"That Was Great!": More High Impact Exercises For Teaching Or Consulting On Organizational Change 13
A two-hour interactive Academy of Management Annual meeting PDW workshop in Atlanta, Friday, August 4 10:15am-12.15pm
Atlanta Marriott Marquis, Marquis M302,303
Do you teach, research, or have an interest in organizational change?
For the 13th consecutive year, we offer a PDW to provide a forum for educators, researchers and consultants to showcase high impact methods for teaching organizational change in its many contexts (undergraduate, EMBA, MBA, corporate training, consulting). The workshop covers high impact classic and contemporary exercises that receive very positive responses in change programs. Two key features underpin this workshop:
- The workshop has a "hands-on" approach where participants get to experience, in part, the actual exercise or activity being undertaken.
- The teaching philosophy underpinning the workshop is a "multiple perspectives" approach which assumes that a variety of approaches, assumptions and methodologies may be employed to explore the many areas associated with organizational change.
Presenters will introduce their exercise, provide the audience with a short, hands-on sampling of it and the method for debriefing it, and will provide more detailed take away notes.
1. Gary Wagenheim (Simon Fraser U) and Keith Hunter (San Francisco U) will present an interactive group get-acquainted exercise entitled "To tell the truth." This exercise provides an opportunity for members of a group to get to know one another in a non-threatening fun manner. It helps individuals recognize and appreciate each other's diversity by revealing hidden aspects of members' personality and background. The session facilitators will use the exercise to help participants learn the importance of getting to know each other to improve communication.
2. Anthony F. Buono (Bentley University) and Susan Adams (Bentley University) will present Assessing Reactions to Organizational Change. This exercise is designed to examine reactions to change, on both a general level as well as in relation to a specific change. It quickly engages participants and prompts them to share their thoughts and experiences about how change is experienced in organizational life, probing their expectations about change and the change process. The audience will be asked to complete a simple word association exercise about their feelings about organizational change. Participants will then "score" their reactions and this assessment is then used as a basis for discussion about reactions to change and their ramifications for organizations and their management.
3. Susan Resnick West (U. Southern California) and Cindy Martinez (U. Southern California) will present The Tallest Tower, an experiential learning exercise used in courses on Communicating Strategy and Change and Global Leadership. With a few twists and turns, this exercise requires groups to build the tallest free-standing tower with a stack of index cards. The Tallest Tower illustrates the importance of communication, collaboration and leadership. Participants will receive instructions for facilitating and debriefing the exercise.
4. Chris Worley (NEOMA Business School) will describe and conduct the Managing Networks exercise. This exercise focuses on discussions about the difference between networks and hierarchies, and in particular how managing networks differs from management in more traditional bureaucracies. The exercise can be conducted with only a few participants and has also been delivered with groups close to 100. The group is assembled, provided basic instructions, and asked to "operate" the network according to instructions provided. Using the strategy concept of "simple rules", it is possible to demonstrate how relationship and exchange substitute for hierarchy and control in network structures.
5. Along with Gavin Schwarz (UNSW) presenters will discuss How to Effectively Debrief High Impact Exercises focusing on outcomes for organizational change teaching and consulting.
No pre-registration is neccesary to attend the session.
For information on the session contact Gavin Schwarz (g.schwarz@unsw.edu.au).