OBJECTIVES
These inspire people with systemic approaches which may be integrated into managerial, consulting or coaching practice for making sense of, and shaping, organisational life.

FORTHCOMING WORKSHOPS 2012
The dates set are 23 April, 11 June , 9 July and 24 September 2012 respectively for the themes below:

Culture change through emergent, appreciative practice enabling performance improvement
23 April 2012
This workshop is for those who are expanding their position and agency so that they can change or contribute to change from where they are positioned within or external to the organization, rather than pointing to somebody else or feeling defeated saying ‘oh that’s just the way things go on around here/there’ ....
The workshop day is based on a case study of recent work. You will have opportunity to reflect on your own organisational issues and rehearse some different ways of being and techniques in relation to these.

Diversity and Dialogue across Difference to Manage Conflict
11 June 2012
We consider how organisational structures and cultural identities may evoke conflict. A core notion is the use of self as an instrument in finding ways forward: shifting beliefs, preferences, language to enable your ability. We experiment with frameworks ie semantic polarities and positioning theory to assist negotiating understanding when conflict arises, rather than collapsing difference into sameness.

Leadership and understanding the importance of context in using power
9 July 2012
The responsible use of power as a leader is to push the boundaries of context in order to reshape it, taking care to mitigate the power of the charismatic leader. We query what the followers are seeking from charisma which may, inadvertently, actually disempower them and the organisational system. Unravelling unwanted repetitive patterns.

Conversations which spark spontaneous and scintillating change
24 September 2012
Playing with notions such as: small is beautiful, smouldering fires, dialogic communication which shifts the system, we’ll challenge and refresh accepted definitions of change and focus on the power of dialogue. This will position you more astutely as a change agent in your work.

These Immersion and Inspiration days form part of the ADVANCED PROGRAMME IN SYSTEMIC ORGANISATIONAL PRACTICE ASPG Participants join the current Advanced learning group as guests and will be given the opportunity to receive a consultation with regard to their own working contexts and current projects. The consultation format ensures that systemic skills in inquiry, reflection and reflexivity will be practised and connected to live and relevant case material.
ASPG Programme overview

The workshop methodology is critique of Organisation Development theme and development of reflexive practice abilities through:
∞ case study
∞ discussion & critique of papers
∞ skills build focus on systemic technique
∞ consultation
∞ group co-creation
∞ action learning
∞ 1:1 session to follow afterwards, optional

IMMERSION AND INSPIRATION DAY WORKSHOP THEMES 2008-11

June 2011 Conversations which spark spontaneous and scintillating change
Playing with notions such as: small is beautiful, smouldering fires, second order shifts, perturbing the system we’ll challenge the accepted definitions of change and:
∞ enable you to identify spontaneous and transformational change you have inspired through your practice
∞ focus on the power of dialogue
∞ position you more astutely as a change agent in your work

March 2011 Appreciative Approach & Appreciative Inquiry as a Shadow Process
Exploring beliefs underpinning the appreciative approach to enhance methods in practice and to critique contemporary misuse which leads to pushing difficulties into the shadow. Using case study material we demonstrated working appreciatively which reenergises and brings the shadow into the light:
∞ practised making essential choices in what to honour and acknowledge
∞ became astute change agents working with appreciation rather than gap analysis
∞ illuminated the essential, unnoticed gems of own professional expertise that had been in the shadow

March 2010 Interventive Interviewing to enhance inquiry
Using a framework to hone your questioning and reframing technique which will:
∞ enhance your ability to assist clients, staff and colleagues to unravel dilemmas, to become unstuck and to be empowered by finding their own solutions
∞ give you practice in inquiry using Daisy model from CMM and meta perspectives
∞ further develop your reflexivity through: hypothesising, circularity, neutrality and curiosity

May 09 Tacit Knowledge and sensory acuity with Alex Chard
“we know more than we can tell”
Exploring the importance of the tacit dimension – skating on the edge of organisational knowing
∞ to expand how we use intuition, sensory perception and emotion to make sense of relational dynamics in work groups
∞ to extend application as practical use ie challenging the accepted view of knowledge management and playing with the notion of leadership as jazz improvisation

April 09 Managing Change as transitions, endings, loss
Extending abilities to cope with loss and endings into organisational work, to the
people with whom you intervene
∞ to reshape organisation culture scripts and leader/manager identity around loss

January 09 Charismatic Leadership
Considering how contexts create certain forms of leadership and allow different
expressions of power and efficacy
∞ unravelling strange loops of stuckness charismatic leaders and their followers get into

December 08 Sensemaking and story telling in organisations
Discovering ways in which story telling is used currently as organisational
interventions and in defining/creating organisational culture
∞ experiencing ourselves as story tellers to develop story thinking skills
∞ to perturb organisational myths