Concurrent Sessions

A broad range of concurrent sessions will provide you with the opportunity to customize the conference experience to meet your needs and interests—whether you work in the business, education, public, or nonprofit sector. Please scroll down for full descriptions.

CASE STUDIES give you a look at how an organization is using systemic tools to take wiser, more effective action, and offer insight into how you might apply those skills in your own setting.

SKILL-BUILDING WORKSHOPS offer practical, hands-on tools for creating and sustaining purposeful networks through disciplines such as systems thinking, Theory U, social action research, storytelling, and conversations that matter.

 

BLOCK A: Monday, November 17, 10:45 a.m.-12:15 p.m.

A01—Introduction to Systems Thinking I
Ginny Wiley, Pegasus Communications; Gregory Hennessy, Systems Thinking Collaborative

Systems thinking—seeing the underlying structures that drive our behavior and the interconnections in our world—is a key management skill for the 21st century. Understanding the power of structure can help leaders unlock their organization’s potential and avoid unintended consequences. For those who are new to the field, this workshop presents an excellent opportunity to explore the vocabulary and tools of systems thinking and their application to organizations in ways geared to all types of learners.

In this two-part workshop:

• Learn why systems thinking is the keystone of organizational learning
• Practice basic causal looping skills and experience the dynamics of structural traps, using hands-on activities
• Build a foundation of systems thinking knowledge and explore new ways to address the complex issues in your organization

Ginny Wiley is president of Pegasus Communications, Inc. Prior to coming to Pegasus in 1996, she worked at GKA, a systems thinking consulting company, as a consultant and trainer. Before that, she spent 12 years building the Huenefeld Company, a consulting firm for book publishers. Ginny served as vice president for Chapters of the International System Dynamics Society and holds an MBA from Northeastern University. Gregory Hennessy advises senior leaders on matters of business and organizational strategy. He has been a consultant at leading strategy firms (McKinsey & Company and the Monitor Group) and has run his own consulting practice. Greg provided systems thinking subject matter expertise to Shell Oil (USA). He earned an MS in Management from MIT’s Sloan and holds an MS in Economics from the California Institute of Technology.

A02—Festival in the Workplace: A Tool for Transforming Your Organization
Roosevelt Finlayson, MDR Global Leadership and Innovation Network; Jeannine Comma, University of the West Indies

The objective of our session will be to discuss the elements required to develop a strategic framework for improving performance by applying lessons from festivals and the arts to increase creativity, passion, and productivity.

Roosevelt Finlayson is the creative collaborator of MDR Global Leadership and Innovation Network, a personal and organizational transformation company based in Nassau, Bahamas, and operating throughout the Caribbean region. He is MDR’s lead consultant and founder as well as the co-developer of the Festival in the Workplace transformation process. Roosevelt is currently engaged in conducting research on Festival in the Workplace. He is a consultant member of SoL. Jeannine Comma is a Caribbean regionalist who has presented papers and conducted workshops on leadership in London, Singapore, Delhi, South Africa, Ghana, and the Caribbean. She is an executive leadership coach and is currently the chief executive officer and director of the Cave Hill School of Business of the University of the West Indies, Barbados. Jeannine serves on several boards in Barbados.

A03—Integrating the Five Disciplines: An Asset-Based Approach
Kara Werner, W.K. Kellogg Foundation; Jen Hunter, The Learning Catalyst

In our efforts to implement rapid and efficient organizational change, it is tempting to focus on one or two of the five disciplines of organizational learning. But experience has shown that groups taking an integrated, synergistic approach can more effectively shift from a reactive orientation to a creative orientation in which members contribute to shared purpose and vision—and, ultimately, improved results. Kara and Jen will offer a framework for mindfully deepening capacity in all five disciplines and for using an asset-based rather than a problem-based approach to move from thinking to action. Participants will receive a handout that outlines key tools, resources, and references to continue their learning journey.

In this session, you will:

• Receive an introduction to tools that are foundational to systems thinking in action, including the “three-legged stool” and the “creative tension model”
• Hear about examples from the public and not-for-profit sectors of specific application of tools and methods
• Learn from two experienced practitioners who have spent time engaging others in the process of applying all five disciplines to effect change

Kara Werner is program associate for Food, Health and Well-Being at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. She supports and collaborates with senior program staff to carry out the strategic programming functions of the Foundation. Kara teaches in the Foundation’s organizational learning capacity building program and facilitates grantee groups in the application of the tools. Previously, Kara was the manager of Employment Group Managed Services in Battle Creek, MI. She is currently working on her master’s degree in organizational leadership. Jen Hunter founded The Learning Catalyst, an organization committed to developing, sharing, applying, and refining tools, methods, and processes for leveraging our collective wisdom. She works with a rich variety of customers who share her commitment and passion for connecting great people to great work. Jen is an avid life-long learner and is proud to declare that her 10-year involvement in the Pegasus Communications community has significantly contributed to her learning, leadership, and value in the world.

A04—How Relationships Make or Break Team Performance
Diana McLain Smith, Monitor Group; Vanessa Kirsch, New Profit Inc.

No one would dispute the idea that relationships matter. Cross-functional teams, flatter hierarchies, efforts to move decision making down in organizations all depend on the quality of people’s relationships. Yet despite their importance, relationships remain largely a mystery. Like a firm’s culture, they are part of the informal side of organizational life: the soft stuff that’s hard to see, grasp, or change. Drawing on in-depth case studies, Diana and Vanessa will explore how relationships work, develop, and change, and will offer tools for building relationships strong enough to master the toughest challenges your teams face.

In this session, you will:

• Focus on how relationships affect the fate of leaders and their teams
• Learn how to map relationships and uncover leverage points for change
• Understand how to build a relationship’s “cool system”—the collective ability to cool down when things get too hot to handle well
• Identify strategically critical relationships—those most in need of investment—by applying a tool called the “Investment Matrix”

Diana McLain Smith is a partner at the Monitor Group, a global management consulting firm, where she teaches, consults, and conducts research. She is also a founding partner of Action Design, a small firm specializing in organizational learning and professional development. She is the author of Divide or Conquer: How Great Teams Turn Conflict into Strength (Portfolio/Penguin USA, 2008). Vanessa Kirsch is the founder and president of New Profit, Inc., a social venture capital firm that targets innovative social entrepreneurs and helps them scale up their ventures. She has more than 17 years of experience in developing innovative solutions to social problems and is widely recognized as a leading social entrepreneur. Prior to launching New Profit, Vanessa founded and led two nonprofit organizations, Public Allies and the Women’s Information Network.

A05—From Embattled Antagonists to Partners in Problem Solving: Pre-Meeting Practices for Multi-Stakeholder Dialogues
Grady McGonagill, McGonagill Associates; Maggie Herzig, Public Conversations Project; Mil Niepold, Verité

How do you set the stage for a successful meeting among diverse stakeholders on a complex, high-stakes issue? The planning process for such a gathering must embody the qualities that one hopes to see exemplified in the gathering itself: genuine inquiry, respect, and collaboration. Through pre-meeting interviews of unusual scope and depth, organizers can gather information, foster a sense of partnership with participants, and engage them as advisors in the meeting design. Grady, Maggie, and Mil will draw on examples of these practices and outcomes from a recent one-day meeting between representatives of the cocoa industry and NGOs concerned with child labor in West Africa.

In this session, you will:

• Become familiar with an approach to preparation for multi-stakeholder dialogues
• Discover the purpose for particular practices, such as participant interviews that go beyond information gathering
• Hear about the impact of thoughtful pre-work on a significant stuck conversation
• Reflect on the impact that exchanges with participants ahead of time can have on ways that participants talk with each other during the meeting

Grady McGonagill is founding partner of McGonagill Associates, a consulting firm that has for 25 years specialized in building capacity for learning and change. In addition to expertise in leadership development and coaching, Grady has extensive experience in conflict management and in the design and facilitation of multi-stakeholder dialogues. He holds an EdD from Harvard University, an MA from Stanford University, and a BA from the University of Texas. Maggie Herzig is a founding associate of the Public Conversations Project and is co-author of Fostering Dialogue Across Divides. She has designed and facilitated dialogue about sexual orientation and scripture, intra-faith community controversies, Arab-Jewish relations, post-9/11 tensions between Muslims and non-Muslims, population and development, and other controversies. Maggie has worked with Grady McGonagill on multi-stakeholder projects related to forest management and biodiversity. Mil Niepold served as director of policy for Verité—a non-profit organization monitoring international labor rights abuses in off-shore production sites. She currently focuses on programs to help implement the Harkin–Engel Protocol on child labor in cocoa production. Mil has previously worked on behalf of the European Commission, Oxfam America, Reebok, Calvert Social Investments, UNIFEM, and World Monitors, Inc. She holds a degree in international affairs from the George Washington University and L’Institut des Sciences Politiques in Aix-en-Provence.

A06—Team Synergy: Setting the Stage to Learn, Share, and Practice Together
Mindy Habecker, Kathleen Haas, and Gerry Campbell, University of Wisconsin-Madison/Extension  

Conferences can be inspiring, but how does one translate the energy and new knowledge into action, especially with regard to complex concepts such as system thinking? After the 2004 conference, faculty of the University of Wisconsin formed the UW-Extension Systems Thinking Team. This self-directed group coalesced around the desire to learn about and practice systems thinking and other tools of organizational learning. Since then, members have started to apply the ideas within their larger institution and local communities. They will share the story of how the synergy they have found on this team has allowed them to accomplish much more than they ever could have on their own.

In this session, you will:

• Understand how a self-motivated team works and recognize the benefits of building capacity in systems thinking and organizational learning
• Appreciate the value of looking at both failures and successes for increasing a group’s effectiveness and capacity
• Explore some of the practices the group uses, such as behavior over time graphs, causal loops, World Café, and other inquiry techniques
• Acquire tips for helping your own team rejuvenate, practice, and share

Mindy Habecker is a professor in the Department of Community, Natural Resources, and Economic Development of the University of Wisconsin-Extension. She designs and delivers educational programs to communities, organizations, and citizens of Dane County on topics such as conflict resolution around local natural resource issues, land stewardship, community visioning, strategic planning, and community planning processes. Her degrees are in history, agronomy, and soil science. Kathleen Haas is an associate professor in the Department of Community, Natural Resources, and Economic Development of the University of Wisconsin-Extension. Currently, she directs programs in community development, local government, and organizational development for business and non-profits. Kathleen received her master’s degree in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Illinois. Gerry Campbell is professor, and extension leadership and organizational development specialist at UW-Madison-Extension. He currently co-leads the team of University of Wisconsin-Extension Systems Thinkers and Organizational Development Learners. Gerry is a fellow of the UW-Madison Teaching Academy. He has also held leadership roles as an academic program director, associate dean, and vice chancellor. Gerry is based in the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics at UW-Madison.

A07—Creating Synergy Among Empowered Schools
MAK Mitchell and Veronica Conforme, Empowerment Schools, New York City

The challenge: Create systemwide change by putting resources and instructional decisions in the hands of the people closest to the implementation. This is the story of how the largest urban school district in the nation, New York City Public Schools, is taking on that challenge, with the aim of closing their achievement gap. In 2003, at 30 city schools, principals assumed more autonomy in exchange for more accountability. These “Empowerment Schools,” which now number 500, are reporting 93 percent principal satisfaction ratings and improved student achievement. Veronica and MAK, who were involved from the inception, will illuminate key junctures and synergies where systemic learning occurred, and will introduce tools useful to any school system.

In this session, you will:

• Hear a verbal “learning history” of the change process
• Learn how to create purposeful networks of schools, tap their synergistic capacities, and grow the new organization while influencing the entire system design
• Experience one of the three primary tools used in this process
• Gain exposure to systems thinking tools as a way to make sense of the dynamic complexity inherent to organizational reform

MAK Mitchell is the director of policy and planning for the Empowerment Schools, a network of 500 public schools in New York City. She leads the systemic change work with network leaders. Previously, MAK served as an organizational change professor, superintendent, change consultant for the Gates Learning Foundation, and founder of numerous small schools in Alaska. MAK earned both master’s and doctoral degrees from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and is a founding member of SoL. Veronica Conforme serves as chief operating officer of the Empowerment Schools organization in the New York City Department of Education. In this role, she oversees 70 leaders and managers focused on providing instructional and operational support to 255 schools and 178,000 students. Prior to joining the Department of Education, Veronica was director of human resources at Columbia University Medical Center and, earlier in her career, held key financial roles in various non-profits.

A08—Claiming Bold Dreams: Transformation at Texas Instruments Through Servant Leadership
Shaunna Black, Texas Instruments; Ann McGee-Cooper and Gary Looper, Ann McGee-Cooper & Associates

Texas Instruments had a bold dream: to build a semiconductor factory in Texas that would be cost competitive with plants overseas, while voluntarily adhering to strict LEED construction standards. This challenge required a new kind of leadership—leadership that would enable breakthrough thinking and a commitment to people, profit, product, and the planet. Shaunna Black shares the role that servant leadership played in achieving this “impossible” goal and in fundamentally transforming how people in the company think and act. Ann and Gary will share tools that other organizations can use to launch and sustain a similar process of unleashing the potential of their people.

In this session, you will:

• Learn how Texas Instruments received the semiconductor industry’s first LEED Gold Status certification for an environmentally-responsible manufacturing facility and, in the process, changed the TI culture
• Hear how servant leadership supported the process
• Explore how to use a visioning tool to create a new future in your own organization
• Practice using dialogue to create breakthrough possibilities

Shaunna F. Black is vice president and manager of Worldwide Facilities for Texas Instruments. She is responsible for the design, construction, operation, and leasing of TI facilities worldwide and ESH management. Shaunna is an international speaker on topics such as sustainability, female leadership in corporate America, diversity, mentoring, and executive-principal partnerships in public education. She holds a B.S. in Education from the University of Texas, Austin, and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from New Mexico State University. Ann McGee-Cooper, EdD, is an author, lecturer, business consultant, creativity expert, and widely recognized leader in the field of servant leadership. She was mentored by Robert Greenleaf, the father of servant leadership, the last decade of his life, and has been teaching and coaching servant leadership internationally for 32 years. Two of her longest-served clients have been recognized at the top of Fortune Magazine’s 100 Best Places to Work in America. Gary Looper is project leader of the pacesetting Servant-Leadership Learning Community, a consortium of 11 organizations that meet together to develop unique, leaderful cultures and practice the disciplines of organizational learning. He also maintains responsibility as project manager for Texas Instruments and is director of publications for AMCA, Inc.

BLOCK B: Monday, November 17, 1:45-3:15 p.m.

B01—Introduction to Systems Thinking II
Ginny Wiley, Pegasus Communications; Gregory Hennessy, Systems Thinking Collaborative

Systems thinking—seeing the underlying structures that drive our behavior and the interconnections in our world—is a key management skill for the 21st century. Understanding the power of structure can help leaders unlock their organization’s potential and avoid unintended consequences. For those who are new to the field, this workshop presents an excellent opportunity to explore the vocabulary and tools of systems thinking and their application to organizations in ways geared to all types of learners.

In this two-part workshop:

• Learn why systems thinking is the keystone of organizational learning
• Practice basic causal looping skills and experience the dynamics of structural traps, using hands-on activities
• Build a foundation of systems thinking knowledge and explore new ways to address the complex issues in your organization

Ginny Wiley is president of Pegasus Communications, Inc. Prior to coming to Pegasus in 1996, she worked at GKA, a systems thinking consulting company, as a consultant and trainer. Before that, she spent 12 years building the Huenefeld Company, a consulting firm for book publishers. Ginny served as vice president for Chapters of the International System Dynamics Society and holds an MBA from Northeastern University. Gregory Hennessy advises senior leaders on matters of business and organizational strategy. He has been a consultant at leading strategy firms (McKinsey & Company and the Monitor Group) and has run his own consulting practice. Greg provided systems thinking subject matter expertise to Shell Oil (USA). He earned an MS in Management from MIT’s Sloan and holds an MS in Economics from the California Institute of Technology.

B02—Speaking Presence: The Art of Slowing Down and Connecting with Your Audience
Carla Kimball, Riverways Enerprises

Nothing is more important to team success than our capacity to speak to each other with presence and authenticity. To be fully present, we must listen and speak from our still center even as complex events swirl around us. How can we cultivate our ability to slow down internally, listen to the collective voice of the team, and then speak with thoughtful clarity? In this experiential workshop, you’ll learn and practice the very fundamentals of speaking and listening with presence.

In this session, you will:

• Identify key components of authentic presence
• Learn simple ways to slow down and return to your quiet center as you engage with others
• Practice strategies for authentically connecting with your audience
• Discover the power of silence to deepen your conversations
• Practice speaking with presence

Carla Kimball, MA, MBA, is founder of RiverWays Enterprises and a speaking presence coach. Working from inside out, she helps clients overcome fears and cultivate the type of leadership presence so essential in today's world. Carla has written an email subscription series entitled “The ABCs of Presence in Public Speaking Toolkit.” Her first DVD, The Seven Crown Jewels of Public Speaking Presence, was released this year.

B03—Discussing the Undiscussable: Overcoming Defensive Routines in the Workplace
William Noonan, William Noonan, Ph.D., Consulting Services

Defensive routines—actions we take to prevent ourselves from experiencing embarrassment or threat—exist in all organizations, and people feel disempowered and helpless to change them. Every day, these patterns of behavior result in the loss of productivity, a dispirited work force, and a cultural malaise of dissatisfaction. In this workshop, Bill enlivens the scholarly work of Chris Argyris on defensive routines through the use of reflective exercises that illuminate the basic human experience endemic to this dilemma. This session offers hope for altering these vicious cycles by leveraging the greatest opportunity for change—the way we think and act.

In this session, you will:

• Understand Chris Argyris’s research on defensive routines in a clear, accessible, and practical manner
• Identify your own specific conditions of threat and embarrassment that give rise to defensive reasoning
• Break through the “designed helplessness” associated with defensive routines
• Be able to shift your thinking and take the actions necessary to reduce the negative impact of defensive routines
• Learn how to share this work with others

Bill Noonan is an educator and consultant with an international practice including many leading learning organizations. He was the content expert for the web-based learning programs Forging Breakthroughs with Peter Senge, Productive Business Dialogues, and Managing Difficult Conversations. Bill is the author of Discussing the Undiscussable: A Guide to Overcoming Defensive Routines in the Workplace.

B04—Managing Conflict with Power and Presence
Judy Ringer, Power & Presence Training

How can we begin to change our relationship with conflict? This lively workshop employs the martial art aikido to explore resistance, connection, power, and presence in order to transform the energy of conflict into purposeful action. You’ll experience these concepts in physical ways and learn to apply them in attitude, action, and words. You will find power in self-awareness and learn useful centering practices. And you will come to understand why it’s not what happens in life that determines your state of mind but how you manage yourself and your reactions along the way.

In this session, you will:

• Learn to direct the energy of conflict instead of reacting to it
• Draw lessons from aikido, which demonstrates in theory and practice how to simultaneously protect, support, and assert
• Use active, kinesthetic activities to change hard-wired reactive behaviors
• Choose to remain calm and increase your options in difficult situations
• Acknowledge emotional energy and direct it in positive ways
• Have fun!

Judy Ringer is the author of Unlikely Teachers: Finding the Hidden Gifts in Daily Conflict. She provides conflict and communication training throughout North America with unique workshops based on mind/body principles from the martial art aikido, in which she holds a black belt. Judy brings to life concepts such as self-management under pressure and appreciation of other viewpoints. Her programs are interactive, experiential, and energetic.

B05—Tapping into the Wisdom of Citizens Through a New Model of Public Participation
Susannah Childers and Lynette McCormack, Ah Ha!; Warren Miller, Fountainworks

In his keynote last year, Van Jones pointed out the difference between saying “I have a Dream” and “I have an Issue.” The typical town hall meeting focuses on issues. In this experiential workshop, learn how to enable the sharing of dreams among citizens and public officials with the goal of creating more meaningful outcomes. Through this process, citizens have a greater voice in public policy development and policy makers learn to understand the underlying values that drive positions and priorities. Those in the nonprofit, education, and corporate sectors who desire to engage customers and incorporate values into their planning processes will also benefit from these tools and practices.

In this session, you will:

• Learn how to create a setting in which government decision makers can understand the holistic experience and perspectives of the typical citizen
• Gain insight into how to move a community from “us” and “them” to “we”
• Experience graphic tools that allow participants to go deeper and further in their conversations
• Practice a facilitated approach that builds ownership, commitment, and results from the ground up

Susannah Childers is founder and president of Ah Ha!, an international facilitation and consulting firm that specializes in knowledge creation and helping people think creatively and leverage their collective wisdom. She has a BA from Washington University in St. Louis and an MBA from Northwestern’s Kellogg Graduate School of Management. Ah Ha!’s clients include Procter and Gamble, the Kellogg Company, Fidelity Investments, and Yahoo!, among others. Lynette McCormack is a graphic facilitator and founder of Ah Ha!. Key to her work is her passionate attention to structural dynamics and systems thinking. She creates and uses graphic tools to enable people to see the big picture, create shared understanding, and converge information into actionable outputs. Lynette provides a leading-edge creative force in the Ah Ha! community. Warren Miller is founder and president of Fountainworks, a market research and policy facilitation consulting firm. He is known in government and nonprofit circles for his leading-edge approaches to public and stakeholder participation in planning initiatives. Warren served as policy director to former North Carolina governor Jim Hunt, where he helped manage the development and implementation of the governor’s policy agenda and served as the governor’s liaison to North Carolina’s nonprofit community.

B06—Choice and Voice: Making All Voices Matter in Public Education
Kim Carter, Elizabeth Cardine, a Recent Graduate, and a Current Student, Monadnock Community Connections School

Monadnock Community Connections School (MC2) is an innovative public high school program where students make progress to graduation through applying, documenting, and defending their learning. Students, staff, and parents share in the decision-making processes and in the responsibility for each other’s learning. By having the space and support to use their voices effectively and with integrity, students develop the ability to speak out in favor of change that empowers others as they have been empowered. The school’s director, a teacher, a graduate, and a current student will tell the story of how they came to own their learning, their school, and their place in the world.

In this session, you will:

• Learn guiding principles that result in more effective systems than the standard “command and control” model of public education
• Hear about structures for engaging students in learning experiences that are founded on meaningful relationships and are rich in academic rigor and personal relevance
• Learn protocols for conversations that intentionally value all voices, elicit diverse perspectives, and surface assumptions
• Acquire tips for navigating the personal dynamics of change in schools

Kim Carter is director of MC2, an innovative small high school program, and executive director of QED Foundation, a nonprofit organization of students, families, and educators committed to empowering choice and voice in learning. With more than 30 years in public education, Kim is a National Facilitator for National School Reform Faculty. Her passions include high school redesign, social justice and equity, learning theory, and democratic schooling. Elizabeth Cardine is lead teacher/advisor at MC2. She has held this position for five years, since graduating from Connecticut College with a double major in Studio Arts and Physics. Such whole-brained training has provided her ample experience in creative problem solving through identification of root causes and effective communication via research-based graphic design strategies. Both disciplines converge in her instructional practices and democratic learning facilitation. Christopher Vickery and Anna Toegel are a recent graduate and a current student respectively at the Monadnock Community Connections School.

B07—Creating Global Communication Skills and Norms in a Virtual Community
Sue Brightman, Brightman Glover International; An Vandermeersch, Shell International Business Applications Support

In an increasingly virtual world, organizations are being forced to pioneer new ways of achieving business success. Whether teams are spread across states, regions, or continents, members must transcend differences in language, culture, and norms without the benefit of regular face-to-face contact. This workshop will highlight how Shell used a systems approach to introduce three tools for “conversations that matter” to 1,000+ employees around the world in a manner that strengthened their community while respecting their differences. Through leading-edge audio and web technology that allowed people to practice their skills, the process created new norms in a fast, expert way.

In this session, you will:

• Learn and practice timeless tools for conversations that matter
• Hear how these tools were successfully introduced at Shell to 1,000+ people dispersed across the globe
• Experience leading-edge technology that allows for high-quality skills/norms to be introduced fast in a low-cost, high-impact way
• Apply the Shell model to your own team and/or organization

Sue Brightman is an international OD consultant and coach, and founder of Brightman Glover International. Her passion is helping develop strong leaders, teams, and organizational systems so they in turn can achieve their desired results. In 2007, Sue taught workshops for Shell on five continents and facilitated over 70 virtual workshops for participants from another 30 countries worldwide. Her 20 years of experience spans a variety of industries including oil and gas, healthcare, news media, IT, public education, automotive, and the not-for-profit sector. An Vandermeersch is an experienced change and program manager. Since 2005, she has provided full-time support to the transformation journey of Shell Downstream’s Global IT application support team. Previously, An held line management and consultancy roles in the UK and in Benelux in a variety of sectors, including IT services, utilities, government, banking, media, and telecoms. She holds a degree in languages and a degree in economics from the University of Leuven (Belgium).

B08—Sustaining Excellence: The Hidden Challenges of Perfectionism
Deb Ramsey and Phil Ramsey, Incite Learning

What can be bad about wanting to do our best? Unfortunately, in our organizations, the pursuit of excellence is often hijacked by perfectionism. Masquerading as a positive force, perfectionism makes high performance unsustainable and robs people of joy. It makes it difficult for people to share control and to be open to new learning experiences. Perfectionism is not only costly and time consuming, but it can divert resources and energy away from important matters. This session enables leaders to understand the dynamics of perfectionism and to recognize it at work in teams. Through a series of engaging, interactive activities, you will develop strategies for challenging the underlying assumptions that fuel perfectionism and learn how to encourage the healthy and sustainable pursuit of excellence.

In this session, you will:

• Use the tools of systems thinking to understand perfectionism as a dynamic process
• Learn to distinguish between perfectionism (a distorted set of assumptions about success and failure) and the healthy pursuit of excellence
• Practice structuring conversations so that they engage perfectionists and challenge them to work toward balancing performance, learning, and experience
  

Deb Ramsey is a director of Incite Learning, Ltd, in New Zealand. Her work brings together a deep interest in education, communication, and drama, which she uses in helping executives develop leadership presence. This workshop builds on Deb’s research into perfectionism. She has a master’s degree in education. Phil Ramsey is a director of Incite Learning, Ltd., and teaches organizational learning at Massey University in New Zealand. His doctoral research examined the impact of organizational culture on learning. Phil trains school leaders in organizational learning concepts. He is author of several books including the Billibonk series, published by Pegasus, designed to teach systems thinking concepts to young readers and adults.

 

BLOCK C: Tuesday, November 18, 10:45 a.m.-12:15 p.m.

C01—Encompassing Multiple Perspectives Using Systems Thinking
David Peter Stroh, Bridgeway Partners; Michael Goodman, Innovation Associates Organizational Learning

Systems thinking offers powerful approaches for enabling groups with different perspectives on a problem to synthesize their views into a more accurate and compelling picture of the whole. Using guidelines for encompassing multiple perspectives, systems archetypes, and case examples, you will learn how to create conversations that illuminate the underlying interdependencies across diverse groups and develop commitment to opportunities that benefit everyone. Cases include strengthening cross-functional collaboration in a large company and supporting a community-wide effort to end homelessness. David and Mike will help participants apply the mapping tools to a scenario from education, healthcare, or business process reengineering.

In this session, you will:

• Review a range of methods that bring together people with multiple perspectives
• Learn guidelines for mapping the views of diverse stakeholders so that they can develop a more complete and accurate picture of their interdependencies
• Hear how these methods and guidelines were applied in different case studies
• Learn how to apply such tools as balancing advocacy and inquiry, interaction maps, and the “Accidental Adversaries” archetype in your own setting

David Peter Stroh is a principal with Bridgeway Partners and co-founder of Innovation Associates, the pioneering consulting firm in the area of organizational learning. He has 30 years of experience consulting to companies, public sector organizations, and non-profits on six continents and is a leading thinker and practitioner in applying systems thinking to change management. David holds degrees from MIT and the University of Michigan. Michael Goodman is a principal with Innovation Associates Organizational Learning. He is an internationally recognized speaker, author, and practitioner in the fields of systems thinking, organizational learning, and leadership, and has helped create many of the innovations in the field of systems thinking that have made it more accessible to business leaders. Michael has degrees from MIT and Purdue.

C02—Courage to Lead with Heart
Rick Brush, CIGNA HealthCare; Mary Pierce Brosmer, Consulting for a Change

We often think of courage in terms of extraordinary acts, when people take on new qualities in the face of danger or difficulty. Yet, courage is being “who we most are” in the daily course of our lives. It is about connection, not confrontation. And it is at the center of individual and collective well-being. Mary and Rick bring relevant experiences in corporate, community, and personal contexts, and will engage participants in exploring together such questions as: What is the “source” of courage? How do we create “safe spaces” where we can access it? And how do we sustain it over time?

In this session, you will:

• Learn to create spaces that enable meaningful relationships and inspire integrity and depth
• Experience how synergy and innovation are influenced by our rituals, values, agreements, and stories
• Practice the courage required to embody and sustain such values in organizations

Rick Brush helps people, organizations, and communities create the changes they most wish for. He is cofounder of Communities of Health, a social cooperative affiliated with CIGNA, where he has led long-term change to improve health since 2002. Prior to that, Rick managed the global implementation of a strategic leadership process at Ford Credit, and held executive positions at Bank One, KPMG, and a consulting firm. Mary Pierce Brosmer is a business owner and social entrepreneur. In Consulting for a Change, she translates learning community practices and living systems leadership to diverse organizations including business, healthcare, education, and community action groups. Mary is also the founder of Women Writing for (a) Change, a multi-faceted arts, social justice, and community-building organization with affiliates in eight states.

C03—A Group Learning Process for Enhancing Systems Thinking
Gerald C. Swanson, Boeing Corporation

Systems are at work all around us, but they can be difficult to perceive. One powerful way to begin to “get” systems is to physically experience concepts such as homeostasis, sub-optimization, system constraints, and synergistic emergence. Gerald will lead you through a series of activities designed to rapidly teach fundamental systems concepts. Through this group process, you will learn to recognize the interconnectedness of the systems in which you operate and to avoid the issues that arise when organizations fail to take that interconnectedness into account. New practitioners will gain understanding of systems properties in behavioral terms; experienced practitioners will learn a tool they can use with any group working on issues that are inherently systemic.

In this session, you will:

• Learn a simple, easily replicated method of demonstrating systems principles
• Experience the concepts of homeostasis, sub-optimization, system constraints, and synergistic emergence in a manner that makes the behavioral consequences of these principles clear
• Take away ideas for immediately applying these concepts in your work environment
• Contribute to the conversation about introducing systems principles in this way

Gerald C. Swanson, BS, MS, PhD, MA-ABS, has worked in Boeing for 23 years applying process and organization development methodologies to support organizations in improving their business performance. He has particular passion about two challenges such organizations face: (1) ensuring that the planned change does not sub-optimize the larger system and (2) helping the people in the organization to transition through the change effectively.

C04—Avoiding Accidents and Disasters Through Modeling, Collaboration, and Courage
Marc Gerstein, Marc Gerstein Associates

Major accidents such as the tragic loss of the space shuttles Challenger and Columbia, the failure of flood controls in New Orleans in the face of hurricane Katrina, and various national security and economic crises were all predicted well in advance, but these predictions were largely ignored by policymakers. To avoid financial losses, embarrassment, or even criminal penalties, leaders sometimes act in ways that put others in harm’s way. In this session, examine the psychological, cultural, and political forces that set the stage for such public- and private-sector catastrophes, or “organizational accidents.” Explore potential remedies, particularly the essential role of personal courage in preventing disaster in organizational settings.

In this session, you will:

• Recognize that major catastrophes are just as important as innovation in affecting organizational momentum and improvement
• See how systems thinking, analysis, and modeling can help overcome the counterintuitive character of many large-scale risks
• Understand how the seductive pressures leaders at all levels often face can lead to unwise choices
• Come to appreciate that deep collaboration and trust are essential to work through the cognitive and political barriers to disaster prevention

Marc Gerstein holds a PhD from the MIT Sloan School of Management, and has held positions as an adjunct full professor at the Columbia Business School and as a visiting scholar at Sloan. He currently heads Marc Gerstein Associates, Ltd., a management consulting firm specializing in organization design, innovation, and risk management. Marc is also president of The Organization Design Forum, a professional organization, and the author of three books, including Flirting With Disaster: Why Accidents Are Rarely Accidental.

C05—Building a Learning Culture for Empowered Action: The Kaospilots
Signe Gro Jensen and Christer Lidzélius, Kaospilot International

The Kaospilots is a three-year post-graduate educational program that started in Denmark in 1991. Today, it has four partner schools in Europe and attracts young entrepreneurial minds from all over the world. What sets the Kaospilot program apart from other higher education institutions is its unique approach to learning. This approach has created a culture that stretches the individual and develops the collective, inspiring students and empowering them to act together. Signe and Christer will give a brief introduction to the school, share the Kaospilot approach to building a learning culture, and offer concrete ideas, principles, and methods for fostering empowered action in your own organization.

In this session, you will:

• Hear the story of the Kaospilots and what makes them capable of consistently attracting creative and entrepreneurial minds from around the world
• Explore how to create an environment for collective learning, empowered action, inspired leadership, and innovation
• Acquire concrete practices and principles that you can apply in your own organization
• Learn from each other’s questions and reflections about the challenge of creating learning cultures for empowered action

Signe Gro Jensen is a consultant with Deloitte. She graduated from the Kaospilots in 2008. Previously, she attended Copenhagen University, where she studied political science and philosophy. Signe is passionate about working with organizations in the areas of process leadership, design, collaboration, well-being, and change. During her education, she has built her experience by working with different organizations in Europe, Asia, and North America. Christer Lidzélius is the principal and CEO of Kaospilot International, Denmark. He graduated from the Kaospilots in 1998 and obtained an MBA from the Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh in 2000. Since then, Christer has held different leadership positions in the fields of investment management and business development in Scandinavia. He returned to the Kaospilots in 2006 to take over from founder Uffe Elbaek.

C06—Accessing the Technology of Wholeness
William Isaacs, Dialogos

What if you could access your own internal source of wisdom and, in the process, produce change and innovation in your organization? Drawing on the work of David Bohm, brain science, and years of inquiry with transformational leaders, Bill will cast light on the “technology of wholeness” that resides in the human psyche and is designed to enable inner transformation and unleash power and creativity. Accessing this force requires crossing a series of thresholds in oneself and shedding some of your conditioned reactions to circumstance. We will explore the four critical “initiations,” or access points, that must be opened to allow new levels of innovative action and deeper essences of leadership.

In this session, you will:

• Hear stories of how these ideas were applied in small- and large-scale organizational settings
• Learn about the contrast between mechanistic change and living change
• Discover four thresholds you must cross to develop this understanding in yourself
• Discover the limits and obstacles to overcome in each area
• Identify a practical application you can try in each of these domains

William Isaacs, DPhil, is the founder of Dialogos and a senior lecturer at the MIT Sloan School of Management. He is the author of Dialogue and the Art of Thinking Together (Doubleday, 1999). Bill is considered a world authority on and pioneer in the fields of dialogue, collective leadership, and organizational learning. He has consulted to senior leaders of prominent organizations around the world, supporting them to lead visionary transitions and catalyze collective leadership within their systems.

C07—Purpose to Performance: Synergy in the Antelope Valley Union High School District
Patricia Martinez-Miller and Debra Laidley, UCLA School Management Program; Michael Vierra, Antelope Valley Union High School District

How did the Antelope Valley Union High School District turn the threat of onerous “No Child Left Behind” sanctions into a catalyst for measurable positive change? By applying three simple change tools to connect people with purpose, teachers, students, and parents made significant progress toward assuring effective learning for all. In this session, Patricia, Debra, and Mike will share a storytelling protocol that forges collaboration from diverse experiences and points of view. They will teach you how to use “unconditional positive questions” to find and harness evidence already present in your system of the positive change you want to see. And they will help you surface patterns of data that you can leverage to transform performance.

In this session, you will:

• Recognize that the people in schools are the ones who can change schools to assure effective learning for all students
• Participate in an interview process that connects individual purpose to performance
• Use a story-telling protocol to harness diverse perspectives and define common purpose
• Experience an observation protocol that links Appreciative Inquiry’s “unconditional positive questions” to patterns of data that generate transformational actions toward positive change

Patricia Martinez-Miller is director of faculty for the UCLA School Management Program, consulting with renewing schools in California and across the nation. In addition to a career as a teacher and school principal in inner-city Los Angeles, she served 12 years on the South Pasadena, California school board. Patricia holds a PhD in Spanish literature from the University of Southern California. Debra Laidley, UCLA School Management Program faculty, consults with renewing schools in California. In addition, she is a lecturer for the UCLA Principal Leadership Institute and served as co-director of the National School Reform Faculty. Debra has worked as an English teacher and coordinator of secondary literacy for the Los Angeles Unified School District. She holds an MA in educational administration from Mount St. Mary’s College. Michael Vierra is assistant superintendent of educational services in the Antelope Valley Union High School District. Through his services as an effective high school teacher, principal, assistant superintendent, and university-level methodology instructor, he has honed his systems skills. Mike holds a PhD from the Claremont Graduate School, where he specialized in applied data.

C08—Culture Eats Strategy: Building Organizational Capacity for Long-Term Success
Scott Adler, Insight Strategies; Zeev Neuwirth, Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates/Atrius Health; Robert Beyer, Insight Strategies

Only a handful of years ago, Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates/Atrius Health was on the brink of bankruptcy. With an aggressive turn-around plan, financial performance improved, but sustained, long-term improvements required dramatic changes. Under new leadership, HVMA undertook an organization-wide process aimed at transforming its culture, focusing on optimal patient and staff experiences. This process combined the principles of organizational learning with rapid prototyping to reinforce the learnings and new behaviors required for long-term success. The result: Through rigorous, productive, and safe dialogue about emerging issues, employees are better able to solve the problems of today and anticipate tomorrow’s challenges.

In this session, you will:

• Learn to articulate how dialogue is a vital part of transforming an organization
• Acquire a tool to facilitate the integration of quality improvement and engagement initiatives
• Experience the application of a rapid-cycle prototyping methodology
• Discover the essential elements for creating an environment where meaningful work can occur as a sustainable change strategy
• Understand how to apply this work in your organization

Scott Adler is a principal with Insight Strategies, LLC. He has been in healthcare marketing, business development, and community organizing for more than 20 years. Scott co-wrote and produced the PBS documentary, “Living With Cancer: The Windstorms of Life.” He was one of 30 thought leaders invited to a summit exploring critical questions related to the future of creating healthy communities. Scott was a 1994–1995 fellow with the Healthcare Forum. Zeev Neuwirth, MD, MHCM, is a general academic internist whose life goal is to transform our healthcare system into one that affords dignity, respect, and outstanding medical and wellness care to all patients and their families. He is VP of Clinical Effectiveness and Innovation at Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates/Atrius Health. Zeev has published articles in medical journals, The New York Times, and Newsweek; he has been featured in Forbes, Fast Company, and WebMD. Robert Beyer is a principal with Insight Strategies, LLC. Bob has more than 30 years of experience in healthcare, including 13 in clinical services and 17 as a hospital/system CEO. As a CEO, his experiences ranged from rural hospitals to a multi-institutional, regional system with net revenues of $300 million. Under Bob’s leadership, his organizations received the AHA Nova Award and a national designation as one of 20 Community Care Network Demonstration Grant recipients.

C09—Embracing Elderhood: An Experiential Exploration into Our Possibilities
Alan Gilburg; David Isaacs, The World Café

We have evolved a culture in the West that has turned elders into senior citizens, largely to be put out to pasture, patronized, and finally warehoused. No wonder we resist the natural process of growing old! When we encounter traditional cultures that revere elders, we feel a deep longing for something that we are missing. This interactive forum will boldly march into the world of Elderhood, integrating the life experiences of the leaders with those of the participants. Using World Café and other processes, we’ll explore the role that elders might play in today’s society and uncover how to grow old both gracefully and fiercely.

In this session, you will:

• Begin to embrace growing old as a natural and exciting part of life’s journey
• Identify the personal resistances to being a powerful, respected, fierce, wise elder
• Identify the differences between being a “senior citizen” and being an “elder”
• Discover the exciting benefits of becoming an elder
• Explore the benefits to society of having strong, generative, courageous elders, who not only bless us but also risk telling the truth

Alan Gilburg, who is now retired at 71, has been an OD consultant for the past 30 years, working in a variety of public and private organizations. His experience of living in Sri Lanka gave him first-hand exposure to what true elders can be. More recently, he helped create an elder presence in a men’s training organization, the ManKind Project. He has been heard to say, “I wouldn’t want to relive a minute of my life; the best is yet to be.” David Isaacs, now 70, is a samtalspartner accompanying business and organizational leadership teams in designing, hosting, and convening results-oriented strategic conversations around their most important questions. With partner Juanita Brown, he is co-author of The World Café: Shaping Our Futures Through Conversations That Matter. In the 1970s, he had the privilege of working with John W. Gardner’s Common Cause as a non-partisan political and community organizer.