{"id":657,"date":"2015-04-29T02:05:28","date_gmt":"2015-04-29T08:05:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/openspaceworld.org\/wp2\/?page_id=657"},"modified":"2024-04-15T23:24:14","modified_gmt":"2024-04-16T05:24:14","slug":"patterns","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/openspaceworld.org\/wp2\/explore\/patterns\/","title":{"rendered":"Open Space Patterns"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Whether you&#8217;re just learning about Open Space, have some experience as a participant or facilitator, or even when planning your first Open Space meeting, the patterns described below can\u00a0guide your work\u00a0in Opening Space and help you skillfully adapt Harrison Owen&#8217;s <em>OST: A User&#8217;s Guide (<a title=\"latest version at Amazon.com\" href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Open-Space-Technology-Users-Guide\/dp\/1576754766\/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1429398245&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=open+space+technology+a+user%27s+guide\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">book<\/a>\/<a title=\"original edition\" href=\"http:\/\/www.openspaceworld.com\/users_guide.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">html<\/a>)<\/em>\u00a0anywhere.<\/p>\n<p>You can see these patterns turn up\u00a0in stories of open space events. \u00a0Looking across\u00a0these three groups,\u00a0you might also notice that\u00a0the four conditions loosely inform the planning considerations and ultimately the mechanisms of the actual meeting. \u00a0The condition of diversity, for instance, is reflected in the invitation list and honored when marketplace gives everyone the space to chart their own course in the work.<\/p>\n<h2><em>Initial\u00a0Conditions \u2013 When to Open<\/em><\/h2>\n<p>Open Space is an inviting alternative to the usual meeting, conference or summit format, in organizations, communities, alliances and networks, when these conditions are present \u2013 and especially when levels are high and\/or rising:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Complexity<\/strong> \u2013 when the question to be solved is bigger than any one person, group or area of expertise will be able to fully address.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Diversity<\/strong> \u2013 when successful resolution of the issue or question necessarily must include input and action from a wide variety of different kinds of stakeholders and\/or with a wide diversity of interests.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Conflict<\/strong> \u2013 real or potential, when there&#8217;s real passion in the situation, meaning people care enough to fight for or about something.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Urgency<\/strong> \u2013 when the time for decisions and action was yesterday.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Open Space will work with almost any question and any group that cares about that question, but it works even better when things get challenging in these ways.<\/p>\n<h2><em>Essential Planning Considerations \u2013 Bounding the Space<\/em><\/h2>\n<p>Open Space is a practice in finding one more thing to NOT do. \u00a0Here are the essential considerations, without any requirement that they be\u00a0accomplished any certain way.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Invitation<\/strong> \u2013 There need to be some reason to meet, an important purpose, a gap in what&#8217;s known and some need (according\u00a0to the conditions above) to close that gap. \u00a0Usually this involves words, often they&#8217;re typed and shared online, but that&#8217;s not required. \u00a0The main thing is that people get the message about why, where and when to show up \u2013 and have the OPTION to show or not.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Invitation List<\/strong> \u2013 This is diversity of stakeholders in action. \u00a0Anyone who&#8217;s input and energy is needed, anyone who MIGHT care enough to show up, to learn or contribute, should be considered for inviting.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Space\/Time Logistics<\/strong> \u2013 This usually includes markers, papers, tape, chairs, a meeting space with a roof, flipcharts and devices \u2013 but really good meetings and events have happened without each and all of these things. \u00a0The barest essential is a place and a time to meet, even if the place is virtual.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Products<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 This usually means a report of some kind, the aggregated notes from all the sessions. \u00a0Sometimes it&#8217;s enough to walk away with a story, or a list of takeaways identified in the closing circle. \u00a0Other times, you might walk out of a meeting with working drawings for a building. \u00a0The point here is to plan to have on hand, in the room, whatever tools or information are needed to produce the things you want.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>There are always a lot of things we COULD do before any meeting, but what really matters is an issue of importance, a group that cares, a place and time or other platform to meet, and way to capture the results. \u00a0That&#8217;s it.<\/p>\n<h2><em>Basic Mechanisms \u2013 How and Why Open Space Works<\/em><\/h2>\n<p>Here we look at the basic mechanisms at work in Open Space. \u00a0These are forms\u00a0that people everywhere understand and know how to operate. \u00a0Again, offered\u00a0without any need to specify exactly how these things will be operationalized in any particular setting.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Invitation<\/strong> \u2013 As used here, invitation includes some articulation of the conditions above, a purpose or question of import, a list of invitees, a place and time to meet, bundled up and offered as the option and request to participate. \u00a0Invitation is also every breakout topic that&#8217;s announced and every breakout report is an invitation to some kind of action. \u00a0Inviting is something to do and to aspire to be. \u00a0It reminds us to focus on purposes that matter and voluntary self-selection.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Circle<\/strong> \u2013 No matter the actual shape, the circles let everyone see everyone else, and address everyone else. \u00a0They let everyone know who&#8217;s in and who&#8217;s not. \u00a0Circles support clear, but permeable, boundaries, belonging, commitment and communication. Circles create space for everything that matters: caring, connecting, sharing, learning, working, celebrating. \u00a0Circles hold spirit and possibility \u2013 and share responsibility.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Bulletin Board<\/strong> \u2013 One of the simplest ways to maximum information with minimum effort. \u00a0However you do it, there needs to be some way to see all of the issues raised and all of the reports brought back. \u00a0In non-reading cultures this might end up being a certain kind of story circle, virtually invisible. \u00a0In online settings, the whole platform can look like bulletin board. Both allow for easy, open, many-to-many communication.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Marketplace<\/strong> \u2013 This is about making room to move, for people to create the structures they need to support them in their work. Marketplaces, also called platforms in business-speak today, allow flow and open exchange, make working\u00a0faster and easier, and give the right and the responsibility\u00a0for managing their own learning and contributing, all in service of the shared purpose. \u00a0Marketplaces support complex (not\u00a0complicated) responses to complex situations. The clearer and more compelling the purpose, the easier it will be to make fewer limiting rules and support more emergent structures and active\u00a0exchange. \u00a0The trade-off for some people exerting less\u00a0control, for letting people move and connect, might be everyone wasting less time on waiting, work arounds, compliance and cover-ups.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Breathing, Pulsation or Iteration<\/strong> \u2013 This describes the easy movement between plenary sessions and breakouts, the iterative nature of having several rounds of breakouts, but also the realization that this new way of working might well take several iterations for a group to learn to maximize its potential. \u00a0Open Space allows us to ask bigger questions and address bigger issues than normal meetings and organization can normally handle. \u00a0That doesn&#8217;t mean it&#8217;s not going to take several rounds and ongoing practice to get the job done.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Storytelling\u00a0<\/strong>\u2013 It&#8217;s all stories. \u00a0An invitation is a story about what we want. \u00a0The circle is a container for stories and bulletin board helps share them around. \u00a0Stories are what we&#8217;re trading in the marketplace. \u00a0And the notes we capture, the stuff we take away, the stories we tell about what happened&#8230; are all fodder for the next invitation(s). \u00a0Stories <em>literally<\/em>\u00a0keep us, and our work, going. \u00a0When all else fails, invite some stories\u00a0about what&#8217;s good and right and working. \u00a0Then open a little space to make more of that.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>None of this is prescription or requirement. \u00a0You don&#8217;t need all these conditions for Open Space to work. There isn&#8217;t any one way to plan a meeting, invite stakeholders, create a bulletin board or open a marketplace.<\/p>\n<p>If you can&#8217;t Open Space the way it&#8217;s written up in Harrison Owen&#8217;s <em>OST User&#8217;s Guide (<a title=\"latest version at Amazon.com\" href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Open-Space-Technology-Users-Guide\/dp\/1576754766\/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1429398245&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=open+space+technology+a+user%27s+guide\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">book<\/a>\/<a title=\"original edition\" href=\"http:\/\/www.openspaceworld.com\/users_guide.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">html<\/a>)<\/em>, just look for ways to bend the practices you have, in the direction of\u2026 invitation, circle, bulletin board, marketplace, and practice. \u00a0Invite people into a purpose that matters, make the boundaries clear but\u00a0permeable, open access to information and the tools\u00a0to distribute it, give people as much room as possible to direct their own work, and look for ways to establish an easy rhythm and ongoing practice.<\/p>\n<h2><em>Open Space is Everywhere<\/em><\/h2>\n<p>Finally, if you look for these patterns in the world, in the business press for instance, you might begin to suspect that we are, already, living and working in Open Space, no matter how big, how slow, or subtle, the patterns and movements. Wherever we are, we have only to point to the conditions, make a simple plan, and use these basic mechanisms to open some space.<\/p>\n<p><em>_________________________________________<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em><a href=\"https:\/\/michaelherman.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Michael Herman<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Whether you&#8217;re just learning about Open Space, have some experience as a participant or facilitator, or even when planning your first Open Space meeting, the patterns described below can\u00a0guide your work\u00a0in Opening Space and help you skillfully adapt Harrison Owen&#8217;s OST: A User&#8217;s Guide (book\/html)\u00a0anywhere. You can see these patterns turn up\u00a0in stories of open [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":524,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-657","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/openspaceworld.org\/wp2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/657","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/openspaceworld.org\/wp2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/openspaceworld.org\/wp2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/openspaceworld.org\/wp2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/openspaceworld.org\/wp2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=657"}],"version-history":[{"count":35,"href":"https:\/\/openspaceworld.org\/wp2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/657\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4653,"href":"https:\/\/openspaceworld.org\/wp2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/657\/revisions\/4653"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/openspaceworld.org\/wp2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/524"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/openspaceworld.org\/wp2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=657"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}