There is a long connection between Saybrook and systems conversations, which continues to this day. The semi-annual conversations have been hosted by the International Federation for Systems Research (IFSR), and were historically known as the Fuschl Conversations (due to their location at Fuschl am See in Austria). Bela Banathy, the founder of the systems program… Read more »
Tag: Organizational Learning
Destructive Cycle/Generative Cycle
After going through a long destructive cycle in my life, where everything I counted on fell away, I have emerged into a generative period in which life energy has returned, and I am moving toward the world again. This period of disintegration changed everything for me. Keeping my seat as life’s fabric unraveled was hard,… Read more »
The T-Summit
I recently attended a meeting at the Almaden Research Lab near San Jose, CA. The T-Summit was jointly sponsored by Michigan State University’s Collegiate Employment Research Institute and IBM’s Global University Programs. As described in the announcement about the meeting: Employers are placing increasing importance on competencies that allow young professionals to handle information from multiple sources, advance professional relationships across… Read more »
Revitalizing Downtown Communities
Recently I had the opportunity to visit and experience the work being done as part of the Las Vegas Downtown Project. It is a $350M project with a mission to “ transform Las Vegas into the most community-focused large city in the world”. They are working on that mission actively through the purchase of real… Read more »
Reflections on My Saybrook Experience
When I left my job to start out on my own, after 4.5 years of working with a non-governmental organization (NGO) in underserved communities in Ghana, I knew I wanted to work with people. My experience working in these communities brought me closer to people in a different way. I was slowly able to relate… Read more »
Social Media, Shared Learning, and the Consciousness of Collaboration
Recently, through a Saybrook University learning experiment entitled “Project X” participants were immersed in a learning experience designed through the lens of social media. The course was on Evolutionary Leadership for Sustainability and was facilitated by Kathia Laszlo, Ph.D. As a bit of a flanuer, I observed the class for research on its effectiveness and… Read more »
Group Intelligence
Why does the intelligence of a group matter? What is group intelligence? We spend most of our lives engaged with people in a myriad of activities. Our livelihoods depend on our interaction with others. For most of us living in modern societies, our success and quality of life are completely dependent on the various groups… Read more »
A New Era for the Practice of Organization Development
It has been a little over 45 years since the term Organization Development (OD) was first used in print to refer to that distinctive profession and consulting practice which aims to help organizations become more effective by means of systematic interventions focusing on organizational culture, processes and structure. During its short history, the OD profession… Read more »
Leadership for Local & Global Resilience
Last week I attended the 15th Annual International Leadership Association Global Conference in Montreal. The conference theme was Leadership for Local and Global Resilience, recognizing the need for leaders to innovate and lead sustainable change in our local and global communities and organizations. This academic conference brought together students, faculty, consultants, coaches, and just a… Read more »
Tolerating Ambiguity in Four Simple Steps
I have started several conversations with colleagues over the last month on the topic of ambiguity tolerance as a competency area for organizational leaders. Ambiguity tolerance has been a focus area of my studies over the last couple of years, so it’s not surprising that I see connections to the topic everywhere, especially since I’m… Read more »