out in the Open, not sub rosa at all, and for some attendees, it's the best part of the conference. Every year different folks step up to organize it with a very light touch.Beyond the Open Jam, the conference organizers work with the new venue to emphasize the importance of a variety of seating + small conversation areas throughout the facility. People use them a lot, and at some times of day it can be hard to find a free one.It's an acknowledgement of the "always open" nature of spaces. Diana *********** Diana Larsen "Your Path Through Agile Fluency" http://agilefluency.comOn Nov 12, 2014, at 2:35 PM, Brendan McKeague via OSList <[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>> wrote:A wee story ofLast year at a 200-participant (tables of 8) conference, myself and a colleague Peter Wilde (with the blessing of the organisers) offered an 'alternative' space to the mainstream process.We introduced the notion of 'self-organising' conversations at the beginning of the conference and set up a 'market place' for offering/requesting conversations during the breaks and alongside the afternoon pre-planned workshop sessions. The market place was on a wall in the main meeting area and people were invited to go along at anytime and post their topic, indicating where they would meet to host their conversations. Needless to say, these conversations started at the right time, at the right place and continued until they were over...It was a practical way to provide meeting spaces for those who wished to connect with others - and it worked.Cheers Brendan On 12/11/2014, at 4:37 PM, Jeff Aitken via OSList wrote:I remember that story Michael! Some year afterward, John Abbe came south from Eugene and we cofacilitated a two day 'recent changes camp' outside and inside of the Social Text offices in Palo Alto. Folks from Europe were there too. JeffOn 11/11/14, Michael Herman via OSList <[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>> wrote:first, to paul, yes i've definitely done as you say. was a very smallgroup of us, not a conference but a "team meeting" held too late in the day and made everyone ripe for some harmless mutiny. i led the charge or made the suggestion, and the next day we did the team meeting in open space. we put up 8 issues, discussed only 3, and the next weekly meeting looked like all the previous ones, except that the team leader's agenda was really just an ongoing updating of our original 8 issues, which were the answer to "howdo we get this project finished successfully?" mission accomplished. next, to the main question... some years ago, ted ernst (who some here will remember) and some otherfriends got excited about wiki websites. they met up in portland, drove toseattle to pick up others, then drove all the way to san diego, using *part* of the minivan windshield as an open space bulletin board, discussing all the way, to a symposium called wikisym. when they got there, this merry band made themselves stickers that said"ask me about open space." as they met folks, they told the story and mademore stickers. pretty soon everyone knew about open space, a bulletin board was created on a wall in a hallway, sessions went up and startedhappening. the conference organizers came to the merry band and asked them nicely not to wreck the conference. since wrecking was not the intention,it was all worked out.part of that is that the organizers asked ted to facilitate open space atthe next symposium and make it official, so to speak. another part wasthat some of the merry band, having been teased by these first attempts, wanted to see what happened in a full-blown 2.5 days. so they organized"recent changes camp" which itself sparked a bunch of other gatherings.gerard muller can maybe say more about the follow-on from the wikisym in open space, as it was in denmark or nearby and i think he ended up workingwith ted on that one. m -- Michael Herman Michael Herman Associates 312-280-7838 (mobile) http://MichaelHerman.com http://OpenSpaceWorld.org On Tue, Nov 11, 2014 at 9:32 PM, John Baxter via OSList < [email protected]> wrote:I hosted an 'Elephants' Gathering' at a conference once upon a time.I knew there were people there I wanted to talk to, but the program wasof little interest. I didn't try to compete with the mainstream agenda, I put it in the evening.Nobody had any intent on the formalities of Open Space, but it was indeed an open space, and the right people came (far less than I thought wouldcome, but all the ones I wanted to talk to!).Someone (Eisenstein?) wrote a post recently, I think posted here, abouttrying to subvert the structure of a conference and being beaten down. My interpretation of events obviously... The right people can always be found in the cracks (at the bar, the coffee station etc). Some of them might need an invitation. I don't think it's appropriate to force Open Space on the others in a gathering who have little interest.Good on anyone that makes the call that Open Space is right for everyoneand goes with it. But I fear that may likely more driven by ego than care (e.g the above dramatisation). Good discussion! *John Baxter* *Cocreation Consultant & CoCreate Adelaide Facilitator* CoCreateADL.com <http://cocreateadl.com/localgov%E2%80%8B> | jsbaxter.com.au <http://www.jsbaxter.com.au/> 0405 447 829 | @jsbaxter_ <http://twitter.com/jsbaxter_> *Thank you to everyone who came, helped or spread the good word about City Grill!* *Summary and links: cocreateadl.com/localgov/grill-summary <http://cocreateadl.com/localgov/grill-summary>* On Wed, Nov 12, 2014 at 1:55 PM, Skye Hirst via OSList < [email protected]> wrote:yeah, indeed flash mob Open Space always a great possibility. Thanks,Skye On Tue, Nov 11, 2014 at 4:09 PM, Royle, Karl via OSList < [email protected]> wrote:Great! Sent by iPhone Karl Royle Head of Enterprise and Commercial Development Faculty of Education Health and Wellbeing University of Wolverhampton 01902323006 07815416698 @karlroyle. On Twitter Karlr61 Skype Www.academia.edu/karlroyle On 11 Nov 2014, at 20:51, "paul levy via OSList" < [email protected]> wrote: <http://rationalmadness.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/w3.jpg>I wonder if anyone reading this has experiences to share of what I am about to describe. Most published stories of open space tend to go bythe book. The book is often referred to as the *user * <http://www.openspaceworld.com/users_guide.htm>*guide*<http://www.openspaceworld.com/users_guide.htm>“, and it tends towardsa process that is largely based on an* instruction manual* <http://elementaleducation.com/wp-content/uploads/temp/OpenSpaceTechnology--UsersGuide.pdf>.Dogmatic application manual can then lead, in my humble opinion, not toone less thing to do, but often one more thing to do. These are “guides” not rules, and that is the spirit in which they were written. In many cases,the user guide proves remarkably resilient and applicable. Yet there is always the next moment, the new story, the moment that needs somethingplayful.There’s a lot in the manual (and the many trainings that have come into being from it) about sponsors and invitations, and the things that needtobe done before an Open Space to ensure the open spacer er… opens space.Ihave no difficulty with the manual. It’s full of good advice and is the foundation you might just need to open some space. But, hey, what about this… I’m at a company away day that is looking at product innovation.It is business critical, and it is floundering. Powerpoint after Powerpoint has resulted in a stifled audience, and when they get to breakout sessions, the flipcharts look empty, the energy is low, and it all looks a bit too quiet. There’s a feeling in the room that the event is dying on its feet.Several sessions are lost in badly facilitated action planning. I am onthe team and the lead facilitator looks to me for any ideas. It must be because I am silent and looking knowing and wise.Actually I’m seething inside at this over-facilitated, over-designed, overplanned conference crash. Do you mind if I… I ask, a bit pompouslyandthe lead facilitator is up for whatever help he can get. I leap up, and step into the mess. I have a loud voice and it can’t get any worse than this. An idea has just occurred to me and I decide to hurl it into the cluttered room. “Er, hey.” I roar. “Why don’t we open some space?” I’mloud. It goes silent. This is what I say: “This is crap isn’t it?” Silence. “Can everyonebring their chairs and let’s get into a big circle. Tuts, irritation,doubt and mostly relief. Two minutes later there’s a big circle.I introduce open space in about four minutes and quickly crab some flipchart paper and tack it to the wall, creating four corners at new breakout spaces. I ask people to take their chairs with them and, within about tenminutes we have a whole bunch of different sessions, many based aroundaction. The bosses in the room are gobsmacked.We have a two hour open space until wrap up and there’s a huge buzz inthe room from this pop-up open space. The invite was improvised and spontaneous.The space opened because it wanted and needed to. It popped up and out as if it were the most natural thing in the world. It transformed theday and sent the clutter fleeing for cover. It was done without fuss and chairs from the main circle quickly went into breakout and back again. Thefacilitator team were edgy because they felt they were supposed to bedoing something and I dragged them away for coffee. We chatted a bit about “emergence” and I was looked on as if I’d done some kind of magic. I wasyoung and enjoyed the attention. I was also looked as as if I was a bit weird. Well, I am a bit weird. I do wonder if pop-up open space couldand should happen a lot more.A lot of open spacers I know loved improvisation and spontaneity, yet when it comes to open space are a bit locked in the process in the bookof instructions – the manual that tends to overplay the “prep” for the event. So, I’m waving a flag for pop-up, guerilla open space. Why not open somespace even for the process of open space? Let’s shimmy it a little andsee what falls out.“Flash mob” open space has, I think, a big future. My intuition tellsme a fair number of facilitators have done it, and a fair few of them haven’treported it, telling instead there more “responsible” by-the-book open space stories. But why not? Why not open some space on the spur of themoment? The invite is still there -it just takes a hell of a lot shorter. The opportunity is always there where an over-organised event is disappearing up its own proverbial…It is also there in an event that has some inbuilt flexibility. Why not throw some open space into the flexible mix? But best of all, why notopenspace when space is there to be open? Self-organisation is often cryingout for a chance in the midst of failing over-organisation. So, here’s to some more pop-up open space… On 11 Nov 2014 19:59, "Peggy Holman via OSList" < [email protected]> wrote:Hi all, I got the query below from my friend Tom Atlee. It seemed like a great question for the list. Since Tom isn’t on it, I told him that I’d forward any responses. appreciatively, Peggy Begin forwarded message: *From: *Tom Atlee <[email protected]> *Date: *November 10, 2014 at 12:51:54 PM PST *Subject: **Guerilla Open Space?* *To: *Peggy Holman <[email protected]> Hi Peggy,Thinking about the NCDD conference, I got the idea for "guerilla Open Space" to be used in conferences where you want to open the space inthe middle of a too-organized gathering. It would involve a central websitewith instructions on what to do and why. It would involve passing out cards with messages like "Is there something that you'd really like totalkabout or do here that the agenda here is preventing you from talkingaboutor doing?" "Would you like to be learning, contributing, and havingmore fun here?" with the web address on it. Tweets might also be used. Then, on the main website it would tell people about how to do a guerilla openspace, referring them perhaps to meetup.com to arrange places to talk.Or something like that. Have you heard of such thing before? Do youhave any thoughts/responses? Hugs, Tom _________________________________ Peggy Holman Executive Director Journalism that Matters 15347 SE 49th Place Bellevue, WA 98006 425-746-6274 www.journalismthatmatters.net www.peggyholman.com Twitter: @peggyholman JTM Twitter: @JTMStream Enjoy the award winning Engaging Emergence: Turning Upheaval into Opportunity <http://www.engagingemergence.com> Check out my series on what's emerging in the news & information ecosystem <http://www.journalismthatmatters.net/the_emerging_news_and_information_eco_system> _______________________________________________ OSList mailing list To post send emails to [email protected]To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected]To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org _______________________________________________OSList mailing list To post send emails to [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org -- Scanned by iCritical. _______________________________________________ OSList mailing list To post send emails to [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org-- *Skye Hirst, PhD* President - The Autognomics Institute *Conversations in Radical Self-Knowing* www.autognomics.org @autognomics New Phone Number: 207-593-8074 _______________________________________________ OSList mailing list To post send emails to [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org_______________________________________________ OSList mailing list To post send emails to [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org_______________________________________________ OSList mailing listTo post send emails to [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org_______________________________________________ OSList mailing listTo post send emails to [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org_______________________________________________ OSList mailing list To post send emails to [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org
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