Harrison, your rumination resonates with me.
As you say, the proof is in the pudding. On one level, if the plan is
implemented and hopes/expectations are achieved or exceeded, and did
so in the spirit inspired by the event/process, then it worked. On
another level, if, over time, the spirit of open space begins to
permeate the culture of the organization it worked even better.
In terms of the question of control, during the pre-work related to
Planning in Open Space I find myself testing the client's ability and
willingness to accept and lean into the inherent productive tension.
As for oil and water, my experience suggests oil and vinegar may be a
more apt pairing.
--
Shalom,
Chris Kloth
ChangeWorks of the Heartland
254 South Merkle Road
Bexley, OH 43209-1801
ph 614-239-1336
fax 614-237-2347
www.got2change.com
Think globally. Act locally.
Quoting Harrison Owen via OSList <oslist@lists.openspacetech.org>:
Occasionally somebody ponders the possibility of Open Space and Planning -
as in, could you do Planning, Strategic and otherwise, in Open Space? My
immediate response has always been, Yes. As a matter of fact I have done
just that on a number of occasions.
There is no question that when we "opened space for our future" (which
always seemed to be the essence of the theme), a marvelous time was had by
all. Something that looked very much like a "plan" emerged with attendant
work groups - all committed and in place, and of course the time taken for
the exercise was minuscule compared to standard practice. End of story. Or
is it?
Planning, at least in common usage, has some association with controlling,
or even creating, the future. Indeed, many would argue that control of the
future is the whole point of planning. Open Space, on the other hand, is all
about self organization - which implies that control as we usually
understand it is impossible. So Planning in Open Space would seem to be an
oxymoron. You simply can't get there from here.
Upon reflection it does seem that Planning and Open Space go together rather
like oil and water. It is also true that on those occasions where I was
privileged to be with a group Planning in Open Space - it was marvelous.
Good stuff seriously happened, and best of all people really had fun - even
if there were times when it seemed like we were all hanging on by our finger
nails because things were moving so fast!
Of course the "proof of the pudding" in this business is not, "Did you make
a plan?" but most importantly - Did it work? And it is precisely here that
things really get confusing. The plans not only "worked" as (self) reported
by the participants - But they worked faster and better than ever. Almost to
the point that it seemed the distinction between "planning" and "doing" had
dissolved. Wow!
I can see another heresy just coming into view. Everybody "knows" that
Planning comes first. Neat, orderly, rational, deliberate - considered over
and over again. THEN... Action. But what would it mean if it happened all at
once? ... That there really was no meaningful distinction between planning
and doing? Not as an ideal, but as an experienced reality?
Some might say that this is a clear indication of mental aberration - Mad in
a word. On the other hand... were the experience real (as in repeatable,
non-drug induced, whatever) we might just have to take another look at what
we mean by "Planning."
Harrison
Winter Address
7808 River Falls Dr.
Potomac, MD 20854
301-365-2093
Summer Address
189 Beaucauire Ave
Camden, ME 04843
207 763-3261
Websites
www.openspaceworld.com
www.ho-image.com
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