How winning organisations encourage constructive debate The Value of Disagreement: BCC EVENING BUSINESS FORUM 1 st July 2015

Deep Democracy facilitated by Yvonne O’Reilly Authentic dialogue Listening to all the “voices” Enriching decisions

“Deep Democracy” Workshop  Business Context  Set up of Activity  Deep Democracy Experience  Debrief & Applications  Plenary Group

“Deep Democracy” ?  Not just about openness to other people’s views; it’s also about the emotions and personal experiences that often get excluded from group discussions  It’s about listening to all the “voices” of the system – including the unpopular ones. Every voice carries data, information and wisdom in some way for the system Arnold Mindell, The Deep Democracy of Open Forums, 2002

Deep Democracy – An Awakener  Helps people to see, hear and understand each other in new and profound ways  Recognises and explores group tensions and conflict in a constructive manner - transforms difficult or sensitive issues into revealing community experiences  Widens the pool of information available to guide Decisions - enables people to move forward with fresh insights and ideas for “what’s next”

“Deep Democracy” – Alliance  Try on different roles – take a stand from these roles; share your views with conviction  Be ready to engage in dialogue with other roles – deepen the exchange and the learning  Be open to influence - remember the groundrule « EVERYONE IS RIGHT – PARTIALLY! »  Follow the energy in the room - trust the process  Pause for reflection; look at what’s possible for the future

Constructive Debate - 5 Key Steps to Success 1.Get the right people in the room 2.Set conditions for safety - leader models the way 3.Challenge the “status quo” - ask powerful questions 4. Listen to all the “voices of the system” – explore, play, experiment with different tools & techniques 5.Co-create solutions - commit to taking bold action

Sample Powerful Questions for Group Dialogue  What (stakeholder) voices have we not heard from yet? / What else needs to be said?  What’s the challenge? /What’s the opportunity?  How do we feel about this situation?  What are we learning from each other?  What’s possible from here?  If nothing were in our way, what would we do? What’s stopping us?  What can we do better than has ever been done before?  How can we best support each other moving forward?

Disagree and Commit facilitated by Sarah Battey Decision quality Gaining commitment Taking action

Workshop Introduction Decisions can be strategic or operational in nature; At times decisions can be emotionally charged

Pros and Cons When introducing mechanisms to limit decision-making time, and when finding ways to managing emotions during debates, a “Disagree & Commit” approach to decision-making can have many advantages

Mechanisms Mechanisms help anchor the desired behaviour within the company culture, e.g. -Clear communication plans -Setting timeline for debate -Agreeing on “rules of the game” -Aligning hiring, feedback, promotion

Dealing with “no” Setting clear rules of engagement sets framework & expectations for “Disagree & Commit process”; for example rules might include providing data to back up arguments or setting a timeline for the debate; See also Deep Democracy slide “Encouraging Constructive Debate”

“It is only through dialogue, deep listening, and passionate disagreement that we find our way to something larger than a singular and isolated point of view.” - Henry Kimsey House

Contact Yvonne at Tel: Contact Sarah at Tel: For more information, feel free to get in touch …