Organization Culture Change and Open Space Technology

I have invested a lifetime learning and applying social technology to support large system change or transformation. Open System Technology (OST) has had a profound influence on my practice as a culture developer and strategic facilitator. OST is a highly democratic methodology used to engage groups in successfully changing from the current state to a more desirable one.

I experimented with OST at US WEST (then, a fortune 50 company) in 1993/94 through the work of social change advocate, Peggy Holman, who was part of my team at that time. (Here’s a link to her exceptional tribute to the OST founder and his impact).

The founder of OST, Harrison Owen (who recently passed away in March), was an elder in the field of group process facilitation. He created OST to reinforce the power of self-accountability and tap into the vitality of self-organization. People like Holman have advanced and enriched his work over the last few decades.

The principles of OST are remarkably and deceptively simple, while in no way simplistic. They are:

1. Whoever comes is the right person.

2. Whatever happens is the only thing that could have happened.

3. Whenever it starts is the right time.

4. When it's over, it's over.

Harrison also promoted the law (invitation) of mobility. “If you are not learning or contributing, go somewhere where you can.”

Imagine bringing a diverse group of people together and applying these principles. For buttoned down executives, it was as uncomfortable as hell in the early 90’s and still would make a lot of them squirm today. What? No formal pre-set agenda? No assigned break out groups? No presentations? Etc. Ironically, many practitioners in the organization development community, upon the emergence of OST, complained that it was too “woo-woo.” Unfortunately, many never had the courage (like Peggy Holman) to try it.

On the other hand, if one ever experienced it, the process was occasionally effective to a startling degree. If you wanted to engage on a topic, you gathered around with other interested folks, self-organized, and worked on it until you were done. When the project was over, it was over. The OST approach over the years has been successfully employed from groups of 500 to five, in literally thousands of environments around the world. And while I tend to integrate the OST principles into my work in a more bespoke way, the democratic, self-accountability aspects are instrumental to any successful culture change initiative I’ve undertaken. Thank you Harrison. Thank you Peggy.

A couple of other learnings emerging from OST that I use regularly include the idea that the circle is the fundamental geometry of open communication. I’ve also come to appreciate that the best change journeys require plenty of room. So, as Owen would proclaim: Just open space!

Think Big, Start Small, Act Now,

- Lorne

One Millennial View: Simple, while in no way simplistic. What an understatement. One might look at the first principle of OST and say “Ok… So… Why even have job interviews?” That reaction might suggest we’ve missed the point. To me, the boldest hurdle is self-accountability. No wonder this freaks out anyone depending on command and control. Peggy talks about Harrison’s research in chaos and order. Without the order of self-accountability as a bedrock, you can’t play in the chaos of OST. However, if you come equipped with the self-accountability to pool your self-interests into passion projects for culture change, chaos can ensue and the results will be better than any assigned, pre-set agenda.

- Garrett

Organization Culture Change and Open Space Technology

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