HOW TO SHAKE UP YOUR MEETINGS TO UNLEASH INNOVATION
By creating spaces where every voice gets heard, you can unlock motivation and innovation in your organisation.
Words by David Bennett
THE SHORTCOMINGS OF TRADITIONAL MEETINGS
Would you agree that most meetings you attend are not a good use of your time?
It's certainly been my experience.
This is because they're either too controlled (presentations, managed discussions, status updates) or under-controlled (brainstorming or open discussion).
These conventional approaches often result in boredom, disinterest, resistance, feeling unheard or pushed around. These responses arise from a meeting design that excludes, stifles, and over- or under-controls full participation in shaping next steps.
“Conventional meetings frequently fail to provide space for good ideas to germinate, emerge, be shared, combined, and refined.”
Simple rules to unleash a culture of innovation
I'm delighted to reveal that an entire repertoire of practical methods that you can use to improve your meetings already exists. These are called Liberating Structures (LS). LS are simple rules that make it possible to include and engage every voice in shaping the future.
The LS repertoire consists of 33 practical methods versatile enough for anyone to use for a wide array of activities and challenges. Keith McCandless, one of the LS co-creators, reassuringly writes, "None require expert training. Seeing them in action once is enough for many novices to get results and adapt them for use in other settings. [...] Everybody is invited to play an active role and becomes skilled in making contributions." [1]
You can design engaging and creative meetings, workshops and hui by 'stringing' several Liberating Structures together. Each has a clear description of its result-oriented purpose. For example, to re-invigorate staff meetings you could string together these four LS:
Impromptu Networking: Clarify challenges and purpose
Troika Consulting: Get imaginative help immediately from colleagues
Improv Prototyping: Rehearse a seriously fun way to tackle a chronic challenge
Design Storyboard: Invite staff members to design the next meeting
Step-by-step descriptions for each LS are freely available on the website liberatingstructures.com. The best way to learn them is by experiencing them.
PRINCIPLES TO GUIDE MEETING BEHAVIOUR
The following 10 principles [2] are in play when Liberating Structures are part of every day interactions:
1. Include and unleash everyone
2. Practice deep respect for people and local solutions
3. Build trust as you go
4. Learn by failing forward
5. Practice self-discovery within a group
6. Amplify freedom AND responsibility
7. Emphasise possibilities: believe before you see
8. Invite creative destruction to enable innovation
9. Engage in seriously playful curiosity
10. Never start without a clear purpose
How you as a leader can foster intrinsic motivation when you meet
Self-Determination Theory (SDT) is the leading behavioural science model for understanding motivation, engagement, and well-being. [3] Richard Ryan and Edward Deci, creators of SDT, believe that "by supporting fundamental needs in others — notably the needs for autonomy, relatedness, and mastery — high quality motivation and engagement will naturally arise in its strongest and most durable forms." [4]
Autonomy is the basic need to be the author of one's life —to have a sense of choice and self-endorsement of one's actions. This need is fulfilled if we have a rationale and sense of purpose in what we are doing.
Relatedness is our basic need to feel we belong and ‘matter’ to others. Each of us needs to feel connected in meaningful ways—to feel supported, valued, respected and included while experiencing that others need and value our support, value, respect and inclusion.
Mastery is our basic need to feel effective, to be successful, and to grow. People want to feel they have what they need to succeed at their daily tasks, including resources, skills, and expertise. They also want to envision a path that includes new challenges and responsibilities, and allows them to anticipate growth in their work.
Liberating Structures support these three fundamental needs. For example, the need for autonomy is met by choosing whether to be involved in an LS, choosing whom you pair or form a small group with, and choosing what you talk about. The need for mastery is met by LS being easy to learn and straightforward to facilitate. The need for relatedness is met by using pairs, trios and small groups where everyone gets to speak and be heard.
Meetings that support people to grow
In their excellent book, Simple Habits for Complex Times, authors Jennifer Garvey Berger and Keith Johnston suggest that leaders can increase the chance the people in their organisation will grow by focussing on how they have their meetings. They advocate creating spaces where “people can ask curious questions, assumptions get put on the table, and the invisible becomes visible.” In these conditions, they write, "people will find the meeting a good use of their time, the solution to whatever the problem is will be richer and more significant, and you've increased the chance that the people in the room will grow." [5]
If Garvey Berger and Johnston have described “what” leaders need to do, then Liberating Structures provide the “how”. Using LS as a framework for designing and facilitating your meetings allows you to manage in a more complex way. You can move from directing problem-solving, decision making, or planning to facilitating these processes in collaboration with your team. Imagine if people in your organisation couldn't wait to attend one of your meetings!
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