Open Space Technology and the Medicine Wheel
By Birgitt Williams & Larry Peterson
"Excellence rises from within, it can't be imposed from without. Thus we define leadership as the art of mobilizing others to want to struggle for shared aspirations." (Kouzes & Posner)
"Open Space is an open space precisely because it is bounded. It is bounded by the central Vision which established the context within which activity may take place." (Harrison Owen)
Both of us, Birgitt and Larry, have been successful change leaders within organizations before becoming external consultants. We have used a variety of large and small group meeting approaches. This enables us to put our substantial experience with Open Space Technology, over 200 events since 1990, in perspective. We are passionate about the outcomes and possibilities of Open Space. It regularly mobilizes leadership to reach levels of effectiveness and shared aspiration that exceed all expectations. We believe this happens most frequently when both the formal sponsors and facilitators understand how to put Open Space in context.
Open Space Technology was discovered by Harrison Owen and is now being successfully used for meetings around the world. The power of the approach is being demonstrated repeatedly in business, non-profit, religious and community organizations. Harrison Owen has discovered a way to intentionally "Open the Space" in an organization for spirited, self-organizing performance.
Our experience convinces us that the sponsors or formal leadership in organizations play a critical role in creating powerful Open Space events. We think that both sponsors and facilitators need to understand the implications of this reality. For us, this relates to the important interplay of chaos and order in organizations and the balance between them that successful organizations find. We use a version of the Medicine Wheel as a framework for understanding this interplay and the nature of transformative change in organizations. The perspective informs the workshops we lead on Opening Space and our consulting approaches. We will describe the Medicine Wheel later in the article. We will first establish the critical role of the sponsor or formal leader in Open Space events.
Leadership and Open Space
An Open Space event or meeting provides a burst of energy and momentum in an organization. Leaders emerge who are willing to implement their ideas. This self-organizing process allows for divergence and exploration of ideas in a way that engages the best dialogue and breakthrough thinking. We have learned that a convergent process--one that sets priorities and determines specific next steps--best follows the divergence.
It is in this ebb and flow of exploring possibilities and breakthroughs and converging to action that an ongoing "Open Space Organization" can emerge. The spirit, breakthrough and commitment to action that emerge in Open Space can be the driving force of an organization or business. The continual learning about the context or market and then the focusing of that energy is critical to success.
We know that it is possible for senior leadership to open the space in an ongoing way for high spirit, play and performance. This has helped us to sharpen our perspective on what is best done to prepare an organization, and particularly its sponsoring leadership, for Open Space.
The role of the formal leader in setting the context for an Open Space event is critical to maximizing the results. The formal leader could be a Board, a CEO, a senior management group or a community association. It is really the sponsor who "opens the space" for spirited self-organizing of the work at hand. It is the sponsoring leadership who sets the focus and invites the participants. It is the formal leader or sponsor who is accountable for the outcomes, and thus shapes both the openness of the event and the degrees of freedom for ongoing action.
We do believe that the role of the facilitator is critical. There is no doubt that the presence, skill and organization of a facilitator have a real impact on the power of an event. Experienced, trained facilitators know better how to assist formal leaders to discover powerful themes, clarify the context and the givens as they prepare for an Open Space event. Facilitators who are confident about the approach can support formal leaders when they become anxious about the risk they are taking.
During the Open Space meeting, the facilitator must have the capacity and the training to be both "totally present and totally invisible" Effective facilitators are a skillful presence that assures a group that they have the wisdom to move forward and that they can handle the necessary moments when chaos is high. An experienced and present facilitator knows the learning and initiative of the group are more important than the facilitator's need to appear "successful".
After an Open Space meeting, the experienced preparation and follow-up by a good facilitator become even more visible. The quality of the preparation with the sponsor in clarifying the theme, "givens" and parameters for action effect both the impact and the real outcomes of the event.
We have seen managers who get frightened by the surge of spirit and desire for initiative that come from an Open Space event. Clamping down with traditional command and control approaches can subvert much of the spirit that has emerged during the Open Space event. It can reduce the initiative and productivity that is being sought.
However, it is possible for leaders to learn how to work with this spirit on an ongoing basis--to reinforce it so that energy and productivity build consistently over time. In an ongoing Open Space Organization the power, productivity and spirit of Open Space meetings are the norm in ongoing operation. A few organizations have intentionally moved in this direction, but they require a different kind of leadership.
Carol Pearson defines spiritual intelligence as "a refined sense of the presence and movement of spirit in individuals, groups and organizations". Whatever you understand "spirit" in organizations to be, attending to its flow or disappearance in critical for leaders.
When we developed our workshop Opening the Space in 1995 we knew we had to focus on the leadership aspects of Open Space Technology. Larry had been leading workshops on Organizational Transformation and Transformational Leadership since 1987. He had also been a change leader in a Canada-wide effort to deal with homelessness.
Birgitt had led the transformation of her own organization (a multi service health and social service organization) before becoming an independent consultant and trainer. Her organization was the first in the world to operate intentionally in ongoing Open Space over time. When she did this, there was no prototype to follow. She was astounded at the results that were achieved with frequent use of Open Space in ongoing organizational life. Using Open Space Technology as a means for strategic planning, problem solving, policy development, service development, and team building, the organization was able to provide service to twice as many clients with less resources needed, with high quality of service. Both she and the organization received awards for organizational excellence.
We both saw the need to provide a workshop to enable both formal leaders and facilitators to open the space in ways that would maximize the impact of Open Space Technology in their organizations.
Medicine Wheel: Balance and Change in Organizations
Both of us have worked with Harrison Owen when he has closed the Space. Often at closing, he uses a description of the Medicine Wheel as a metaphor for what is experienced in Open Space meetings--shared leadership, vision, community, and management. We see this framework as a useful way to look at the balance of chaos and order in Open Space and in transforming organizations.
The Medicine Wheel has become the basic metaphor for the workshops we lead as we enable leaders and facilitators to learn to "open the space" As we have pursued our own learning on Medicine Wheels we especially appreciate and integrate elements of the work of Angeles Arrien. We recognize that there are some differences in our presentation and her approach, and we are still exploring those. We do believe that this ancient metaphor describes well the elements of a balanced life, community or organization. It also describes well the elements of the process of transformative change not only during an Open Space event but also in the ongoing life of the organization.
At the top of the Wheel, to the North, is leadership that has courage and takes risks. A deer, one that senses danger and quickly leads the way to safety, symbolizes this leadership. To the East is vision inclusive of clarity and discernment. The Eagle that can see far ahead symbolizes it. To the South is where community emerges through the sharing of stories and through dialogue. A mouse, a warm fuzzy mouse, symbolizes it. To the West is management inclusive of teaching and learning. It is symbolized by the bear that methodically picks the berries from the patch, paying attention to detail and the best way of getting the job done.
Those four components--leadership, vision, engaged community and management--are necessary elements of an effective, productive and profitable organization over time. At the centre is the mission of the organization to serve its customers. That gives focus to the four. As well, one or another of the four is emphasized at certain times in the lifecycle of a business, church or organization. At any point in time, all are not equally present. However, discovering the relationship of all four components can aid an organization to identify its health or balance.
Our experience as consultants consistently suggests that real transformative change begins with leadership that takes the risk and moves clockwise around the wheel. When chaos strikes or an opportunity appears leadership get things moving. Taking the risk to lead change is often because of a deeply felt but often not fully articulated sense of purpose and vision It is necessarily vague at first, for if it is truly transformative it is beyond even what the leader has experienced. However, it must be clear enough to engage the leadership of others in the quest. As more people become involved in the initiative and the vision becomes shared, then more personal and practical visions are added to the change process. Those practical visions are required for implementation. A real community forms as others share the vision and find their own passion for their contribution. Real connection and respect are required for spirited implementation. When people share the vision and start acting to make it a reality, the next step is to develop or align management systems to make the vision reality. Measuring what is accomplished is part of learning how to align energy. That learning is part of the preparation for the next major shift in the market or context.
In our rapidly changing times, leadership and organizations move rapidly through the four components of the medicine wheel. Different parts of the organization are often in different locations in their change process. The "stages" are not linear and cycling back often happens. Using this simple metaphor of the medicine wheel, leaders can learn to better navigate through these times. It is possible to develop an organization that is healthy and able to change as needed. Combining this framework with regular use of Open Space Technology enables organizations to maintain the spirited performance over time that they have experienced in a single Open Space Technology meeting.
This framework is also a simple way of understanding how an Open Space Technology meeting works. In Open Space leadership takes a risk to come to the centre of the circle to state an issue or opportunity. That topic becomes a practical vision, posted on a wall. Participants who share a passion for that topic sign-up for discussions. When the groups gather they discover that they do share a common passion, a sense of community emerges. People feel connected to each other and at the end of the event to the whole organization. With the principles and law of Open Space, it all becomes largely self-managing.
This Medicine Wheel is the basis of the four-day workshops we offer and our work with enabling organizational transformation. When we work with those who wish to facilitate or lead Open Space in organizations, we adapt the metaphor to apply to individuals. It also describes well the qualities that individual leaders or facilitators need to effectively "open the space".
Change Leadership and Facilitation
Opening the Space in a company or a community creates change. If there is not a burst of energy and momentum released in the organization, then there is a clear recognition of a "dead moose" (the problems that are under the table, that no one is speaking about). There is no certainty that the sponsor or facilitator will get what they expect. There may be some anger and resentment. There may be deep adulation and praise for the breakthroughs beyond any expectations. We have had both as facilitators and as formal leaders.
In some ways, it is impossible to prepare leaders or facilitators for what will happen. However, we have found that there are themes in this journey that can be anticipated. Again, the Medicine Wheel provides the primary metaphor for the journey that an individual leader or facilitator takes when they enable an organization to intentionally and consciously "open the space" for spirit and high performance.
Risk
It takes personal risk to open the space in an organization. Creating a clear theme and clarifying givens or parameters does shape the degree of freedom. However, neither the formal sponsor nor the facilitator knows what agenda will emerge or what emotions will be evoked when the space is opened. Even with our substantial experience, we always get some butterflies when facing the unknown--will it work this time? We find that anxiety to be much higher for formal leaders who are accountable for getting work done. They definitely have to let-go of the control that their position often is assumed to have.
For a manager to choose to take the risk to let the employees create the agenda requires the belief that the potential benefit is worth it. It is also a risk for a facilitator to propose Open Space. Harrison Owen often proposes that Open Space be used only when there are no other options, when things are too complex or urgent for other, more methodical, approaches. That is the easy way to deal with the risk involved, as it is compared to the risk of doing nothing. However, proposing Open Space in some situations will frighten the potential sponsor, even if it is the most appropriate situation.
Larry recently led a one day Open Space with a large corporation. It was part of a major celebration. The plant was closed for a week. All 475 employees were taken to another city and put-up at a four star hotel. The Open Space was to engage all employees in achieving the vision articulated by the Vice-President in charge of the plant. The vision was "in formation" until the last month before the event. The planning process took six months and there was more than a few times when the senior team got anxious. They knew they were taking a big risk. At one point a rumour went around the plant that all employees would have to stand up and make speeches in front of the others during Open Space. Many were recent immigrants with limited English and were frightened. Larry's colleagues in the project cited his sense of confidence and calm presence as critical to helping them and the organization to continue to take the risk. The genuine clarity of the Vice President's vision led to powerful breakthroughs toward a team based culture. The event exceeded all expectations and the risk more than paid off.
For facilitators and leaders, a crucial learning is how to let-go. The outcomes of Open Space cannot be controlled. In more structured approaches, the facilitator guides the process throughout. This also gives them substantial visibility and a real boost to the ego when it goes well. The facilitator "does it" for or with the participants and has a real impact on both the content and process of the discussion through their body language and comments. In Open Space, the facilitator is visible very little of the time. The opening process takes an hour or less. The evening and morning check-ins have more to do with process than content. Beyond that the facilitator is present but largely invisible, often making sure that things are going well at the computer station, but little more. For facilitators who want and need the constant feedback from a group that things are going well, this can be very difficult. For a leader who wants someone to be in "control" this experience can be nerve-wracking, often causing him or her to want to "do something" rather than let the process flow.
This also holds true for the leaders in an ongoing Open Space organization. The "givens" are essential, as is identification of the freedom to act. The outcomes cannot be controlled. Leadership is both totally present and totally invisible, "holding the space" for the organization to operate at the peak performance that is possible when activities are not controlled.
To take these kinds of risks, we believe it helpful for both leaders and facilitators to pay attention to their own personal journey and purpose. If it fits both your personal purpose and that of the organization at its current stage, it is hard to do anything other than take the risk. Increasing consciousness of this kind of risk taking is an essential part of what we challenge leaders and facilitators to learn.
Vision
A vision is a story about the future. Real and deep vision emerges in that time of confusion when you have "let-go" of what has worked in the past. Articulating such a vision is often difficult at the beginning. A leader may have a good sense of the new direction but the words to describe it only evolve over time. Leaders who are opening the space do need to articulate some aspects of a vision. If they articulate the vision in too much detail, then others are not able to see their personal visions fitting in. Finding that powerful statement of vision that includes others is a critical part of opening space.
Larry recently worked with a client where the theme for the Open Space was not clear beforehand. The client was in another city and had few resources for travel. Much of the preparation was by fax and phone. The Open Space was planned for the second day of the event, after a half-day of input on board governance. The earlier conversations with the Executive Director and the Board Chair had led to some fairly mundane themes related to board governance. Engaging the board in active governance and leadership was the hoped-for outcome. As we searched for the right theme statement that evening, we had the breakthrough. "Good board governance" did not really "move" them. However, becoming an "extraordinary organization" did. With that theme, the Open Space was a powerful event because it captured the visions of the board members. More active and effective governance was part of the conversation, but it was only one part of what moved the board members to be involved. As they explored board meetings and volunteer projects, they did so with a clearer understanding of the roles they played. Through the meeting, they had their beginnings as an actively governing Board and an outstanding organization, demonstrating to them that this was possible for their future.
We work with leaders to find their visions and the links between the visions within an organization. We also enable participants to envision the transformative change process in organizations. Recognizing that one's vision will require transformation and not just reform of current organizational processes, structure or culture is vital for moving toward implementation. A transformative change takes a different path than reform or transition. It is often initiated when chaos strikes an organization--whether that is through a major market shift or an internal crisis. Facilitators and leaders need to understand the role of attachment and grief-work in the change process.
Part of articulating the theme for an Open Space event includes stating that which cannot be changed--those things which are taken as given. In every organization, there are some things which, at a given time, are not up for change. For example, "givens" could include the incorporation documents, by-laws, this year's budget, the current accountability hierarchy, federal regulation, or this year's business plan. It is the task of the sponsors to clarify what cannot be changed in any meeting. Many of these givens are just assumed and not usually brought to conscious awareness. They may not all need to be explicitly stated for a particular event, depending on its theme. However, the sponsors and those attending need to be aware that some things cannot be immediately changed during an event. This helps the sponsors deal with the risks involved. It helps the participants to know they are less likely to be blind-sided with restrictions after the event. That is most dispiriting when it happens.
In preparing for one Open Space event, Larry enabled the sponsors to state clear parameters for action after the event to clarify the freedom to act. One client set a $5000 limit on new initiatives. As long as it cost less than the limit, groups could act. One group discovered a solution to a problem with the New York Office in Open Space. They proceeded to use their $5000 to travel to their sister office in New York and to solve the problem quickly. That would not have happened in this organization if both the parameters and the freedom to act were unclear.
In another event, Birgitt worked with a sponsor who initially stated that anything that came out of the Open Space could be acted upon. Birgitt persisted in getting clarity with the sponsor and realized that the sponsor truly meant that everything coming out of the Open Space needed to go to the Board for approval. The sponsor had not wanted to say this "up front" for fear of reducing initiative. Developing this clarity also enabled the Board to commit itself to addressing each of the proposals within a month of the meeting. The Open Space proceeded with high spirit and high creativity. Participants were able to deal with this constraint and formed their action plans accordingly. The spirit of the event would have been stifled if they were told they had the freedom to act and then it was taken away after the event.
Opening Space for Engaged Community
Open Space Technology is a conscious and powerful way to enable spirited performance that is self-organizing. The principles and law of Open Space create conditions for a more conscious access to spirit. When this happens, the group that has gathered becomes a community. It is amazing how people who put up individual topics on the Open Space bulletin board close the session by describing how much more connected they are to each other, the organizations and the vision. The connection is often experienced as a healing salve. In the closing of an Open Space some people are usually in tears. A group of senior bankers spontaneously stood up and held hands. One person wrote and performed a song for the closing that became the hallmark of a campaign.
In an ongoing Open Space organization, that kind of connection, around and throughout the hierarchy, enables trust, initiative and high performance. When that focused connection is reinforced in the organization by the ongoing leadership, performance continues to improve and breakthroughs start happening every day.
In our workshop, participants experience being in Open Space and then reflect on what they have learned about themselves and the process. They reflect on their experience of community, its importance for healthy, vibrant organization, and they reflect on the ease of attaining community using Open Space Technology. Often there is laughter when people realize that they have experienced community and that there was no need of a "community building workshop".
Managing & Learning
A healthy, growing and balanced organization requires appropriate structure and order as well as the leadership, vision and community just described. The problem is that many organizations end up emphasizing control and controls at the expense of the leadership, vision, and community.
The spirit and possibility thinking of Open Space events often excite leaders and facilitators. When real breakthroughs happen, when community is experienced, and when there is obvious inspiration by the end of an Open Space event, facilitators and leaders are usually well pleased. However, dealing with the details of an Open Space event or its ongoing impact on the organization is an essential part of effective leadership or facilitation.
In addition to clarifying the expectations, theme, invitation and givens with the sponsors, anticipating how the outcomes will converge back into the organization is critical. Often the last half-day or more of an effective Open Space event will include a converging process. Computer software has been developed to assist large groups with corporate priority setting. Smaller groups can use more traditional means with sticky dots or checkmarks on newsprint. In these approaches, self-selected groups then develop clear next steps for the top priorities.
Larry was recently part of an event where converging and priority setting was done solely in pre-existing work teams. Out of the Open Space reports the teams identified their priorities and developed their own plans for next steps. A key issue in this converging process is to keep the spirit moving and discover how to carry it back into the organization. In this case, almost all of the 75 topics were covered in the team workplans. The energy was visible when the teams met back at the organization.
In Birgitt's work with ongoing Open Space Organizations, she always builds a convergence process to identify priorities, next steps and actions into the cycle of Open Space meetings. She has found that it is most effective to set a date usually four to six months in the future, for the group to gather and hold each other to account for progress on the agreed upon priorities and actions. The organizations are always amazed at their own achievements in relation to their priorities, with no visible formal leadership involved in moving items forward. Usually the items achieved are those that members of the organization, prior to the Open Space, insist could not be done because of time pressures, poor communications, low morale, or insufficient resources. Once they experience their successes, the culture shifts from problem to solution focused, with real teamwork in self-managed groups.
Dealing with these management issues is an important part of preparing leaders or facilitators for Opening the Space. They are a critical part of the balance. However, it is much easier to discover the appropriate structure for getting the work done, when the other components of the medicine wheel are present. The management issues are less onerous when there is leadership with a passion, vision and a real community who want to make it happen.
Entrepreneurial organizations in the early stages of their lifecycle know this instinctively. When organizations are past their prime, then management and control issues dominate. Many are now working hard to downsize, rightsize or buy some other company who is vital in order to deal with their lack of spirit. More often the cost cutting and increased demands are dispiriting and real, long-term growth is lost in the process. Our experience is that reform of the management structures and processes will only work if that reform creates the conditions to for emergent leadership that will take risks, create visions and engage others.
The managing of the Open Space event is also explored in this part of our workshop. Attending to some details can maximize the smooth working of an event, particularly if it is of one hundred or more participants.
The Learning Journey
Both of us have experienced Open Space as more than a "tool" to add to the kit for consulting. It has been an important step in our personal journey with spirit as well as our work. When we have led Opening the Space workshops, we find some who will see clearly its application in their organization or consulting practice and proceed to open space in a variety of ways. We find others who are at different points in their journey. They may not choose to facilitate or lead an Open Space yet. They or their organization may not be ready. They may take more workshops or do some apprenticing before they are ready to open and hold space themselves. They may want more coaching and support. For some, leading or facilitating in Open Space requires a great deal of unlearning of control patterns that have developed over time. It is a journey of personal transformation to make way for the new.
The Medicine Wheel provides a good metaphor for understanding that journey. Few of us are in balance all of the time. We may be strong in vision, but not in managerial implementation. We may take risks but do so in a way that alienates those who might share our vision. So we are on a journey of discovering how to work at our personal best. Opening Space can be part of that journey. When Open Space is partnered with an understanding of the Medicine Wheel, we believe leaders and facilitators can learn to enable their organizations to realize their best potential.