Building Community in Times of Transition Hetty Baiz and Susan Danoff Office of Information Technology Princeton University Mid-Atlantic Educause, Philadelphia, Jan. 2009 Copyright Hetty Baiz, 2009. This work is the intellectual property of the author. Permission is granted for this material to be shared for non-commercial, educational purposes, provided that this copyright statement appears on the reproduced materials and notice is given that the copying is by permission of the author. To disseminate otherwise or to republish requires written permission from the author.

Agenda Overview Try it out Wrap-up

Background Office of Information Technology plans move to new building off campus (Fall 2009) 150+ staff impacted Change of culture – new work groups, new location (distant from customers, miss beauty of campus)

Background Educause lists “Change” as top 10 issues for IT organizations in 2008-09 “IT organizations large and small, private and public throughout higher education are under constant pressure to advocate or influence institutional change.” Change Management -- two dimensions Fostering culture change Handling regular IT changes (patches, upgrades) Change Management requires planning for change Defining what change is Understanding how affect existing systems Communicating & evaluating once implemented

What Princeton Is Doing Change Mgmt Task Force, coffee with CIO, cross-functional teams Workshop: “Building Community in Times of Transition” to enable discussion / identify challenges & opportunities Presented at an all-OIT meeting Invite 15 participants per session 3 sessions / 45 staff to date

Workshop GOALS Understanding transition in life and the work place & knowing the tools we have to deal with it Understanding challenges and opportunities Remembering that in the midst of change, we carry unchanging gifts and qualities Appreciating our colleagues and what they bring

Sample Workshop Activities Stories Brainstorming Group discussion What is transition Where / when does it occur Transitional moments in story, life, work Manual for transition Changes in work place Challenges, opportunities What you bring that doesn’t change amidst change? Visual exercises

Sample Agenda Story of something you’re carrying with you Story told by Susan / Group discussion explore nature of transition transitions in life / work manual for change and transition Model of transition / Group discussion Changes in workplace Challenges and opportunities What do I bring/carry with me that doesn’t change

Why Stories Compel us to listen Engage us emotionally /provide shared experience Are metaphorical -- allow reflection in a personal, non-intrusive, way Provide raw material for discussion, brainstorming, sharing, and listening Capture the essence of our common humanity Listening to stories, we recall our own stories

Why Stories "A senior official at the World Bank, Steven Denning, found that 'time after time, when faced with the task of persuading a group of managers or frontline staff in a large organization to get enthusiastic about a major change, storytelling was the only thing that worked.'" -Story Proof, The Science Behind the Startling Power of Story by Kendall Haven, page 4

Example – “Visual” Story

What Do I Carry With Me? – A “Visual Story” Collaboration, Team Work Communication Skills Problem Solving Knowledge, Skills Personal Values Temperament Passion and Engagement Creativity, Vision

Example – Oral Story Rainbow Crow – story told by Susan Danoff

Question for Participants Imagine that the story “Rainbow Crow” is your guide for living through transition.  As a group, brainstorm the underlying ideas in the story about living through/coping  with/ understanding transition.  (Ask one person in your group to be the scribe and write down all of the ideas that the group discusses.) Examples: - Transitions offer opportunities for transformation. - Transitional moments can cause suffering.

Testimonials “Sharing with the group creates a bond with the group, making its member more comfortable and more eager to share.” “ The relaxed and casual environment to discuss a stressful change is beneficial for individuals to talk with others in the same situation.” “It helps to build group bonds and also pushes you to think more deeply about the subject of change. “This should be a workshop all staff are required to take.”

Questions? Contact: Hetty Baiz hetty@princeton.edu (609) 258-6335