Complexity is not about simplicity When I say that complexity can be surfed with 21st century meetings, it’s easy to think the subliminal message here is that 21st century meetings are simple. Now simplicity and complexity seem to be opposed, and by formal definition they might be. But that’s too simplistic an approach. Simplistic, because… Read more »
Many meetings share information through presentations Here’s my second meeting tip, this one is on presentations. Many meetings are about sharing information. And just for now, I am not going to question whether meetings are the best way to do so. Because sometimes you just have this presentation in your meeting. For small groups, bigger… Read more »
It’s a sweet thing to redesign my website. I get to go through all my older posts again: all these ideas on change, innovation and the crucial role of meetings. Time to share with you the 4 things I learned about meetings. Lesson 1: Meetings are a means to an end This one sounds… Read more »
Having a fruitful conversation in your meeting is hard Here’s the first meeting tip. Many meetings are about taking ideas further and making decisions. But having a fruitful conversation to achieve that is no easy task. Especially with all the diversity in your team. You have the talkative ones, the silent ones, the creative ones,… Read more »
In my last blog I discussed how great meetings potentially save the world. As an example I used the Climate Talks in Paris of last December, during which the meeting was brought to a successful close by using the Indaba, an inclusive meeting technique. And so I advocated (and still do) the use of many… Read more »
And there it was, a small ray of hope in all the dark and gloom of 2015. Let’s face it: 2015 was not a great year: terror (starting and ending in Paris), war in Syria, mass migration on shaky boats… To name just a few highlights. But the Climate Talks (also in Paris) ended… Read more »
How do typical managers think? For I while, I couldn’t get a satisfying answer to this question. Managers are people just like you and me, with the same diversity as we find in the real world. They have struggles, as we all do. And like us, they are putting a lot of effort in reconciling… Read more »
The game called collaboration ‘If collaboration is cool, if cross-functional working is so amazing, why do we build these huge hierarchies?’ That’s Eddie Obeng talking, in his great TED-talk ‘Smart failure for a fast-changing world’. He claims that the rules of the game have drastically changed in our 21st century. Our main problem, as… Read more »
In Aesop’s fable of the Tortoise and the Hare both animals set of for a race. A race that is really about two strategies to achieve change. Tortoise, tired of hearing Hare boasting his speed, challenges him. All the animals of the forest gather to watch. Hare is fast to run down the road and… Read more »
Innovation is not simple Innovation is neither simple nor easy. When I look at the organisations I work with I see them struggling with their innovation endeavour. By definition innovation is fuzzy in the ‘where’ (where are we going?) and in the ‘how’ (how are we going to make this happen?), and that at the… Read more »
I am on my way back from Kyrgyzstan where I facilitated a 3-day conference. Kyrgyzstan (for those of you who don’t know) is a former Soviet Republic in Central Asia. Hence, it’s one of those countries where the state ruled and intervened in all aspects of individual lives of its citizens. And though the Soviet… Read more »
How team size and meeting size relate ‘Our meeting rooms fit a maximum of 8 participants.’ I was being guided through the new headquarters of a major bank. Of course the design of the brand new offices showed the decency and the wealth you may expect from a conservative institution as a bank. But I… Read more »
Cyriel Kortleven is a much sough-after speaker at conferences and meetings. Through is enthusiastic and playful attitude to life, he creates an open and informal atmosphere. ‘Less is Beautiful’ is his fourth book in which he invites professionals to look for ways to gain more with less efforts. I met Cyriel several times and every… Read more »
Is improving your meetings a good idea? Most meetings are an energy drain. Everyone working for or with a big organisation knows that. So I often get clients that would like to see their meetings improved. – Why do you want to improve your meetings? – Well, says the client, I’d love to see… Read more »
Since Zappos decided to turn into a holacracy, we definitely have a hype around boss free companies. Not that ‘boss free’ companies are new, but that a well-known brand and big company is taking up the challenge is definitely worth noticing. ‘Boss free’ is an answer to the problems of bureaucracy, which in the… Read more »
Richard Hames is a corporate philosopher and knowledge designer. He is one of the most influential strategic foresight practitioners currently around. I had the chance to experience Richard’s wit, intelligence and sharpness in projecting the future of our world and its consequences for society, business and government. Richard is an acclaimed writer and speaker and… Read more »