2. INTRODUCTION
•The purpose of this document is to sketch out a framework of thought
around the notion of a custom environment designed to be the stage for
creative meetings and innovation
3. CONTEXT
•The internet area, co-working practices and mobility both physical and
virtual, have afforded us now more than ever before access to each other
through a number of communication channels, each differently suited to
its purpose
4. TECHNOLOGY
•Ubiquitous communication technology has eliminated the constraints of
time and location with regards to ability and opportunity for interaction and
knowledge exchange
•Yet this freedom has also diluted the significance of individual meeting
moments and removed a natural sense of hierarchy, place, priority or joy (!)
in the enacting of the meeting
50%
62%
55%
28%
34%
17%Working indepently
Working with teams in the
same function
Working with teams in the
same location
Working with teams in
different functions
Working with teams in
different locations
Working with teams at
other organizations
5. PURPOSE
•With productivity, personal fulfillment as well as target-setting in mind,
the true purpose of meetings is never clearly stated but often includes
innovation, resolution and crisis management
•Increasingly innovation is seen as trigger and spark of business growth
6. BEHAVIOUR
•The primary reason for meeting is however often forgotten. with
company procedures, format, timetabling as well as pre-conceptions and
expectations about what the nature, duration and objectives of the
meeting should be, taking over and distracting us from our true intent
7. SPACE
•The attributes of the environment are rarely acknowledged to be playing
a role in shaping and supporting the meeting event
•Knowledge exchange and communication tend to inhabit the space
provided as part of office infrastructure rather the space that would
inspire best results
SOCIALISATION
Sharing and creating
tacit knowledge
through direct
experience.
Individual to Individual
EXTERNALISATION
Articulating tacit
knowledge through
dialog and reflection
with the group.
Individual to Group
COMBINATION
Systemising and
applying explicit
knowledge and
information.
Group to Group
INTERNALISATION
Learning and aquiring
new tacit knowledge in
practice. Internalising
experience.
Group & Environment
to Individual
tacit
tacit tacit
tacit
explicit
explicit
explicitexplicit
8. PERFORMANCE
•Creative meeting is about achieving the potential of assembled
participants
•Like a theatrical or musical performance it is a moment in time - a gig -
the success of which depends on timing and effect.
9. PARTICIPATION
•Involving all in a meeting is important, but, contrary to common belief,
this need not be at all times all of the time
•Role playing is key to the allocation of parts or scripts in a well-run
meeting
10. ADDED VALUE
•Benefits of a successful meeting are partly derived from the enjoyment
of the experience itself as well as from the eventual achievement of
quantifiable outcomes
11. MEETING TYPES
A general way to categorise meetings easily is to distinguish
between the two main group categories i.e. Process
Meetings and Mission Meetings.
•Process Meetings for dealing with ongoing business
processes. They are regular, same participants systemic,
with focus on efficiency
•Mission Meetings for dealing with specific, often
unforeseen events, issues, problems and opportunities. They
are irregular, involve ad hoc group, opportunistic, with focus
on creativity and innovation
12. There is no such thing as ‘a meeting’, meetings
can be defined by their intention and their
function. Here are just a few key functions:
•Dialogue
•Discuss
•Debate
•Decide
•Devise
•Direct
ICONS
13. Definition - free exchange of ideas between two or
more participants,
Conditions - informal, eye-to-eye, no obstacles,
comfort, human, lively
Dialogue
14. Definition - two or more people
purposefully hammer out an idea or issue
Conditions - high connectivity, good
sightlines for whole group, focus, energy
Discuss
15. Definition - a form of confrontation between those
proposing and opposing an idea in order to find a winner.
Conditions - formal, two sides of the table, bi-cameral,
high energy a creative confrontation
Debate
16. Definition - a meeting to bring a conversation to a
close with definitive action
Conditions - formal, efficient, no distraction.
Decide
17. Definition – creative meeting to invent new ideas or
approaches
Conditions - open ended, playful, and organic. Furniture etc
to facilitate creativity
Devise
18. Definition - operational meeting to direct the business,
distribute information, delegate tasks
Conditions - focus on meeting host, purposeful
assemble, briefing, absorbing information easily
Direct
19. CONCLUSION
•The business of the future is a place of innovation. An environment
which supports and facilitates events that are orchestrated and
choreographed to yield the desired business outcomes
•Such an environment recognizes the distinct moments of creative
interaction as they unfold and offers effective timely props for full effect
•It constitutes the alignment of built environment and business ‘liturgy’ on
an experiential level
20. “Great creative work is not about
delivering what already is but about
conjuring up what could be.”
Contact Details
Address
4, Nothmoor Place
Oxford OX2 6XB
Email gboscherini@aol.com
Telephone +44 (0)777 6231427
LinkedIn http://uk.linkedin.com/in/giuseppeboscherini/
Website www.boscherini.com
Twitter @gboscherini
