January: Digital Era Optimism: Shaping Our Future (01/09/20)

Please join us on Thursday January 9 at University of Dallas (Irving)
RSVP on this Event invitation  for an accurate food count if you are coming!
[With above links you can register/RSVP. see who else is attending, and even share with others.]

Hindsight-Foresight-Insight-Action:
Shaping Our Future with Optimism in a Digital Age   

It is not about predictions…

  • It is about understanding patterns and lessons from 50 years in the past and recent actions you have taken (hindsight).
  • It is about seeing weak signals on the horizon, seeing patterns that they form, and seeing new possibilities (foresight).
  • It is about how new insights, new seeing, gives you “aha moments” and points you towards how you can up your readiness (insight).
  • It is about moving your “aha moments” towards planning and executing (action).
  • It is about learning what works from what you have done and moving with joy and optimism through the thinking, pondering, planning, acting cycle again and again to craft/shape/design the future that you want to create.
  • It is about community, collective intelligence that is characterized by diversity and differences and the richness of thinking and action that they produce.

“We have agency in imagining and creating the kind of future we want to live in, and we can take actions to get us there.” 

“Thinking about the future is a collaborative and highly communal affair. It requires a diversity of views. We need to involve experts from many different domains.” 

Marina Gorbis, “5 Principles for Thinking Like a Futurist”, Educauser Review, Winter 2019:  https://er.educause.edu/articles/2019/3/five-principles-for-thinking-like-a-futurist?

Join us on January 9 at UD as we collectively learn and practice our skills of future thinking and optimism in a joyful way and launch our new year intent on Shaping The Future We Want!

Speaker: Pete Sorenson, CMC®,  Strategic Organization Design  (see BIO below)

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


Schedule for Thursday Evening:
–  6:30  Networking / Food / Intros 
–  7:00  Announcements / Program
–  8:45  Closing and evaluation 


Meeting Location:  

University of DallasSB Hall, Serafy Special Events Room *
   Campus: 1845 East Northgate Drive,    Irving, TX 75062     (972-721-5000)

  SB Hall is #34 on the new UD Campus Map      [Google Map for Nav
  >> Click for Satellite Map of the building and parking (with lat/long)

Note:  SB Hall is on the north side the campus, near Gorman Dr. and Haggar Circle.  The SBH Serafy Special Events room is on the first floor (use any door).   Easy to find!

Parking:  Lot Q, along Dominican Lane (just northeast of the building), or Lot L (to the southwest) is larger.

Cost:   No charge for members ($60/year).  $10 for guests.

Speaker BIO:  Peter Jay Sorenson, CMC®

We currently live in a digitally fueled, volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous, (VUCA) world of organizations.

Pete’s focus is to collaborate on, discover, and create the next generation of organization design technology that can match the speed of change and disruption we are experiencing.

He is also focused on developing the next generation of organization designers that will make this world work from a values, effectiveness, and efficiency point of view.

He is known for his ability to see the big picture, make sense of messes, and lead teams to resolve complex issues.  He relates well to people from all stations of life, speaks frankly, and has a practical eye for getting things done.

He currently serves as the President of the Socio-Technical Systems Roundtable Stewards Team and is an Adjunct Lecturer of Engineering in the Lyle School of Engineering at Southern Methodist University.

In his consulting Pete’s clients come from the High Tech, Healthcare, Energy, Government, and Not-for-Profit Sectors. He has also been deeply involved in humanitarian initiatives in the developing world that focus on entrepreneurship and microfinance.


We look forward to seeing you there!


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