Not all goals are amenable to linear change processes. Some prefer being nudged towards actualisation. While there is a range of possible strategic styles and methods, the two contrasted in this post involve linear (logframe) and non-linear (vector-based) theories of change (ToC). These are illustrated in the header image above as the straight line arrow… Continue reading Actors, Factors, and Vectors of Change
Tag: decision-making
Working with assumptions – risky but necessary
I presume that: Examining assumptions Good advice in one context may be poor advice in another. For example, the injunction to ‘never assume‘ may be sound advice when applied to making assumptions about people and their motivations. It is likely to be poor advice however, when applied to strategic planning and project management. Not that… Continue reading Working with assumptions – risky but necessary
How effective is your board? – Part 6
This post concludes the series on board effectiveness evaluation with a somewhat disparate collection of observations and reflections. Some of the ideas and charts included here might have been quite relevant in earlier parts of the series, but if they were not available at that time, their inclusion here acts as an amplification and reinforcement… Continue reading How effective is your board? – Part 6
How effective is your board? – Part 4
Reflective Governance Directors of most non-profit boards are volunteers who are time-poor. In my experience, some are reluctant to have their work evaluated, partly because they feel insulted that their honorary work is being opened to critical review (as they see it) as if they were remunerated. And yet, when given the opportunity to identify… Continue reading How effective is your board? – Part 4
A question of skillful questioning
Asking the right questions in the right way One of the shorthand ways of explaining what governance focuses on is to say it’s about ‘Doing the right things in the right way’. This post offers a reflection on one essential aspect of governance, that is used by every director at every meeting. Skillful questioning is… Continue reading A question of skillful questioning
Prioritisation of everything, everywhere, all the time
We prioritise every time we make a choice of any kind. We prioritise: Every one of the thousands of decisions we make every day reflects a (priority) choice between available options. Conscious and unconscious choices Prioritisation may be unconscious, in that we have previously attached importance or value to an activity and it has become… Continue reading Prioritisation of everything, everywhere, all the time
Double-edged swords and paradoxical choices
‘Either/or’ choices Most board deliberations and policy analyses are conducted using an ‘either/or’ approach. A set of (usually three or four) options is devised, from which one is to be favoured over others. You can have the answer in one of the red, blue, or green boxes – but you can’t have two or more… Continue reading Double-edged swords and paradoxical choices
Was it something I said? Dialogue style choices
At the risk of stating the obvious, our choice of words, tone, pitch, and jargon influences others’ perception of, and receptivity to, our message. Of course, when we have been tactless (often inadvertently), or worse, have offended the other party, everything we say to them subsequently is coloured by their associating us with a ‘negative’… Continue reading Was it something I said? Dialogue style choices
A spectrum of listening intentions
Leaders who listen – Part 2 One of my most profound professional development experiences involved being introduced to active listening techniques many years ago. As so many had discovered before me, and since, ed psych courses during teacher training offered meagre preparation for encounters with the vast range of mental and emotional states adolescent students… Continue reading A spectrum of listening intentions
Being present: listening with your eyes
Leaders who listen – Part 1 I recall a disconcerting meeting with a Government Minister some years ago. It wasn’t because he rushed off to other (more important) business before we had the opportunity to advocate for our cause. Rather, it was because he spent most of our allotted time head down, writing notes on… Continue reading Being present: listening with your eyes