Parallel Process and Team Meetings

Parallel The organization is a living, growing, changing system with its own unique biology. It is therefore every bit as susceptible to stress, strain & trauma as the individuals who live and work in the organization. Complex interaction between traumatized clients, stressed staff, pressured organizations, and oppressive social and economic environment. Process

LOSS OF BASIC SAFETY LOSS OF EMOTIONAL MANAGEMENT

DISSOCIATION/ FRAGMENTATION ORGANIZATIONAL AMNESIA SYSTEMATIC ERROR REENACTMEN T

LOSS OF DEMOCRATIC PROCESS LOSS OF COMPLEXITY SHORT SIGHTEDNESS IMPOVERISHED RELATIONSHIPS

DISEMPOWERMENT LOSS OF CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS INCREASED AUTHORITARIANISM

INCREASED AGGRESSION UNRESOLVED GRIEF

DEMORALIZATIONLOSS OF MEANING

SELF DESTRUCTIVE BEHAVIOR FORESHORTENED FUTURE

What do These Symptoms Look Like to Staff? Feeling like there are forbidden topics Lost information and knowledgeIncreased bullying, abuse of powerRunning from crisis to crisisManaging like everything is a crisisShort-sighted problem solving and “quick fixes ” Conflicts go unresolved or ignored

Continued, what does it look like for us? Loss of hope and faith in our supervisors and in their ability to encourage positive change Lots of staff turnoverNo recognition, praise, or fun Feeling like nothing is ever going to change

The Good News: It Works Both Ways Just as negative issues and energy can transmit through all levels of an organization, so can positive actions and intentions--parallel process works both ways, and if we know that we can use it to help recover from staff problems and leadership problems.

Organization identifies norms to be established Shared commitments staff training of commitments Safety plans Universal training Create mechanism to regularly familiarize all members with the norms Community Meetings Team meetings The community as a therapeutic agent of change Implementation Guide Core Team technical assistance

So What Can We Do To Recover? Develop skills to manage stress Express your feelings - use “I” statements and listen to others Collaboration & team workWhen things start to feel tense, do something different Looking for a process issue causing the problem instead of blaming one person

More Recovery Tools Focus on skill building & competency Staff empowerment & recognition Give permission to fail (think of post-it notes!) Set clear goals – no mixed messages And most of all: Recognize that change is a process

Active, focused meeting where every member Feels comfortable talking and listening Is engaged and contributes Shares insights and generates new ideas

Opportunity to discuss client issues… Ideas for working with individual clients or the whole group… New initiatives to improve the activities or events on the horizon. Open forum for addressing staff concerns, communication, and teamwork.

Ask for (and accept) feedback Set a clear agenda, preferably available in advance Everyone on staff should have the opportunity to put items on the agenda.

Look for ways to delegate responsibility for aspects of the meeting to staff. Note: Announcements are sometimes necessary, but they should be kept to a minimum at Team Meetings.