About Action Design
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Leading Ideas Action Design® helps individuals and groups in organizations develop their capability for inquiry, choice, and action on their most difficult issues. We provide consulting services and competence building programs. We support the continuing development of our alumni in the Action Design community. And we participate in a network of scholars and practitioners contributing to knowledge for the conduct of human affairs. This page provides an overview of our philosophy. You can also
read a history of our partnership,
a short essay on the theoretical
foundation for our practice, a description of what
and how we learned from each other, and a list of recent books
that refer to our work. Leading Ideas"How do you know when you have learned something? When you can produce it in action!" Chris Argyris issued this challenge when we began working with him at Harvard in 1979. He argued that systematic failures of implementation in organizations are caused by how human beings reason and how we are socialized to deal with each other, and that both can change. "To intervene in social systems at a high level of competence," he added, "you must become a researcher on your own practice." We co-authored the book Action Science with Chris in 1985.What kind of inquiry in the midst of action can help when we are stuck, puzzled, or surprised? Donald Schön conceptualized how master practitioners act in these moments as reflecting-in-action, turning thought back on action and on the knowing implicit in action. In noticing how we have been framing a situation we can see possibilities for reframing, opening creative options for action. Reflecting-in-action, and especially frame-reflective conversation, is crucial to making headway on organizational issues rooted in the clashing frames held and taken for granted by contending parties. How can we build relationships that sustain inquiry into difficult issues? David Kantor has helped us see how human relationships, both in families and in organizations, have a structure that forms as individuals interact in their characteristic ways. Relationship structures can take on a life of their own, leaving us caught in unproductive patterns. To intervene effectively we must recognize structures and understand how we enter relationships. And we must build a model of practice that fits who we are as individuals. For more on ideas that have shaped our practice, see the essay
"Foundations: Theory
and Practice." Results in ActionPeople working to create effective organizations aspire to high standards of behavior for themselves and others. Becoming able to live up to these ideals requires the kind of skill practice that is intertwined with personal development. Action Design’s methods combine this developmental work with making progress on current tasks. Our touchstone is, what impact are we having on how people actually conduct themselves and on their ability to put their ideals and values into action.A focus on results leads naturally to questions of measurement. The dilemma is that the quality of human thought and action is fundamental to achieving measurable results, but itself defies measurement. Organizations rely instead on qualitative judgments—is Group X functioning as it should, is Fred’s behavior creative, disruptive, or irrelevant, what are people doing or not doing that prevents marketing and engineering from getting on the same page? Action Design’s methods bring rigor to the process of forming, discussing, testing, and acting on judgments. We ask, "What are you seeing that leads you to make that judgment?"
"When you talk with her, what will you say?" "Here’s one way
we might say it: (illustrates). What are your reactions?"
In other words, we continuously connect talk about action with doing
the action. This creates fast cycles of acting, reflecting,
and acting. It both improves performance and counteracts the
tendency for "talking-about" to become disconnected from actual
doing. Values
PeopleAction Design is a partnership formed in 1992 by Philip McArthur, Robert Putnam, and Diana McLain Smith. Its roots are the learning and working relationship that began when we were graduate students at Harvard University during the 1980’s. Action Design offers public programs (the Action Design Institute), serves as an umbrella for our consulting practices, and creates a setting for developing ideas, methods, materials, and ourselves.The Action Design network consists of experienced practitioners who have worked
with Action Design for several years. Members of the network join us as faculty in
our competence building programs and as colleagues in selected consulting
engagements.
Contact us
Or contact us via traditional methods: Action Design Tel: (617) 499-0007
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