April: Dialogue in Organizations: Curiosity + Sharing [04/11/24]

Dialogue in Organizations:    
Be Curious & Seek Shared Understanding    

A lot is happening in organizations and ecosystems today. Change is moving at a head spinning pace. Sometimes in our haste to get things done we forget that to align and coordinate to get things done we need to focus on building constructive, nourishing human connections.

Are we curious enough to wonder how an issue looks from another person’s perspective? Do we wonder about a perspective we lack that might make a huge difference?

Listening to understand, rather than to respond, is a way to unlock better options and enlist others to join us in collective action.

So how do we go about developing such a shared understanding? Is there an approach that is foundational to collective progress?

Yes, there is an approach, dialogue, which increases the possibility of building shared understanding by asking us to “hold our ideas lightly” and to recognize that the other is “a person first and an opinion second.”

Those are big asks, not easy to do and they take practice. We’ll get started on that practice when you join Nancy and Pete as we collaboratively explore an approach to Dialogue in Organizations that can work!

Please join us on April 11 for this important conversation!

Speakers:  Nancy Dixon and Pete Sorenson     {see Bios below} 

(Please join our LinkedIn Group if you haven’t yet done so, and comment on the discussions.)

Schedule for Thursday Evening April 11:  (CT)    
   –  6:45  Virtual setup and Networking
   –  7:00  Announcements / Intros  
   –  7:15  Program Begins Promptly    
   –  8:45  Closing and Wrap Up
   –  9:00  Program Ends

Zoom Link to Join Virtual Meeting will be sent to all who register.

Speaker BIOs:  

Nancy Dixon:     I’m a long time academic turned consultant and coach.  I’m a runner, a committed yoga practitioner, a meditator, a mother of two and a grandmother of three. What I care deeply about is that the people who work in any organization have a voice to influence what their organization does and what it stands for. My aspiration is to help make organizations worthy of organizational members putting their life’s blood into their work, because all of us have a desire to have our labor serve something that we view as worthy. I believe that happens when organizations learn how to hold meaningful conversations among their employees.

At heart I’m a writer and have written eight books and over 80 articles about how to make those conversations happen in organizations. My latest thinking is in my blog called “conversation matters” at www.nancydixonblog.com/.

Pete Sorenson:     I’m a freelance designer of teams, organizations, systems, networks, and ecosystems. I have been doing this for a long time and I am still trying to figure things out. I am curious, have a sense of adventure, a penchant for experimentation and innovation, and a sense of humor. I listen well. People having a voice in organizations is important to me. It is important as a part of people fulfilling their potential as humans. It is important as a way for organizations to tap into the information, perspective, and engagement that can help organizations fulfill their potential.

I will be starting a Substack soon called “Puzzling On Organizations & Ecosystems.”  I am puzzling about Human Centered Artificial Intelligence a lot lately.