Don’t be an Allopathic Facilitator
July 20, 2010 by davissm · 6 Comments
Often we are called in to facilitate organizational interventions by organizations that are “sick,” meaning that their dysfunction has become so untenable that something simply must be done about it…”Our organization is broken and we need to fix it!” Pressured for a quick fix, we are often challenged to stand by approaches we know to be effective. In this week’s article, Don’t be an Allopathic Facilitator, we explore strategies to maintain a holistic approach to your interventions
Nice article, Steve. You are quite correct… we feel pressed to respond to the client’s framing of the issue and, as ‘helpers,’ can easily submit to the desire to fix the problem and cure the disease, rather than really look holistically at the system and the impacts on the various members of the group. We are also reminded to look inward, to reflect upon our own biases and projections of what would be ‘helpful’ in any situation.
Good food for thought… thanks,
Harry
Amen to all that! Steve, I had a moment of Revelation two years ago while delivering the third in a four-part workshop series for a local healthcare institution. The sidebar conversations made it clear that the people in the room were eager for the skills, but the people who REALLY needed the training and awareness were not present, and in fact many of the organization’s top leaders were guilty of doing exactly the OPPOSITE of what constitutes good leadership.
And I stood there thinking, “Why am I beating my head against a wall, here?” In that moment I felt like I was stealing their money… since in the end, nothing was going to change culturally. Since that time, I’ve focused more on the culture and the leadership of organizations, and have turned down many one-shot skills workshops. Yes, I like the cashflow, but my heart is no longer in it when there’s no context built for those skills to make a difference.
Occasionally I still will submit a proposal for a single workshop, e.g. when a whole team is going on a 1-2 day retreat and want to do some skill building w/ the entire group. What’s different now is that my package and pricing include 2-3 followup teleconferences spread over the next several months. So we come back together as a group every few weeks and provide coaching support for those individuals who are struggling with new skills. I also encourage the teams to bring success stories to tell (”hey, this works!”) and show them how to coach each other and create group accountability. It’s only a few hundred bucks more for them, and easy enough for me (it’s always via my bridgeline), AND the feedback tells me that it makes a big difference in helping the team ground the new behaviors and follow thru on their commitments.
This solutions offers another middle ground option (like the article suggests), where I’m coming in from an allopathic perspective, but then hanging around to educate and ground some new behaviors to help prevent future disease.
Thanks for a great article! Jim
This one really spoke to me, Steve. As I keep turning toward holistic living and away from drug-centered “health care” for myself, it becomes obvious to choose not to work with people who only want quick fixes instead of healing – whether friends, people I sponsor in support groups or in government where I work. Permanent changes often come gradually and consist of multiple tiny course corrections. Within that context, there is a place for holistic approaches that do seem like quick fixes because they work very quickly — when the person is ready for it. In corporate situations like you described, not everyone is ready for the changes at the same time and there are more reasons to resist.
In my experience, many leaders “don’t know what they don’t know.” The framework they are accustomed to operating within suggests that a mechanistic approach to solving organizational problems is the best (and perhaps only) approach. “If a machine isn’t working, hire an engineer or mechanic to fix it,” works for inanimate objects, but organizations are completely organic. Once we have the opportunity to share the holistic point of view, almost everyone “gets it.” However, at that point, some have the courage and determination to move forward and some don’t.
Great article! RE the ending of the article, “I understand that many organizations may not accept the above approach and will pass you over looking for an expert to quickly come in and solve their problem. In this case you have a choice, to pass on the work or try to bring some holism in with your ’solution.’” My first thought about this is that, yes, the money is tempting, but our reputation as credible, effective facilitators is more important. As you’ve said, working with a group that doesn’t want to address the root issues/causes won’t solve anything. But you can be sure that the blame will go onto the facilitator who wasn’t “effective”! And they won’t hesitate to share that with other organizations. Sorry, that’s not worth the money! Let them pass me over…
Also, your article is another reminder of how important it is to do our homework before we facilitate. It’s that “digging” beforehand that helps us go in prepared for anything. Or prepared to simply say “no thank you”!
Another great article that captures the reality of what occurs in organizations and the road often traveled by some Facilitators. Is it wrong for a Facilitator to take on the job if the client prefers the “fix”?
You are correct, it is a choice … your perspective decides if it is right or wrong. Several organizations don’t operate efficiently or have the desire/ability to switch their mode of operation in a day … they are similar to a growing child. You can show a child what they need to do from birth to early adulthood to achieve success… but a lot of the time it feels like you are hitting your head against a wall. Do you give up? Where would I be if that happened..?? Although the willingness for a holistic approach is absent your point “try to bring some holism in with your “solution”,” could be the seed to a new approach.
Eventually the light goes on if achieving success is the goal … and the incorrigible child becomes the shining star
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