Group Practices

 Project design and facilitation appreciate the aspirations and challenges in your situation and deliver a custom approach built on proven practices. Engagements are graphically facilitated using visual tools such as live and large scale drawing, pre-printed imagery and active engagement of the participants themselves. Practices employed often include Appreciative Inquiry and the Osborne-Parnes Creative Problem-Solving Method. Systems Thinking, SOAR, World Café and other skills can also be deployed to achieve optimal outcomes. Here are a few examples.

Scenario Thinking in Academic Medicine

As an alternative to the traditional "situation analysis" it was decided to take a look not only at the outside world itself, but also at the forces that influence its change. Twenty-seven of the medical school's leadership community were interviewed to ascertain what had everyone's attention, and a working team of 25 began crafting four scenarios, or plausible stories of the future. These were crafted in a series of interactive workshops, using tools such as story-boarding and videography. One effect of the work has been a reduction in the self-imposed constraints of a single view of the future, and a growing awareness that the future is ours to create.

Growing Leadership with Appreciative Inquiry

An Episcopal Parish was undergoing change in its vestry, and wanted to come together as an effective unit around a central purpose. A two and a half day retreat was scheduled wherein I helped them through the Inquire, Imagine and Innovate phases. As planned, they worked the final day without assistance on the Implementation phase. One year later, they continue to actively and effectively work with what they created together.

Leading Change in Technology Services

An IT department on a Pennsylvania campus foresaw the need to move beyond traditional "sneaker net" campus support and into the world of virtual services. Assistance was requested in framing their purpose and strategic directions upon which they could build action plans themselves. We began with considering a "rich picture" of what they do, and then determined the positive core of those times when they're at their best. Over a two-month they interviewed campus stakeholders about their work as well as coming trends. The findings were synthesized and affirmed, providing the basis for delineating their purpose, a shared vision of their future and the action categories they will undertake.

Near-Term Planning for a University Student Center

This unit had endured numerous administrative changes, including the vacancy of the Director's position for over a year. The Interim Director asked for help in defining priorities for the upcoming semester, but doing so in a way that restored a sense of purpose and communality. Together we designed a process around a gardening theme wherein we helped them see what they did well and why, what changes in context they might might want to work with and then into what major areas might they begin growing in the immediate future. The work was designed to be highly interactive with all participants contributing to the graphics as well doing their own idea clustering, shown here in the short video in the right hand column of this page.

Solutions Focus Helps IT Design Move Forward

A university information technology department and an academic unit had reached an impasse on the design of IT systems for a new building. All involved were high achievers with experience in work of this kind, so we theorized that time might ne needed for reflective dialogue as opposed to a "roll up or sleeves" problem-oriented approach. A session was designed that gave voice to everyone's view of the current situation, and then moved them quickly into expansive thinking about eventual outcomes. The day ended with steps for immediate action and a timeline for going forward.