Chris I am sure that in terms of pure numbers, Corporations are the least likely to willingly enter Open Space, for all the reasons you enumerate. I can also understand why, given a limited amount of time and energy you would choose to concentrate your efforts on communities and community based organizations. However, I would not give up on the corporations for two reasons. First, they desperately need what Open Space has to offer, and the fact that they are hesitant says more (in my view) about their limited understanding of the world than it does about Open Space. Their need could just be an interesting side bar on the days news, but I dont think so. For better or worse, corporations are us, and also have a massive impact on who we are and our future. The second reason -- It is actually fun to work with them and can be very productive. Watching a group do a highly complex and technical project in two days which they knew would take several years is a real turn on for me. But I have learned one thing in working with the corporate folks dont beg, dont sell, just be available when they run out of options. At a point where they know that they have nowhere else to turn to and nothing to loose, Open Space doesnt look all that risky. After all when the risk is ultimate, there is ultimately no risk. Dont give up on these folks, they are human beings too. And whenever I have the chance, I take it. Next week I have another chance with 30 CEOS of global corporations and Deans of Business Schools Theme is Preparing Globally Responsible Corporate Leaders. And it is all in Open Space.
Harrison Harrison Owen 7808 River Falls Drive Potomac, Maryland 20854 Phone 301-365-2093 Skype hhowen Open Space Training <http://www.openspaceworld.com/> www.openspaceworld.com Open Space Institute <http://www.openspaceworld.org/> www.openspaceworld.org Personal website <http://www.ho-image.com/> www.ho-image.com OSLIST: To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives Visit: <http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html> www.listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html -----Original Message----- From: OSLIST [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Chris Corrigan Sent: Tuesday, April 04, 2006 1:50 AM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: Is anything possible? I have been finding lately that in the world of business, government and big organizations, people are much less likely to let go of control than in community settings. Corporations exist to stabilize and protect things: assets, property, ideas, money, reputations...they are all about control. Communities are messy, evolutionary, out of control and chaordic. I find that Open Space works beautifully in community settings, and works great in organizations where you are all about building a community, or where the leaders understand that the real way anything happens in the organization is if you view the whole enterprise as a big messy community, in which the agency of all contributes to the bigger good. In general, you will find very few people in corporations willing to take this risk, but in communities, for the most part, this is how people operate. I've given up on the holy grail of using OST in Fortune 500 settings to help groups of IT managers find innovative work processes, for example. It's certainly possible there, and applicable and probably improves the world in some small way. But I've seen OST animate community action on poverty, sustainability, rights, suicide, drug addiction, homelessness, food security, economic development and child welfare. I've seen people who have nearly nothing find a true sense of power and purpose in the process. So I've taken to using it in places where it makes a huge difference in the lives of people and communities, and I hold this arena in high regard, because the people who take risks here do so with everything on the line, and in some cases, everything means their life. Dee Hock's quote is about living and life. People live and die in communities every day. If they are willing to bring that richness of experience to work in the corporations and organizations that exist all over the place, Open Space will follow them in there and do all kinds of great things. But it will not make magic for folks who don't want to truly experience the naked terror of "Is anything possible?" Cheers, Chris On 4/3/06, Harrison Owen <[email protected]> wrote: Thomas -- I hear what you are saying, and I can certainly understand why certain executives would want to hold onto some "givens" (which I read as "controls"). And these are the same people who want certainties and guarantees. The only problem is there are no certainties, no guarantees in this life. There never have been, and there never will be. Yes, of course, there is one -- Life will end. But in the interim between beginning and ending -- everything is at risk, everything is uncertain. And that, of course is both the joy and terror of living. Dee Hock of Chaordic Organization fame has a nice phrase (amongst many) in his book. Dee was also the CEO of one of the world's largest corporations: Visa International. Goes like -- "Life is not about control. It's not about getting. It's not about having. It's not about knowing. It's not even about being. Life is eternal, perpetual becoming, or it is nothing. Becoming is not a thing to be known, commanded, or controlled. It is a magnificent, mysterious odyssey to be experienced." Harrison Harrison Owen 7808 River Falls Drive Potomac, Maryland 20854 Phone 301-365-2093 Skype hhowen Open Space Training www.openspaceworld.com Open Space Institute www.openspaceworld.org Personal website www.ho-image.com OSLIST: To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archivesVisit: www.listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html -----Original Message----- From: OSLIST [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Thomas Herrmann Sent: Monday, April 03, 2006 5:35 PM To: [email protected] Subject: Is anything possible? Dear friends in Open Space I am wondering where you find those leaders in organizations and corporations who are willing to support whatever will emerge from an OS-meeting? Unfortunately my experience is that this level of trust is very hard to find. I´ve also experienced leaders closing the space down, which could have been avoided if they had had some givens to hold on to. I always do my best to give the sponsor the possibility to make an informed decision about if they think OST is the meeting format they´d like to use. Using the concept of givens, I think makes it possible for the sponsor to open authentic space within the reality of that organization. Well, as he/she who is accountable perceives that reality anyway. Then of course it is important work to minimize the givens! And next time there may be fewer... But this question is not easy, if we´d have had an OS-meeting 15 years ago in Gothenburg about making the town internationally known, building an East Indiaman at a cost of 500 000 000 SEK would probably have been far exceeding any thinkable givens....now it is on its journey to China! So the question may be - is anything possible? And are the persons in charge willing to take responsibility for whatever happens - without any givens? I agree there is a difference when working focusing primarily within an organization where someone is in charge - or thinks he/she is in charge. I have a given tomorrow morning, have to get up early so: Warmest regards and good night Thomas Herrmann Phone +46 (0)709-98 97 81 Open Space Consulting Fax +46 (0)300-713 89 Pensévägen 4 434 46 Kungsbacka, Sweden Email: [email protected] www.openspaceconsulting.com * * ========================================================== [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of [email protected]: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist * * ========================================================== [email protected] ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of [email protected]: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist -- CHRIS CORRIGAN Consultation - Facilitation Open Space Technology Weblog: http://www.chriscorrigan.com/parkinglot Site: http://www.chriscorrigan.com <http://www.chriscorrigan.com> Open Space Resources: http://tinyurl.com/r94tj * * ========================================================== [email protected] ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of [email protected]: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist * * ========================================================== [email protected] ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of [email protected]: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist
