"The salvation of this human world lies nowhere else than in the human power to reflect."

        -- Vaclav Havel

Step-change improvement in human affairs depends on individuals who can recognize and question assumptions, see alternative possibilities, and engage others in new forms of action. This requires the paradoxical ability to step outside the action while acting, to gain perspective while staying on the field of play.

Reflecting in action is the in-the-moment ability to "turn thought back on action and on the knowing implicit in action" (Donald Schön). Reflecting in action, and especially frame-reflective conversation, is crucial to making headway on organizational issues rooted in the clashing perspectives of contending parties. The casework methodology featured in Action Design programs is a powerful discipline for developing this competence. The program is designed to advance your skill in:

• Improving your effectiveness in difficult interactions
• Self-correcting your assumptions and actions--even in the heat of the moment
• Practicing a methodology for on-going professional development
• Creating possibilities for reflective conversation in organizations

"To intervene at a high level of competence, you must become a researcher on your own practice."

        -- Chris Argyris

The casework methodology featured in Reflecting in Action powerfully reveals how one's own ways of thinking, feeling, and acting may limit effectiveness and how one might reframe situations to create new possibilities for action. Concepts for designing effective action, coupled with intensive practice and feedback in small groups, provide a clear and practical way forward. Tools and methods for identifying and altering characteristic ways of reacting to emotionally charged situations offer a path for ongoing professional development.

Elements of the program
Who should attend
Tuition
Accommodations
The Institute faculty
Continuing support for Institute graduates

Elements of the program:  Linking theory and practice

Plenary forums introduce concepts and models at the leading edge of professional development for effective organizations. Case studies and exercises bring the ideas to life.

Casework in small groups guided by a senior faculty member.  Cases written in advance by participants are learning material for reflecting on reasoning and behavior and for discovering and practicing new possibilities.

Videotaped role-play provides an opportunity for each participant to get feedback from faculty and fellow participants on new approaches to a challenging situation in his or her own work.

Personal reflection in Learning Trios. Each day you will meet with two other participants to deepen your personal learning. Guided by associate faculty, trios draw from experiences in case groups and video role-plays to help members identify characteristic ways of responding in difficult situations and design action experiments.  On the last morning each trio meets with a faculty member to create individual learning plans that extend beyond the Institute.

Personal coaching by senior faculty after the Institute. To develop mastery in reflecting in action, it is crucial to combine practice and high quality reflection on that practice over time. Two follow-up coaching sessions designed to support your ongoing learning are included in your tuition. These sessions will help you to continue your professional development using actual situations you encounter as case material. At the conclusion of the two sessions, you and your coach may decide to continue the coaching relationship at a fee to be negotiated at that time.
 

Who Should Attend

• Are changing organizations in ways that call for people to think and act in fundamentally new ways;
• Work with individuals and groups who have clashing perspectives;
• Are capable of reflecting rigorously on their own behavior in a challenging experiential learning environment.

Faculty

Associate faculty lead smaller breakout groups and Learning Trios.
 

Tuition

• Pre-program readings
• Hard copy and web access to lecture materials and notes
• Lunch each day
• Morning and afternoon refreshments
• Ongoing access to the Alumni Support Services in the Community section of this site

Accommodations

Located on the wooded campus of Babson College, the CEE is known for its quiet setting, excellent conference and recreational facilities, and superlative food.

Services for Institute graduates

Graduates may also make arrangements for coaching services following the workshop.

Click here to register