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2002 Highlights |
Mission, Values, Goals, Outcomes
Opportunities for Collaboration
Developing a Legislative Agenda
Clarifying Staff Roles and Outcomes
Strengthening the Link between Community and Government Leaders
Simulation Partnership for Critical Infrastructure Protection
Good Reliable Reports That Are Used
Communicating Bad News Effectively
Group Facilitation: Essential Skills for Managers, Team Leaders and Change Agents
Stories at Work®: How to Create, Tell, and Use Stories with Groups and Organizations
Statement of Values and Code of Ethics for Group Facilitators
Electronic Discussion on Group Facilitation
Group Facilitation: A Research and Applications Journal
Projects
Following are some highlights of some of our group facilitation and consulting work in 2002 ...
Trauma System SWOT Analysis
As part of a national effort to improve state trauma systems, we facilitated a meeting for the Bureau of Emergency Medical Services, NYS Department of Health. Participants included representatives from trauma centers, emergency medical services for children, rural health, injury prevention, and the public. Using a sticky wall, participants identified the strengths and weaknesses of the system, and the opportunities and threats it faces. Reflecting on these results, the participants reconfigured the issues into a "cause and effect" diagram to gain insight into how one part of the system effects another.
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Faculty Performance Norms
In a one-day retreat the faculty of the Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy addressed the difficult matter of establishing faculty performance norms. First, they brainstormed strategic goals and then agreed on and elaborated six major goals. For each goal they developed a series of activities to attain its accomplishment and detailed next steps for moving forward.
Mission, Values, Goals, Outcomes
Thirty five faculty members from the School of Public Health, University at Albany met for an intensive one-day retreat. Materials from other schools of public health were carefully prepared in advance. In small work groups, faculty compared their mission statement to that of other schools. In a plenary session, each group proposed specific changes. These suggestions were recorded via a computer projection system so exact wording could be examined and modified by all, and clear priorities established. In similar fashion the group reviewed the school's values statement, as well as the goals and outcomes for each department. Follow-up assignments ensured that proposed changes were brought to closure. The results of the meeting, already recorded on the computer, were emailed to participants the next day.
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Opportunities for Collaboration
Twenty School of Public Health faculty and 35 leaders of community organizations that address public health issues met to explore opportunities for greater collaboration. The aim was to create a better understanding between the school and various community organizations related to public health to foster collaboration on research and practice. After responding to the question "what's in it for me," and discussing their responses in small groups, they identified several initiatives where specific community groups and the School could work together.
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Developing a Legislative Agenda
Representatives from various Reform Jewish Congregations in upstate New York met to develop an approach to advocate for Reform Jewish Values in the New York State Legislature. The participants identified various approaches, identified those that would work most effectively, and laid out next steps to move forward.
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Clarifying Staff Roles and Outcomes
The entire staff of the NYS Division of Probation and Correctional Alternatives participated in this one-day meeting to clarify roles and expectations. They agreed on a small number of roles, met in small groups to define the expectations for each role, and then met all together to revise the role descriptions. In addition they identified the full range of agency outcomes and organized them in a means-ends hierarchy.
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Strengthening the Link between Community and Government Leaders
At the NYS Community Action Association, Executive Director's Retreat, we led an environmental scan to identify how Community Action sees federal, state and local government, not-for-profit organizations, and customers; and how they, in turn, see Community Action. The environmental scan formed the backdrop for identifying key policy and management issues. In concluding the retreat, the participants agreed on a legislative agenda and a plan for moving it forward.
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Simulation Partnership for Critical Infrastructure Protection
Researchers in geography and planning, computer science, simulation, and public policy met with representatives from Los Alamos National Laboratory and the NYS Office for Cybersecurity and Critical Infrastructure Coordination. The aim was to develop a partnership to build the capacity to simulate various disasters that could effect critical infrastructure such as highways and power generation facilities. The results will be used to train responders at all levels of government and provide real-time information in the event of a crisis.
Math Science Partnership
National Science Foundation funding to support President Bush's "No Child Left Behind" policy focuses on improving math and science education. Over the course of a series of meetings, University at Albany faculty from the education, math, and science departments, working in partnership with a number of regional school districts, identified the best opportunities for interventions in the system to increase the quality and availability of K-12 teachers in math and science.
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Workplace Conflict Management
Our mediation work continues with the US Post Office REDRESS (Resolve Employment Disputes Reach Equitable Solutions Swiftly) program. In addition we worked with a small department experiencing difficulties that have grown from long-term interpersonal and interdivisional conflicts. The sincere, shared interests of the individuals in this department were remarkable. Our efforts emphasized people to slow down their conversations and reflect more carefully on their communication patterns and practices.
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Systems and Teams
Adirondack Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery is a forward-looking practice that has been working with system dynamics models to further enhance their management. We are assisting in this effort by helping them incorporate group facilitation and structured procedures into their staff meetings.
IT Organizational Study
A report from the NYS Office for Technology recommended consolidation of information technology (IT) functions within the NYS Office for the Aging. We conducted a study to more thoroughly assess the need for organizational change related to IT functions. Twenty six individuals were interviewed to find out what IT-related functions they perform, the key individuals with whom they work, and any IT-related concerns. Network analysis graphically showed the interrelationships among people performing IT-related functions. Functional analysis showed areas of organizational conflict.
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Software Selection
Contemplating a major shift in the software used to serve the 300,000 elderly New Yorkers who receive community-based services (such as Home Delivered Meals), the NYS Office for the Aging and the Association of Area Agencies on Aging jointly convened a Computerization Committee to evaluate the available software. We assisted 25 participants, located in various parts of the state, by facilitating an email discussion group and a series of face-to-face meetings. Over the course of several months we helped them identify and prioritize the software specifications, gather and manage the information presented by four vendors, and systematically compare and evaluate the alternative products.
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Good Reliable Reports That Are Used
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We told stories about how data is being used by decision makers to kick off a new effort at the NYS Office for the Aging to improve the completeness and quality of data and increase the value of reports. Interviews with various groups of decision makers identified how reports can be developed or reconfigured to make them more useful. A brief series of slides illustrates a feedback strategy for improving data quality. Request a copy of the slides. |
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Education and training
We delivered the following courses ...
Soft Systems Methodology
for the NYS Office of State Comptroller, Strategic Leadership Institute.
Communicating Bad News Effectively
for the NYS Office of State Comptroller, Strategic Leadership Institute.
Group Facilitation:
Essential Skills for Managers, Team Leaders and Change Agents
for the Rockefeller College of Public Affairs & Policy.
Collaborative Model Building:
Partnering with Your Customer to Develop Sophisticated Analytical Models
for the US National Security Agency
How to Create, Tell, and Use Stories with Groups and Organizations
a new course for experienced group facilitators, trainers, and consultants that explores storytelling and how it can be integrated into their practices.
More ...
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Professional Activities
Statement of Values and Code of Ethics for Group Facilitators
The draft Statement of Values and Code of Ethics for Group Facilitators was adopted by the International Association of Facilitators at its 2002 Conference. Please feel free to review the document, send me your comments, and participate in the spin-off Critical Incidents Project.
Development of the Code involved a wide diversity of views and integration of different perspectives to achieve a consensus across regional and cultural boundaries. The work took place over two years and involved an estimated 150 people.
An online group of 85 people exchanged more than 900 emails and engaged in thousands of thinking and discussion hours on the Ethics and Values Think Tank electronic discussion group. In-person sessions were held at conferences in Minnesota; Phoenix; Toronto; Cochabamba, Bolivia; and Brisbane, Australia.
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Electronic Discussion on Group Facilitation
The Electronic Discussion on Group Facilitation continues to provide stimulating discussion on diverse topics related to group facilitation. During 2002 the group averaged 905 subscribers in 36 countries with eight posts per day. To subscribe or search the archives visit the Grp-Facl website.
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Group Facilitation: A Research and Applications Journal
This year will see the publication of the Special Issue on Online Facilitation. In addition, we are working on a new special issue to be entitled Listening to the City: Pushing the Boundaries of Public Participation and the Future of Democracy. Abstracts of articles through Issue 4, as well as information for authors, is available at the Group Facilitation: A Research and Applications Journal website.