Re: Public Merger + long story/update

[Jon Harvey]

Harrison and all Thank you for that wonderful story - as all of yours are - inspiring and delightful in its elegance. And I must add how cool I think it is that you can go off for a nap in the middle of the event - total zen facilitation! To you story - I would like to add one of my own. Perhaps you and others may recall my posting almost exactly 9 months ago: "I have a new job - where my role is to coordinate the collaboration of a number of independent but connected agencies - they share a common concern but are geographically distinct. But they (and the public they serve) would greatly benefit from closer working between them - either by creating new joint functions or harmonising their existing operations. This can and will increase effectiveness and efficiency. At the moment - I have no team as such beyond a very capable PA and a chap who has been allocated to me - on a temporary basis. I am three weeks into this new role. I see my role as helping to create the conditions into which these sovereign agencies (with some very forceful people at their helm) feel able and trustful enough so that they cede some of their autonomy and establish some new (arms length) business units. To date (before my arrival) - a number of business cases had been produced for taking this strategy forward. My dilemma is this (and your perspectives would be helpful): I am getting pressure from one (and one other) of the more 'pushy' agencies to recruit and establish a programme management team that would (in effect) wrest control of these embryonic collaboration projects away from the agencies themselves and place it under the mantle of the regional programme team. The argument being that only with this level of 'support' and 'drive' would the projects come to fruition. My OD bones are telling me otherwise - as I think I want to keep the space open - and have the ownership of the projects resting very firmly with the agencies themselves - in other words I think they have to own their own collaboration initiatives (not the central / regional team). So am I wrong to sticking with my OD intuition? If not - what should be my arguments for going for a more facilitative / hands off and slimmer team - that works in an open and OD way? (We have a critical meeting next week - and I fear there will be attempts to bounce me into the more directive programme team model - before I have had the chance to test the water some more - as the other agencies may also be thinking the same....) It's is a bit complex I know - and I know I have also talked in some oblique code for the sake of confidentiality (I am afraid) - but your insights would be valuable. I can't think of a bunch of wiser kindred people than you lot on the OST listserv - who might be able to offer me some helpful / cogent / challenging advice..." Harrison - you and others replied with most helpful thoughts which I summarised in my later posting as: "I like your ideas, Harrison - neatly summarised as as "keep moving, open space, and get out of the way"! I liked you ideas, Barry to go local and work stealthily (with integrity) and get it all happening, I liked your ideas, Avner to loosen the agency boundaries and get the people with passion together and make progress. I like your ideas, Pankaj to get the results out into the open and exchanged. I liked your ideas, Wendy about harnessing the passion of conflict into a new direction by 'placing a pebble' in the flow. I like your ideas, Funda and Kerry to establish a virtual reporting hub." I took all these on board - or at least I tried to... Yesterday it was confirmed to me - that 9 months into what was a 24 month contract - they are making me redundant. The various agencies have decided that they no longer need someone at my level to coordinate matters. All but one of them are now investing heavily (resource wise, politically and strategically) in a set of 'preferred partnerships' of two. The one agency which isn't, is resolute in its desire to pick and choose the ventures to be involved with rather than work mainly with just one buddy. (Although to an extent this approach has been forced upon them.) The three collaborative ventures that do involve more than two partners will continue under the leadership of the some senior managers based upon my plan that they should appoint 'senior responsible owners' from their own ranks rather than expect my team to act in the programme management role. The heads of the agencies - who are now meeting on a regular basis (they were not before) - have confirmed to their governance leaders - that they will collectivey and professionally lead other 3+ ventures as determined by the strategic context and government pressure. In other words - they are now owning the efforts far more - so much so that I have become an expensive overhead! Looking back now at what many of you said - I did get out of the way, I worked stealthily, (steadily) and with integrity, I did get them to exchange results out into the open more, I certainly placed a few pebbles in the flow (!) and reporting arrangements remained light touch. But I did not manage to loosen the organisational boundaries much and I only managed to get a few people together with passion. I remain concerned that the focus on the two agency preferred partnerships has far more to do with their (deeply embedded) culture of can do ("let's just do something quickly") / keep things simple / complex is unhelpful / control everything / short term expediency style... than with a robust focus on delivering sustainable outcomes for the public. I also wonder whether any efficiency gains will be more sham than substance. But all that is no longer my direct concern. During all this - I have gained (consolidated?) the reputation for being something of a troublesome challenger who asks diffcult questions and I may have broken my own guidance to make people 'wriggle but not squirm'. (Although I would stand by all of what I have done and said and asked and enquired over the last few months!) This may have had an impact on their decision as well! So a new vista (or portfolio of vistas) is now opening up - and I am back on the market looking for paid work. Despite my explanation (rationalisation?) of the process that led up to here - I am left with some negative feelings as you might expect. How can they not need me open some more space and get out of the way some more (and the sweet/bitter irony of that is exquisite of course!!) Annoyingly, I never got to use OS as such - although I had plans. Whilst I hope I stuck true to the OS principles and I hope I am not suffering from OD osteoporosis - I am left in a very reflective state - wondering what more (or less) I could have done. Thanks for the space to grieve a little, tell a story and begin the process of reassembling my spirit. atb Jon Buckingham UK Harrison Owen wrote: I can't let you all be the only folks who have all the fun! Last week I had the exquisite pleasure of visiting Red Wing Minnesota, located on the banks of the Mississippi River. The occasion was a "Community Consultation" about the possibility of merging the Public Health and Human Services agencies in the county. This had been tried some 10 years ago in a very "Top Down" fashion initiated by the County Executive. It was a disaster. However, the rational for merger still seemed to make some sense, even if just about everybody thought it was impossible. Eighty five people sat in a circle. Roughly 2/3's were from the two agencies, and the balance from neighboring counties which had either tried such a merger or were thinking about it. Nobody was particularly positive about the whole thing and even less positive about sitting in a circle. As one participant said, "merger was an outside possibility, and this sitting in a circle business was weird." But we went forward, albeit stoically. Minnesotans are stoic by nature. After the brief introduction the people were invited to identify the issues and opportunities for which they had a real passion. Dead silence, and nobody moved - for all of about ten seconds. Then they came and nobody thought it could happen here in Red Wing. They brought their issues, the really deep ones - and everybody had predicted that the conversation could only be superficial. Within an hour they were seriously at work. Intense groups met all over the big room. It got a little noisy and groups naturally cooperated with each other without any help (from me). When lunch time came, it was obvious that folks were hungry, and they mobbed the tables, but the conversations hardly took a break. The lunch was really good and very substantial - all of which had the usual effect on me. I just had to have a nap. So off I went, returning an hour or so later, just at the break point between the 3rd and 4th sessions. Folks were taking the opportunity for some more coffee and cookies - but the atmosphere had totally transformed. You simply couldn't tell one group from another - it was all mixed up. And the decibel level was filling the room with excited, pleasant conversation. When the final session ended the closing began. We didn't have time for a full talking stick ceremony, just a few comments. One stuck in my mind which came from a major (in the morning) skeptic. "We came to talk about the possibility of merger, but I think we have gotten ahead of ourselves. We are merged. Now we have to figure out the details." I just love it when a plan comes together. Particularly when everybody just knew it would never happen. Harrison Harrison Owen 7808 River Falls Drive Potomac, Maryland 20854 Phone 301-365-2093 Skype hhowen Open Space Training www.openspaceworld.com <http://www.openspaceworld.com/> Open Space Institute www.openspaceworld.org Personal website www.ho-image.com OSLIST: To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives Visit: www.listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html <http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html> * * ========================================================== osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist * * ========================================================== osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist