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“And so, without further ado, here’s the author of ‘Mind over Matter’…”
Herman Wittockx
Organizing(Mirrored(in(Nature(The(genera2ve(power(of(A/I(and(guided(contact(with(nature(
- Context: My history with outdoor & AI - Part one: Kema case - Lecture: Generative features - Part two: Results - Reflections: Connecting strengths &
Generative power
Herman Wittockx
Organizing(Mirrored(in(Nature(The(genera2ve(power(of(A/I(and(guided(contact(with(nature(
1989: A/I & Outdoor with S. Srivastva 1991: PhD at CWRU 1993- 2000: Open workshops
with S. Srivastva 1993- 2012: Change projects (duration
6 months- 5 years) 2007-2011:KEMA
Genera2ve(
“ That which has the capacity to challenge the guiding assumptions of culture, to raise fundamental questions regarding contemporary social life, to foster reconsideration of that which is taken for granted, and thereby furnish new alternatives for social action” (Gergen, 1982, p 109).
“Organic(system”(
“Mechanis2c(system”(
Herman Wittockx
Man and organizations as Mechanistic Systems
Sender Receiver
Problem Solving
The(Apprecia2ve(KEMA(
Creating a Shared Vision to energize Self Propelling Execution.
• 2007 – 2011: Why: “The future is causing the present”
• 2008 – 2010: What & How: “Leadership is a relational act”
• 2011: Results!
The$apprecia*ve$KEMA$
KEMA$profile$in$2007$• Incorporated in 1927 • Headquartered in NL • Offices in ca. 15 countries • Customers on all continents • More than 1350 employees • Turnover in 2007: € 180 M
KEMA customers • Energy supply industry • Energy intensive users • (Power equipment)
manufacturers • Retail companies
• Rail companies • Authorities and regulators • Financial institutions and development
banks
Mintzberg((1979)(“Professionals(can(hardly(be(managed(by(enforcing,(opposing(rules,(
regula2ons(and(procedures.”(
The$future$is$steering$the$present!$
KEMA((Leadership(
Leadership(Program(
• 2007 – 2011: Why “The future is causing the present”
• 2008 – 2010: What & How: “Leadership is a relational act”
• 2011: Results!
The$apprecia*ve$KEMA$
What(did(we(do(at(KEMA?(
KEMA Leadership Summit 2008
KEMA Appreciative Leadership Workshops
Strategic Alignment Business units
KEMA Leadership Summit 2011
KEMA(Apprecia2ve(Leadership(Workshops;(Crea2ng(a(Shared(Vision(to(energize(Self(Propelling(Execu2on(
Leadership is a “relational act”, so develop: 1. Trust 2. Shared Vision 3. Generative coaching
15
Outdoor(Apprecia2ve(Inquiry(in((Leadership(Development(
17
Program(to(develop(leadership(capabili2es.(
• 10 Groups of 20 participating managers • Executed from July 2008 to 2010 • Facilitators: Prof. dr. H. Wittockx (Belgium), François Héon
MSc (Canada) & Drs. Franke Jongsma (Netherlands) • An international and cultural mix of participants over
Business Units and Regions to: – Create space for development of relationships
• Limited history of existing working relationships • Focus on process of relationship building
– Reinforce Global Network in KEMA
The(outdoor(assignment:(‘The(Bridge’(Build(a(Bridge(across(the(river(and(cross(the(river(with(the(team.(Team(is(split(on(both(sides(of(river.((Criteria:(Everyone(is(on(the(other(side,(dry(and(safe.(
The(quality(of(the(process(defines(the(quality(of(the(result.(
Making(sense…(crea2ng(shared(meaning(
The(Vision(assignment:(‘Fes2ve(dinner’(Prepare(a(fes2ve(dinner(for(KEMA(Board.(The(dinner(reflects(the(leadership(development(that(has(taken(place.((Execu2on(in(three(teams:(Cooking,(Decora2on(&(Hos2ng.(
(Network(of(Leaders(as((‘Spokes(of(a(wheel’(
Herman Wittockx
WONDER
Appreciate the Unique
Comfortable feeling of no need for explaining
Nature has no meaning
Nature stimulates the discovery of human nature
Habit of imagination
Habit of the mind Habit of the heart
Nature stimulates the discovery of human nature: Meaning
interaction through meaning making
The rock is your friend
Common fate Stimulates a Shared belief in the future and transcends problem solving thinking
Connecting present - past - future - present
Improvisation! - Causes Problem +
Pas t Presen t Fut u re
Wonder! Imagination!
Vision &!values!
• Interdependent activities
• Unequivocal
Physical feedback
• Egalitarian
In nature people are open books to each other
Inclusion Influence Intimacy
• Abundance • Beliefs • Feelings • Thoughts
• Common fate
• Physical proximity • Playfulness • Holistic relations
Theory in use
• Espoused theory: sharing stories about success
• Theory in use: the experience of success
Nature brings out Human nature meaning & indeterminism
Meaning is a relational act Knowing is doing: power of theory in use
Organizing mirrored in nature
Subject Intersubjectivity
Nature as a source of organic concepts about organizing
Subject Intersubjectivity
Object
From
To
• 2007 – 2011: Why: “The future is causing the present”
• 2008 – 2010: What & How: “Leadership is a relational act”
• 2011: Results!
The$apprecia*ve$KEMA$
KEMA$profile$end$2011.$• Offices from 15 to 23 countries • From 1350 to 1850 employees • Turnover from € 180 to € 260 M
Actions • New KEMA companies
acquired in NL, Germany & USA
• New offices established – e.g. Beijing, Dubai, Hamburg, Portugal, Rotterdam & Spain
• > 600 fte new (direct) hires in KEMA over the last years
• New matrix structure in 2011
35
KEMA(Execu2ve(Board(observa2ons.(• Management Teams of Units develop
themselves now more as a team.
• Overall: Budgets that Business Units proposed were beyond expectations. Trust is there to reach for challenging targets even in challenging worldwide economic circumstances.
• Employees are invited to work in the KEMA organization as well as on the KEMA organization: Meaningfulness of work increases.
Remarks(at(the(KEMA(summit(2011(
Summit 2008
Program
Strategic Alignment Business units
Summit 2011
“This group has emotional
intelligence and a high level of coping
with ambiguity.”
Frank Barrett
“I have regained trust in our success, observing how our
managers respond to Change.”
Thijs Aarten - CEO
The(Apprecia2ve(KEMA(
Creating a Shared Vision to energize Self Propelling Execution.
How(does(this(work(for(the(organiza2on(?((
Lecture 3
• The participants’ experience in the A/I based outdoor learning proces helps them to deal with their organizational challenges
• Organizing is not about structure, it is about creating a shared future in a particular (business) environment
1.(Strengthsebased(
• Nature helps you to connect to your inner self and to remain confident in the face of work challenges
• It generates trust • This allows organizational arrangements
to remain more flexible and equivocal • Arrangements can shift in action and be
renegotiated upon the occasion
2.(Connectedness(
• The A/I based outdoor experience improves relational quality and demonstrates the power of interpersonal relationships in dealing with organizational challenges
• In organizing, developing trust in the relationship is more important than defining roles or elaborating clear job descriptions
• The experience creates a living network of connectedness within the organization
3.(Genera2ve(power(
• Throughout the A/I based outdoor experience powerful metaphors and stories develop that are shared through the organizational network
• These shared metaphors and stories are then useful as prosthetic device in the proces of elaborating and enacting new organizational arrangements
• This shows the true generative power of the A/I outdoor experience
Genera2ve(capacity(
… is the capacity to challenge the guiding assumptions of the culture,
to raise fundamental questions regarding contemporary social life,
to foster reconsideration of that which is “taken for granted”, and thereby
to generate fresh alternatives for social action.
Ken Gergen,1982
Organizing(mirrored(in(nature(
• From its embeddedness in nature, the outdoor experience introduces the participants to systemic and autopoetic conceptions of organizing, as a “natural” way of dealing with the complexity of our environment
• Because nature has no meaning of its own, the experience also introduces them to the social constructionist nature of organizations
“And with these words, I can see” Pink Floyd, The division bell