Increase the use of dialogic methods in business, government, non-profit and community
Dialogue is not just for groups to come to an agreement, engage citizens or make a decision. Dialogic methods are also used to help groups ...more »
Dialogue is not just for groups to come to an agreement, engage citizens or make a decision.
Dialogic methods are also used to help groups think faster, more creatively, and more productively while engaging all the knowledge, wisdom, experience and diversity in the room in an interdisciplinary, intercultural, dynamic manner.
Note here that I am including in the term dialogue both methods / tools / processes that invite speaking as those which invite listening and reflection. In true dialogue, there are both the speaker(s) and those who are truly listening. And dialogue also includes both outer (such as talking or inquiring) and inner dialogue (such as thinking while drawing, journaling, reflecting in silence before speaking)
My recommendation is to design more dialogic tools into business, government, non-profits and communities, both in the U.S. and in any project, program, activity or office the U.S. has in other parts of the world.
Facilitators such as myself have seen the use of dialogue in such examples as:
- dialogue before budgeting, to figure out new ways to spend over a billion dollars worth of international aid money
- dialogue before strategic planning to help a global organization's information technology department be more innovative and more service-oriented in a changing business climate
- program and product design that has broken through to new geographic regions or new marketplaces because dialogue helped people think in full-systems, interdisciplinary ways
- meetings where organizations or businesses invite not just the 'experts' but also consumers, partners, peers and even competitors for needs assessment, response to urgent issues, or knowledge exchange
- dialogue in governmental agencies working in other countries to foster collaboration, examine issues of sensitivity and engages all members of international staff in a way that invites all voices in spite of different cultural dynamics
- meetings, conferences, forums or planning sessions that include people of different levels of power, or minority voices and create an environment of inclusion and invitation to speak and share knowledge across culture and across differences
... and I could go on.
If I may speak for us - those of us in the profession of facilitation have seen groups accomplish amazing things when dialogic and interactive processes have been used.
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