Employee Engagement

Why Facilitators Need Deep Democracy

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Originally posted on www.DeepDemocracyUSA.com. Leia em português aqui. Obrigado, Regina Eggers Pazzanese, instrutora do Brazilian Deep Democracy, pela tradução! 

Image: Deposit Photo

After 30+ years as a facilitator, I thought I knew it all. When I went to new facilitation workshops, the techniques seemed repetitive. Then I discovered Lewis Deep Democracy. This unique methodology is built on humanistic values like respect for human dignity, choice, responsibility, authenticity, openness, learning, diversity, and inclusion. Many facilitation techniques advocate for similar values. Deep Democracy offers new and different ways of actualizing those values.

Here are five reasons why facilitators need Deep Democracy.

All Voices Matter

As a facilitator, I believe that all voices matter.

The High Cost of Small Conflict

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Deep Democracy Debate Tool drawn by Patricia Tiffany Angkiriwang

This article was originally posted on LinkedIn.

By the time I entered the room, the two sides were locked into position. One side was convinced that they had the answer. The other side wouldn’t budge from their belief that they were right. Each side was making their points, logically explaining the benefits of their approach, but the tension was rising and the frustration was growing. It looked like the meeting would end without resolution.

In the United States, polarization is on the rise. We tend to think of polarization in political terms, but the behavior extends to the workplace. When faced with a different point of view, people often dig into their perspectives.

What You Can Learn from Your Employee Networks

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Employee Resource Group network in a meeting
Employee Resource Groups provide ways for employees to connect with people like them. But do they produce results?

Employee resource groups (ERGs) provide a place for women, veterans, LGBT employees, people of color, people with disabilities, working parents, and others to connect and help ensure the workplace welcomes and supports their productivity. Yet even though the number of ERGs has taken off, companies seldom assess these groups’ success.

We know that the activities associated with ERGs have general value. Networking, for example, is linked (pdf) to an increase in promotions and in compensation, to greater career satisfaction, and to salary growth. Mentoring also yields demonstrated benefits: People with mentors are more likely to receive promotions and salary increases (pdf).

Beat the Conference Blahs

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UnConference Format Listening

It’s Day Two of the convention and my body aches from sitting in one place for so long. I’ve heard experts tell me what to do and how to do it. I’ve seen ten PowerPoint templates and seven videos. I’ve been promised the Next Big Thing. What I haven’t been is inspired. Or even very engaged.

Too many conferences suffer from the assumption that the best way to use people’s time is to subject them to elaborately designed presentations. After seeing a PowerPoint, we may be able to retell one or two of the best practices Company X used. But can we take those ideas and use them to make a difference?

The Inside Scoop on the International Association of Business Communicators Conference

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IABC Communications Conference 2

In June, I traveled to Washington, DC for my first International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) conference. I discovered the organization several years ago when they invited me to write an article for their flagship e-magazine, Communication World. An invitation to present gave me the opportunity to learn more about this energized, exciting organization. Here’s the inside scoop on what happened at the IABC DC World Conference.

Ethics are Hot

When alternative facts and fake news grab headlines, ethics are more important than ever. IABC took a stand earlier this year by opposing alternative facts. The organization reiterated communication professionals’ obligation to speak honestly, share accurate information, and correct mistakes promptly.

Chocolate at Work: A Lighter Post for August

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Maya Hosts a Chocolate Tasting
If you know me, you know that I love chocolate. You also know that I’ve taken that love beyond simply hoarding bars in my chocolate chiller (yes, I bought a chiller to keep my chocolates safe from heat). I’ve created a curated guide to artisan chocolatiers in Paris and New York, led professional tastings, and facilitated industry conversations about cacao standards.

SCARF Model: Anticipating Organization Stress

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SCARF Model Infographic

The third in the Tried & True Series: Trusted Models that Stand the Test of Time.

Have you ever felt that your life was in immediate danger? You might remember feeling a burst of adrenaline as your heart race, and you moved into action or froze in your tracks.

Research shows that other situations, in which there is no physical danger, can trigger a similar response. This “fight, flight, or freeze” response decreases the ability to plan, make rational decisions, and perceive subtle social and cognitive signals. Unfortunately, these skills are needed during organizational change—just when people are likely to be triggered.

Surviving Resistance to Change

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Resistance to Change Infographic

The second in the Tried & True Series: Trusted Models that Stand the Test of Time.

Most leaders encounter resistance to change. The resistance can take various forms. People can protest the implementation plan, the approach, your leadership, the font size used in change communications, and the decision to change in the first place.

This new infographic on resistance highlights the work of three masters. Rick Maurer’s Three Types of Resistance is a classic method of understanding why people resist and how to respond effectively. Ingrid Bens teaches us how to have conversations about resistance in ways that work. The late Herb Shepard’s teachings offer wisdom from his years of work with organizations.

Change Communications that Stick

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The first in the Tried & True Series: Trusted Models that Stand the Test of Time.

Some tools never lose their value. The hammer. The umbrella. The wheel. These tools have been around for centuries and we trust them.

We have similarly trustworthy, proven tools in the organizational world. The Tried & True series shares trusted models that stand the test of time in graphical form.

For our first set of models, we’ve culled through the thousands of tools available on change. We’ve chosen seven that we rely on because they consistently do the job. The first of our tools is the Five Levels of Communication.

The Change Journey

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The Change Journey Graphic

Organizations still struggle with change. After all our collective years of experience and learning about change, it's still hard.

Part of the challenge is that we still insist on using techniques that assume organizations are like machines. Get the right tool, technician, and process, and the results will follow.

Is your strategy stuck in the 20th century?

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