Dan Mezick on Open Space Adoption Part II

Dan Mezick is a management consultant, author & keynote speaker. His work includes The Culture Game, a book based on five years of experience coaching 119 Agile teams across 25 different organizations. He is also the cultivator of Open Space Agile Adoption.

This interview is a continuation of Part I

Notes from Interview

After Open Space

Proceedings are the beginning

Adoption is learning through experimentation, inspected at next open space

Stuart Kauffman, Santa Fe Institute — The Adjacent Possible (http://edge.org/conversation/the-adjacent-possible)

Coaching Change

Coaching + experimentation => learning can take place

Experiments make a space for learning

Cannot inflict help

Power of Invitation

Pull out of comfort zone rather than push through invitation

Frame it like a party

Let the teams pull changes instead of pushing on them

Play

A lot of work is really serious play

The opposite of work is not play

Solving problems doesn’t have to be heavy process

Open to Failure

Games dissolve tension, make room for love

We like to fail fast, but are uncomfortable with vulnerability

Mandated collaboration is ultimate oxymoron

Unwilling Participants

Reduce commitment by 1/2 until they willing to try

Create opportunities to try, not mandated

Disengagement Epidemic — Pushing Mindset

We pull work in Agile, but routinely push agile without teams consent

Most people unhappy/disengaged with work

Engagement is associated with a sense of control and belonging

Improving Velocity

Great work possible for any team

Make the team the genius instead of hiring geniuses 

Genius Teams — McCarthy Project (http://www.mccarthyshow.com/aboutus/)

Interpersonal Equity

Substantial asset to team productivity

Energy is created in group from history of the group

Creates lasting friendships, strong networks

Dependency, Autonomy and Mastery

Consulting versus Coaching

Explicit boundaries needed