Hi Thomas; Thanks for your story of the school. Every time I do open space I feel privileged to share the experience of wonder of the participants. Even in my most anxious moments (a group asking me to come in and do conflict mediation...which I refused), the results have been amazing. Regarding the matrix: One of the things that works well is coloured post it notes (thanks to advice from Birgitt). I set up the grid ahead of time on a piece of flip chart with the times down the left and the rooms across the top (just labelled A,B, C ect....I write the actual room under the letter once I am in the facility and know where these places are). I suppose that you could put a grid on a paper and have it laminated for repeat use. Then you can just use erasable markers (like white board markers) to fill in the specific times and places. I find the preparation of the grid and the principles etc. are part of my ritual of preparing myself for the event.
I usually set up more places than I think we will need so I am ready for Jimbo's happy problem of too many topics. I just fold this behind the sheet and unfold it if they are needed. That way not too many get posted in one time slot if there are only a few topics but more spaces are available as needed. I write the room and time on each post-it note, using one colour for each time slot. That makes it easy for participants to pick out which topics are which time when the wall is self-organized all over the place!! (I know that sometimes we set up labels on the wall for time slots, but of course not everyone is compliant.) Now, I did have a senior moment one time when I did this and matched the colour to the room rather than the time. It was good research to see the effectiveness, because people could not find the right times easily and kindly suggested that it might be better to put the same colours all on one time!! More affirmation that the wisdom is in the group! Just to add a not to all: I have been lurking, reading and reflecting on the many marvelous stories and challenges to my thinking about open space for the past few months. I have not taken the time to contribute and express my thoughts. My appreciation to those prolific contributors who do. Michelle Michelle Cooper RN, MScN The Cooper Group Consultants 200 Crestview Avenue Ancaster, ON Canada L9G 1E2 Tel. (905) 648-4633 Fax. (905) 648-1763 E-mail [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> * * ========================================================== [email protected] To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of [email protected] Visit: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html =========================================================== [email protected] To subscribe, 1. Visit: http://www.egroups.com/group/oslist 2. Sign up -- provide an email address, and choose a login ID and password 3. Click on "Subscribe" and follow the instructions To unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of [email protected]: 1. Visit: http://www.egroups.com/group/oslist 2. Sign in and Proceed
