Empathy List Archives

CK

christine koehler

Fri, Aug 29, 2025 4:26 PM

Dear all,

I’m reaching out to you with a request.

I’m looking for stories of organizations that were known for their creativity and innovation, but had to reinvent themselves from the inside out — by changing their processes, ways of working, organization, or management practices — in order to face a sharp drop in funding and become more effective with fewer resources.

One story I have in mind is that of IDEO, the design thinking pioneer, which had to go through such an internal transformation via Open Space, if I remember correctly.

But I would love to learn about other examples — whether it’s IDEO or other Organizations that went through a similar journey.

If you know of a concrete case, or have resources to share (articles, books, personal experiences), I would be very grateful.

Thanks a lot in advance, and looking forward to your insights.

Warmly,

Christine Koehler

Dear all, I’m reaching out to you with a request. I’m looking for stories of organizations that were known for their creativity and innovation, but had to reinvent themselves from the inside out — by changing their processes, ways of working, organization, or management practices — in order to face a sharp drop in funding and become more effective with fewer resources. One story I have in mind is that of IDEO, the design thinking pioneer, which had to go through such an internal transformation via Open Space, if I remember correctly. But I would love to learn about other examples — whether it’s IDEO or other Organizations that went through a similar journey. If you know of a concrete case, or have resources to share (articles, books, personal experiences), I would be very grateful. Thanks a lot in advance, and looking forward to your insights. Warmly, Christine Koehler

MM

Michael M Pannwitz

Sat, Aug 30, 2025 2:14 AM

Dear Christine,

I enjoyed the privilege to accompany the German Agency "YOUTH for
Europe" for a whole decade (2000 to 2010).
The German Agency is one of the agencies that are supported by the
European Union in 30+ countries in Europe.

The ost-events took place in May of each year for the organization
itself (about 35 participants) and also for the
entire network in the late fall of each year (about 100 participants).
These were 3-day events.

The CEO of the organization composed a 16 page story of the impact of
ost in their organization titled

Practicing Open Space - Our First Ten Years
How Open Space transformed the way of doing business in the
German Agency "YOUTH for Europe
more creative & responsible & participatory & systemic

With a preface by Harrison Owen.

This paper is available as an e-book.
It contains the German version and also contains translations in
English, Polski, Francais, Espanole, Chinese

https://www.westkreuz-verlag.de/produkt/practicing-open-space-e-book/

Good luck in finding more stories... and let us know!

Greetings from Berlin and sign up for the WOSonOS this fall in Kenya
where the ost-stories could be an issue, in all
WOSonOSes I was involved stories played an important role...

mmp

Am 29.08.2025 um 18:26 schrieb christine koehler via OSList:

Dear all,

I’m reaching out to you with a request.

I’m looking for stories of organizations that were known for their
creativity and innovation, but had to reinvent themselves from the
inside out — by changing their processes, ways of working,
organization, or management practices — in order to face a sharp drop
in funding and become more effective with fewer resources.

One story I have in mind is that of IDEO, the design thinking pioneer,
which had to go through such an internal transformation via Open
Space, if I remember correctly.

But I would love to learn about other examples — whether it’s IDEO or
other Organizations that went through a similar journey.

If you know of a concrete case, or have resources to share (articles,
books, personal experiences), I would be very grateful.

Thanks a lot in advance, and looking forward to your insights.

Warmly,

Christine Koehler

OSList mailing list --everyone@oslist.org
To unsubscribe send an email toeveryone-leave@oslist.org
See the archives here:https://oslist.org/empathy/list/everyone.oslist.org

Michael M Pannwitz
Draisweg 1, 12209 Berlin, Germany
+49 30 7728000mmpannwitz@posteo.de

WOSonOS will be in Kenya in November 6th-8th, 2025, have a look
https://www.wosonos2025.org/

Dear Christine, I enjoyed the privilege to accompany the German Agency "YOUTH for Europe" for a whole decade (2000 to 2010). The German Agency is one of the agencies that are supported by the European Union in 30+ countries in Europe. The ost-events took place in May of each year for the organization itself (about 35 participants) and also for the entire network in the late fall of each year (about 100 participants). These were 3-day events. The CEO of the organization composed a 16 page story of the impact of ost in their organization titled *Practicing Open Space - Our First Ten Years* How Open Space transformed the way of doing business in the German Agency "YOUTH for Europe more creative & responsible & participatory & systemic With a preface by Harrison Owen. This paper is available as an e-book. It contains the German version and also contains translations in English, Polski, Francais, Espanole, Chinese > https://www.westkreuz-verlag.de/produkt/practicing-open-space-e-book/ Good luck in finding more stories... and let us know! Greetings from Berlin and sign up for the WOSonOS this fall in Kenya where the ost-stories could be an issue, in all WOSonOSes I was involved stories played an important role... mmp Am 29.08.2025 um 18:26 schrieb christine koehler via OSList: > > > Dear all, > > > I’m reaching out to you with a request. > > > I’m looking for stories of organizations that were known for their > creativity and innovation, but had to reinvent themselves from the > inside out — by changing their processes, ways of working, > organization, or management practices — in order to face a sharp drop > in funding and become more effective with fewer resources. > > > One story I have in mind is that of IDEO, the design thinking pioneer, > which had to go through such an internal transformation via Open > Space, if I remember correctly. > > But I would love to learn about other examples — whether it’s IDEO or > other Organizations that went through a similar journey. > > > If you know of a concrete case, or have resources to share (articles, > books, personal experiences), I would be very grateful. > > > Thanks a lot in advance, and looking forward to your insights. > > > Warmly, > > Christine Koehler > > > > OSList mailing list --everyone@oslist.org > To unsubscribe send an email toeveryone-leave@oslist.org > See the archives here:https://oslist.org/empathy/list/everyone.oslist.org Michael M Pannwitz Draisweg 1, 12209 Berlin, Germany +49 30 7728000mmpannwitz@posteo.de WOSonOS will be in Kenya in November 6th-8th, 2025, have a look https://www.wosonos2025.org/

CK

christine koehler

Sat, Aug 30, 2025 11:32 AM

Thank you very much MichaelI did not Forget that story. I can recommence it to everyone :)

Christine + 33 6 13 28 71 38

Sent from my mobile phone. Please forgive brevity.

Le 30 août 2025 à 04:14, Michael M Pannwitz <mmpannwitz@posteo.de> a écrit :

Dear Christine,

I enjoyed the privilege to accompany the German Agency "YOUTH for Europe" for a whole decade (2000 to 2010).
The German Agency is one of the agencies that are supported by the European Union in 30+ countries in Europe.

The ost-events took place in May of each year for the organization itself (about 35 participants) and also for the
entire network in the late fall of each year (about 100 participants).
These were 3-day events.

The CEO of the organization composed a 16 page story of the impact of ost in their organization titled

Practicing Open Space - Our First Ten Years
How Open Space transformed the way of doing business in the
German Agency "YOUTH for Europe
more creative & responsible & participatory & systemic

With a preface by Harrison Owen.

This paper is available as an e-book.
It contains the German version and also contains translations in English, Polski, Francais, Espanole, Chinese

https://www.westkreuz-verlag.de/produkt/practicing-open-space-e-book/

Good luck in finding more stories... and let us know!

Greetings from Berlin and sign up for the WOSonOS this fall in Kenya where the ost-stories could be an issue, in all
WOSonOSes I was involved stories played an important role...

mmp

Am 29.08.2025 um 18:26 schrieb christine koehler via OSList:
Dear all,

I’m reaching out to you with a request.

I’m looking for stories of organizations that were known for their creativity and innovation, but had to reinvent themselves from the inside out — by changing their processes, ways of working, organization, or management practices — in order to face a sharp drop in funding and become more effective with fewer resources.

One story I have in mind is that of IDEO, the design thinking pioneer, which had to go through such an internal transformation via Open Space, if I remember correctly.

But I would love to learn about other examples — whether it’s IDEO or other Organizations that went through a similar journey.

If you know of a concrete case, or have resources to share (articles, books, personal experiences), I would be very grateful.

Thanks a lot in advance, and looking forward to your insights.

Warmly,

Christine Koehler
<pre class="moz-quote-pre" wrap="">OSList mailing list -- <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:everyone@oslist.org">everyone@oslist.org</a>
To unsubscribe send an email to <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:everyone-leave@oslist.org">everyone-leave@oslist.org</a>
See the archives here: <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://oslist.org/empathy/list/everyone.oslist.org">https://oslist.org/empathy/list/everyone.oslist.org</a>
<pre class="moz-signature" cols="72" signature-switch-id="886ea44f-b30f-4cd4-82dc-0d40cf7e04df">Michael M Pannwitz
Draisweg 1, 12209 Berlin, Germany
+49 30 7728000     <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:mmpannwitz@posteo.de">mmpannwitz@posteo.de</a>

WOSonOS will be in Kenya in November 6th-8th, 2025, have a look
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.wosonos2025.org/">https://www.wosonos2025.org/</a>

PH

Peggy Holman

Sat, Aug 30, 2025 5:23 PM

Christine,

These are older but there are three stories from the second edition of The Change Handbook. And two in the first edition. I don’t know how well they fit your reinvention criteria. I’ve attached the chapter from the second edition and copied the stories from the first edition below for you to see what you think.

I suspect Tova Averbuch has some stories of reinvention so I have shared your request with her.

Peggy

Open Space at Work

AT&T had an interesting problem. The design team they had assembled to create their pavilion for the ‘96 Olympics had lived up to all expectations. The design, in fact, was so good that AT&T was invited to move its pavilion from the edge of the Olympic Village to dead center. Since exposure was the name of the game, and $200,000,000 was riding on the project, making the move was an easy decision. There was, however one small problem. At the edge of the Global Village, 5000 visitors per day could be expected. At the center that number moved up dramatically: 75,000 people at the gate. Talk about exposure, but clearly a structure designed for 5000 would not accommodate 75,000. To make matters worse, the original design had taken 10 months to complete, and it was now December with the Olympics a bare six months away.

The 23 member design team was a dispirited group when they assembled to meet the challenge. The knew they were good, and given the time, could easily rise to the occasion. But the time was not there. As they sat in a circle, preparing to engage in what they perceived to be a very doubtful enterprise called Open Space Technology, one of their number was heard to comment, “I think we are about ready to turn a disaster into a catastrophe.”

Two days later, the atmosphere was rather different. A totally new design had been created down to the level of working drawings, and everybody agreed that aesthetically it was much better than the earlier one. In terms of implementation, they were actually further along with the new design than they had been with the old one, for as they planned they were also ordering up materials for delivery. Perhaps most importantly, everybody was still talking to each other, and some even described the undertaking as “fun,” complaining only that they should have used Open Space the first time.

Here is a system-wide, long-term Open Space story from Anne Stadler, an Open Space practitioner of many years:

In May, 1996, 120 faculty, students and staff from all Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC) divisions attended an unusual two day retreat. Focusing on the theme: “Integrating basic, clinical and epidemiological sciences to understand human biology and disease,” they used Open Space Technology to initiate conversations and generate practical activities.

It took foresight and courage to bring this about. The FHCRC, 2,000 people strong, was organized by traditional scientific disciplines. It is a global leader in cancer research. So, why tamper with success?

Dr. Lee Hartwell, a highly respected geneticist initiated the effort. He believed that only through synthesizing basic, clinical and population sciences would we understand fundamentals of human biology and disease. The crucial answers would no longer come from isolated pursuits of different disciplines. Hartwell chose Open Space Technology to support maximum opportunity for self-organizing. He felt this would reveal the nascent leadership opportunities for collaboration, learning and action. The choice had his colleagues scratching their heads. People asked: "Who are the speakers? What is the agenda?” When told they would create it on the spot, most colleagues were skeptical. Once confronted with an open agenda and invited to take responsibility for what they cared about, leaders emerged to convene conversations.

That first meeting generated several cross-disciplinary initiatives including a monthly graduate and post-graduate seminar; internal web pages for each laboratory; a dual-mentored training program; several interdisciplinary courses, mini-courses, workshops and lectures. The event unleashed new leadership and enthusiastic participation.

In 1997, Dr. Hartwell was named FHCRC President/Director. His first act: convening another center-wide Open Space. This created new relationships and projects including a long-term, four-division interdisciplinary research program, more courses, some reorganization, and on-going work on diversity and leadership development. Reflecting on the FHCRC's year-old Open Space era, Hartwell said: “I have found that leadership in daily actions and issues is key. To effect significant change, many people must become leaders.”

FHCRC's current challenge is becoming a continuous open space learning community, fostering efficient communication among multiple sites with different cultures. Kim Wells, Organization Development Director, keeps the space open for the evolving learning community. She reports: “I’ve been offering classes in leadership of complex systems; we’ve started regular two-hour Open Space learning exchanges and we are considering an Open Space on diversity within the year. Using our Intranet for communication and tracking what people are doing and learning is a future prospect.”

Based on Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center's two years of experience, opening space in an organization has these cycles:

· Convening the circle (calling all relevant stakeholders together on a timely and relevant subject);
· Revealing the leadership and diversity present (through self-organizing a marketplace);
· Manifesting practical outcomes in day to day work;
· Supporting the leadership in oneself and others to respond to emergent realities and possibilities; and
· Sharing learning through reflection and storytelling.

Peggy Holman
peggy@peggyholman.com

Bellevue, WA 98006
206-948-0432
www.peggyholman.com

Enjoy the award winning Engaging Emergence: Turning Upheaval into Opportunity https://peggyholman.com/papers/engaging-emergence/

"An angel told me that the only way to step into the fire and not get burnt, is to become
the fire".
-- Drew Dellinger

Join the Open Space practitioner’s conference - the World Open Space on Open Space (WOSonOS https://www.wosonos2025.org/) - in Kenya, November 6-8.

On Aug 30, 2025, at 4:32 AM, christine koehler via OSList everyone@oslist.org wrote:

Thank you very much Michael
I did not Forget that story. I can recommence it to everyone :)

Christine

33 6 13 28 71 38
Sent from my mobile phone. Please forgive brevity.

Le 30 août 2025 à 04:14, Michael M Pannwitz mmpannwitz@posteo.de a écrit :

Dear Christine,

I enjoyed the privilege to accompany the German Agency "YOUTH for Europe" for a whole decade (2000 to 2010).
The German Agency is one of the agencies that are supported by the European Union in 30+ countries in Europe.

The ost-events took place in May of each year for the organization itself (about 35 participants) and also for the
entire network in the late fall of each year (about 100 participants).
These were 3-day events.

The CEO of the organization composed a 16 page story of the impact of ost in their organization titled

Practicing Open Space - Our First Ten Years
How Open Space transformed the way of doing business in the
German Agency "YOUTH for Europe
more creative & responsible & participatory & systemic

With a preface by Harrison Owen.

This paper is available as an e-book.
It contains the German version and also contains translations in English, Polski, Francais, Espanole, Chinese

https://www.westkreuz-verlag.de/produkt/practicing-open-space-e-book/

Good luck in finding more stories... and let us know!

Greetings from Berlin and sign up for the WOSonOS this fall in Kenya where the ost-stories could be an issue, in all
WOSonOSes I was involved stories played an important role...

mmp

Am 29.08.2025 um 18:26 schrieb christine koehler via OSList:

Dear all,

I’m reaching out to you with a request.

I’m looking for stories of organizations that were known for their creativity and innovation, but had to reinvent themselves from the inside out — by changing their processes, ways of working, organization, or management practices — in order to face a sharp drop in funding and become more effective with fewer resources.

One story I have in mind is that of IDEO, the design thinking pioneer, which had to go through such an internal transformation via Open Space, if I remember correctly.

But I would love to learn about other examples — whether it’s IDEO or other Organizations that went through a similar journey.

If you know of a concrete case, or have resources to share (articles, books, personal experiences), I would be very grateful.

Thanks a lot in advance, and looking forward to your insights.

Warmly,

Christine Koehler

OSList mailing list -- everyone@oslist.org mailto:everyone@oslist.org
To unsubscribe send an email to everyone-leave@oslist.org mailto:everyone-leave@oslist.org
See the archives here: https://oslist.org/empathy/list/everyone.oslist.org

Michael M Pannwitz
Draisweg 1, 12209 Berlin, Germany
+49 30 7728000 mmpannwitz@posteo.de mailto:mmpannwitz@posteo.de

WOSonOS will be in Kenya in November 6th-8th, 2025, have a look
https://www.wosonos2025.org/

OSList mailing list -- everyone@oslist.org
To unsubscribe send an email to everyone-leave@oslist.org
See the archives here: https://oslist.org/empathy/list/everyone.oslist.org

Christine, These are older but there are three stories from the second edition of The Change Handbook. And two in the first edition. I don’t know how well they fit your reinvention criteria. I’ve attached the chapter from the second edition and copied the stories from the first edition below for you to see what you think. I suspect Tova Averbuch has some stories of reinvention so I have shared your request with her. Peggy From The Change Handbook: Group Methods for Shaping the Future, copyright ©1999 by Peggy Holman and Tom Devane, Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc., San Francisco, CA. All rights reserved. Open Space at Work AT&T had an interesting problem. The design team they had assembled to create their pavilion for the ‘96 Olympics had lived up to all expectations. The design, in fact, was so good that AT&T was invited to move its pavilion from the edge of the Olympic Village to dead center. Since exposure was the name of the game, and $200,000,000 was riding on the project, making the move was an easy decision. There was, however one small problem. At the edge of the Global Village, 5000 visitors per day could be expected. At the center that number moved up dramatically: 75,000 people at the gate. Talk about exposure, but clearly a structure designed for 5000 would not accommodate 75,000. To make matters worse, the original design had taken 10 months to complete, and it was now December with the Olympics a bare six months away. The 23 member design team was a dispirited group when they assembled to meet the challenge. The knew they were good, and given the time, could easily rise to the occasion. But the time was not there. As they sat in a circle, preparing to engage in what they perceived to be a very doubtful enterprise called Open Space Technology, one of their number was heard to comment, “I think we are about ready to turn a disaster into a catastrophe.” Two days later, the atmosphere was rather different. A totally new design had been created down to the level of working drawings, and everybody agreed that aesthetically it was much better than the earlier one. In terms of implementation, they were actually further along with the new design than they had been with the old one, for as they planned they were also ordering up materials for delivery. Perhaps most importantly, everybody was still talking to each other, and some even described the undertaking as “fun,” complaining only that they should have used Open Space the first time. Here is a system-wide, long-term Open Space story from Anne Stadler, an Open Space practitioner of many years: In May, 1996, 120 faculty, students and staff from all Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC) divisions attended an unusual two day retreat. Focusing on the theme: “Integrating basic, clinical and epidemiological sciences to understand human biology and disease,” they used Open Space Technology to initiate conversations and generate practical activities. It took foresight and courage to bring this about. The FHCRC, 2,000 people strong, was organized by traditional scientific disciplines. It is a global leader in cancer research. So, why tamper with success? Dr. Lee Hartwell, a highly respected geneticist initiated the effort. He believed that only through synthesizing basic, clinical and population sciences would we understand fundamentals of human biology and disease. The crucial answers would no longer come from isolated pursuits of different disciplines. Hartwell chose Open Space Technology to support maximum opportunity for self-organizing. He felt this would reveal the nascent leadership opportunities for collaboration, learning and action. The choice had his colleagues scratching their heads. People asked: "Who are the speakers? What is the agenda?” When told they would create it on the spot, most colleagues were skeptical. Once confronted with an open agenda and invited to take responsibility for what they cared about, leaders emerged to convene conversations. That first meeting generated several cross-disciplinary initiatives including a monthly graduate and post-graduate seminar; internal web pages for each laboratory; a dual-mentored training program; several interdisciplinary courses, mini-courses, workshops and lectures. The event unleashed new leadership and enthusiastic participation. In 1997, Dr. Hartwell was named FHCRC President/Director. His first act: convening another center-wide Open Space. This created new relationships and projects including a long-term, four-division interdisciplinary research program, more courses, some reorganization, and on-going work on diversity and leadership development. Reflecting on the FHCRC's year-old Open Space era, Hartwell said: “I have found that leadership in daily actions and issues is key. To effect significant change, many people must become leaders.” FHCRC's current challenge is becoming a continuous open space learning community, fostering efficient communication among multiple sites with different cultures. Kim Wells, Organization Development Director, keeps the space open for the evolving learning community. She reports: “I’ve been offering classes in leadership of complex systems; we’ve started regular two-hour Open Space learning exchanges and we are considering an Open Space on diversity within the year. Using our Intranet for communication and tracking what people are doing and learning is a future prospect.” Based on Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center's two years of experience, opening space in an organization has these cycles: · Convening the circle (calling all relevant stakeholders together on a timely and relevant subject); · Revealing the leadership and diversity present (through self-organizing a marketplace); · Manifesting practical outcomes in day to day work; · Supporting the leadership in oneself and others to respond to emergent realities and possibilities; and · Sharing learning through reflection and storytelling. _________________________________ Peggy Holman peggy@peggyholman.com Bellevue, WA 98006 206-948-0432 www.peggyholman.com Enjoy the award winning Engaging Emergence: Turning Upheaval into Opportunity <https://peggyholman.com/papers/engaging-emergence/> "An angel told me that the only way to step into the fire and not get burnt, is to become the fire". -- Drew Dellinger Join the Open Space practitioner’s conference - the World Open Space on Open Space (WOSonOS <https://www.wosonos2025.org/>) - in Kenya, November 6-8. > On Aug 30, 2025, at 4:32 AM, christine koehler via OSList <everyone@oslist.org> wrote: > > Thank you very much Michael > I did not Forget that story. I can recommence it to everyone :) > > Christine > + 33 6 13 28 71 38 > Sent from my mobile phone. Please forgive brevity. > >> Le 30 août 2025 à 04:14, Michael M Pannwitz <mmpannwitz@posteo.de> a écrit : >> >> Dear Christine, >> >> I enjoyed the privilege to accompany the German Agency "YOUTH for Europe" for a whole decade (2000 to 2010). >> The German Agency is one of the agencies that are supported by the European Union in 30+ countries in Europe. >> >> The ost-events took place in May of each year for the organization itself (about 35 participants) and also for the >> entire network in the late fall of each year (about 100 participants). >> These were 3-day events. >> >> The CEO of the organization composed a 16 page story of the impact of ost in their organization titled >> >> Practicing Open Space - Our First Ten Years >> How Open Space transformed the way of doing business in the >> German Agency "YOUTH for Europe >> more creative & responsible & participatory & systemic >> >> With a preface by Harrison Owen. >> >> This paper is available as an e-book. >> It contains the German version and also contains translations in English, Polski, Francais, Espanole, Chinese >> >>> https://www.westkreuz-verlag.de/produkt/practicing-open-space-e-book/ >> >> Good luck in finding more stories... and let us know! >> >> Greetings from Berlin and sign up for the WOSonOS this fall in Kenya where the ost-stories could be an issue, in all >> WOSonOSes I was involved stories played an important role... >> >> >> mmp >> >> >> Am 29.08.2025 um 18:26 schrieb christine koehler via OSList: >>> >>> Dear all, >>> >>> >>> >>> I’m reaching out to you with a request. >>> >>> >>> >>> I’m looking for stories of organizations that were known for their creativity and innovation, but had to reinvent themselves from the inside out — by changing their processes, ways of working, organization, or management practices — in order to face a sharp drop in funding and become more effective with fewer resources. >>> >>> >>> >>> One story I have in mind is that of IDEO, the design thinking pioneer, which had to go through such an internal transformation via Open Space, if I remember correctly. >>> >>> But I would love to learn about other examples — whether it’s IDEO or other Organizations that went through a similar journey. >>> >>> >>> >>> If you know of a concrete case, or have resources to share (articles, books, personal experiences), I would be very grateful. >>> >>> >>> >>> Thanks a lot in advance, and looking forward to your insights. >>> >>> >>> >>> Warmly, >>> >>> Christine Koehler >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> OSList mailing list -- everyone@oslist.org <mailto:everyone@oslist.org> >>> To unsubscribe send an email to everyone-leave@oslist.org <mailto:everyone-leave@oslist.org> >>> See the archives here: https://oslist.org/empathy/list/everyone.oslist.org >> >> Michael M Pannwitz >> Draisweg 1, 12209 Berlin, Germany >> +49 30 7728000 mmpannwitz@posteo.de <mailto:mmpannwitz@posteo.de> >> >> WOSonOS will be in Kenya in November 6th-8th, 2025, have a look >> https://www.wosonos2025.org/ > OSList mailing list -- everyone@oslist.org > To unsubscribe send an email to everyone-leave@oslist.org > See the archives here: https://oslist.org/empathy/list/everyone.oslist.org

CK

christine koehler

Sat, Aug 30, 2025 5:54 PM

Thank you si much PeggyMay I translate them I to French and credit you and Ann Stadler for the FHRCRC story ?

Or do you prefer that I-tell them my way (and credit you of course)

I will tell the Rickport story in my words because of the copyright

Christine

33 6 13 28 71 38

Sent from my mobile phone. Please forgive brevity.

Le 30 août 2025 à 19:25, Peggy Holman via OSList <everyone@oslist.org> a écrit :

Christine,

These are older but there are three stories from the second edition of The Change Handbook. And two in the first edition. I don’t know how well they fit your reinvention criteria. I’ve attached the chapter from the second edition and copied the stories from the first edition below for you to see what you think.

I suspect Tova Averbuch has some stories of reinvention so I have shared your request with her.

Peggy

<Open_Space_Technology_060224.pdf>

From The Change Handbook: Group Methods for Shaping the Future, copyright ©1999 by Peggy Holman and Tom Devane, Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc., San Francisco, CA. All rights reserved.

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div.WordSection1 { page: WordSection1; }## Open Space at Work

AT&T had an interesting problem. The design team they had assembled to create their pavilion for the ‘96 Olympics had lived up to all expectations. The design, in fact, was so good that AT&T was invited to move its pavilion from the edge of the Olympic Village to dead center. Since exposure was the name of the game, and $200,000,000 was riding on the project, making the move was an easy decision. There was, however one small problem. At the edge of the Global Village, 5000 visitors per day could be expected. At the center that number moved up dramatically: 75,000 people at the gate. Talk about exposure, but clearly a structure designed for 5000 would not accommodate 75,000. To make matters worse, the original design had taken 10 months to complete, and it was now December with the Olympics a bare six months away.

The 23 member design team was a dispirited group when they assembled to meet the challenge. The knew they were good, and given the time, could easily rise to the occasion. But the time was not there. As they sat in a circle, preparing to engage in what they perceived to be a very doubtful enterprise called Open Space Technology, one of their number was heard to comment, “I think we are about ready to turn a disaster into a catastrophe.”

Two days later, the atmosphere was rather different. A totally new design had been created down to the level of working drawings, and everybody agreed that aesthetically it was much better than the earlier one. In terms of implementation, they were actually further along with the new design than they had been with the old one, for as they planned they were also ordering up materials for delivery. Perhaps most importantly, everybody was still talking to each other, and some even described the undertaking as “fun,” complaining only that they should have used Open Space the first time.

Here is a system-wide, long-term Open Space story from Anne Stadler, an Open Space practitioner of many years:

In May, 1996, 120 faculty, students and staff from all Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC) divisions attended an unusual two day retreat. Focusing on the theme: “Integrating basic, clinical and epidemiological sciences to understand human biology and disease,” they used Open Space Technology to initiate conversations and generate practical activities.

It took foresight and courage to bring this about. The FHCRC, 2,000 people strong, was organized by traditional scientific disciplines. It is a global leader in cancer research. So, why tamper with success?

Dr. Lee Hartwell, a highly respected geneticist initiated the effort. He believed that only through synthesizing basic, clinical and population sciences would we understand fundamentals of human biology and disease. The crucial answers would no longer come from isolated pursuits of different disciplines. Hartwell chose Open Space Technology to support maximum opportunity for self-organizing. He felt this would reveal the nascent leadership opportunities for collaboration, learning and action. The choice had his colleagues scratching their heads. People asked: "Who are the speakers? What is the agenda?” When told they would create it on the spot, most colleagues were skeptical. Once confronted with an open agenda and invited to take responsibility for what they cared about, leaders emerged to convene conversations.

That first meeting generated several cross-disciplinary initiatives including a monthly graduate and post-graduate seminar; internal web pages for each laboratory; a dual-mentored training program; several interdisciplinary courses, mini-courses, workshops and lectures. The event unleashed new leadership and enthusiastic participation.

In 1997, Dr. Hartwell was named FHCRC President/Director. His first act: convening another center-wide Open Space. This created new relationships and projects including a long-term, four-division interdisciplinary research program, more courses, some reorganization, and on-going work on diversity and leadership development. Reflecting on the FHCRC's year-old Open Space era, Hartwell said: “I have found that leadership in daily actions and issues is key. To effect significant change, many people must become leaders.”

FHCRC's current challenge is becoming a continuous open space learning community, fostering efficient communication among multiple sites with different cultures. Kim Wells, Organization Development Director, keeps the space open for the evolving learning community. She reports: “I’ve been offering classes in leadership of complex systems; we’ve started regular two-hour Open Space learning exchanges and we are considering an Open Space on diversity within the year. Using our Intranet for communication and tracking what people are doing and learning is a future prospect.”

Based on Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center's two years of experience, opening space in an organization has these cycles:

· Convening the circle (calling all relevant stakeholders together on a timely and relevant subject);

· Revealing the leadership and diversity present (through self-organizing a marketplace);

· Manifesting practical outcomes in day to day work;

· Supporting the leadership in oneself and others to respond to emergent realities and possibilities; and

· Sharing learning through reflection and storytelling.

Peggy Holman

peggy@peggyholman.com

Bellevue, WA 98006
206-948-0432
www.peggyholman.com

Enjoy the award winning Engaging Emergence: Turning Upheaval into Opportunity

"An angel told me that the only way to step into the fire and not get burnt, is to become
the fire".
-- Drew Dellinger

Join the Open Space practitioner’s conference - the World Open Space on Open Space (WOSonOS) - in Kenya, November 6-8.
On Aug 30, 2025, at 4:32 AM, christine koehler via OSList <everyone@oslist.org> wrote:

Thank you very much MichaelI did not Forget that story. I can recommence it to everyone :)

Christine + 33 6 13 28 71 38

Sent from my mobile phone. Please forgive brevity.

Le 30 août 2025 à 04:14, Michael M Pannwitz <mmpannwitz@posteo.de> a écrit :
Dear Christine,

I enjoyed the privilege to accompany the German Agency "YOUTH for Europe" for a whole decade (2000 to 2010).
The German Agency is one of the agencies that are supported by the European Union in 30+ countries in Europe.

The ost-events took place in May of each year for the organization itself (about 35 participants) and also for the
entire network in the late fall of each year (about 100 participants).
These were 3-day events.

The CEO of the organization composed a 16 page story of the impact of ost in their organization titled

Practicing Open Space - Our First Ten Years
How Open Space transformed the way of doing business in the
German Agency "YOUTH for Europe
more creative & responsible & participatory & systemic

With a preface by Harrison Owen.

This paper is available as an e-book.
It contains the German version and also contains translations in English, Polski, Francais, Espanole, Chinese

https://www.westkreuz-verlag.de/produkt/practicing-open-space-e-book/

Good luck in finding more stories... and let us know!

Greetings from Berlin and sign up for the WOSonOS this fall in Kenya where the ost-stories could be an issue, in all
WOSonOSes I was involved stories played an important role...

mmp

Am 29.08.2025 um 18:26 schrieb christine koehler via OSList:
Dear all,

I’m reaching out to you with a request.

I’m looking for stories of organizations that were known for their creativity and innovation, but had to reinvent themselves from the inside out — by changing their processes, ways of working, organization, or management practices — in order to face a sharp drop in funding and become more effective with fewer resources.

One story I have in mind is that of IDEO, the design thinking pioneer, which had to go through such an internal transformation via Open Space, if I remember correctly.

But I would love to learn about other examples — whether it’s IDEO or other Organizations that went through a similar journey.

If you know of a concrete case, or have resources to share (articles, books, personal experiences), I would be very grateful.

Thanks a lot in advance, and looking forward to your insights.

Warmly,

Christine Koehler
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<pre class="moz-signature" cols="72" signature-switch-id="886ea44f-b30f-4cd4-82dc-0d40cf7e04df">Michael M Pannwitz
Draisweg 1, 12209 Berlin, Germany
+49 30 7728000     <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:mmpannwitz@posteo.de">mmpannwitz@posteo.de</a>

WOSonOS will be in Kenya in November 6th-8th, 2025, have a look
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PH

Peggy Holman

Sat, Aug 30, 2025 6:11 PM

Hi Christine,

For the small amount of text you want to use, the copyright isn’t an issue. Just cite the source if you’re doing something formal. If it is more casual, just reference the book and authors. I’ve put the cites for both editions below.

Formal Cites:

Second edition:
Owen, Harrison. “Open Space Technology.” The Change Handbook: The Definitive Resource on Today’s Best Methods for Engaging Whole Systems, edited by Peggy Holman, Tom Devane, Steve Cady, and Associates, Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2007, pp. 135-136.

First edition:
Owen, Harrison (with guest appearance by Anne Stadler). “Open Space Technology.” The Change Handbook: Group Methods for Shaping the Future, edited by Peggy Holman and Tom Devane, Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 1999, pp. 234-35.

On Aug 30, 2025, at 10:54 AM, christine koehler chris.alice.koehler@gmail.com wrote:

Thank you si much Peggy
May I translate them I to French and credit you and Ann Stadler for the FHRCRC story ?
Or do you prefer that I-tell them my way (and credit you of course)

I will tell the Rickport story in my words because of the copyright

Christine

33 6 13 28 71 38
Sent from my mobile phone. Please forgive brevity.

Le 30 août 2025 à 19:25, Peggy Holman via OSList <everyone@oslist.org mailto:everyone@oslist.org> a écrit :

Christine,

These are older but there are three stories from the second edition of The Change Handbook. And two in the first edition. I don’t know how well they fit your reinvention criteria. I’ve attached the chapter from the second edition and copied the stories from the first edition below for you to see what you think.

I suspect Tova Averbuch has some stories of reinvention so I have shared your request with her.

Peggy

<Open_Space_Technology_060224.pdf>