MPI Toronto Chapter Blog

Changes...

At the ASAE 2009 Conference in Toronto I heard Gary Hamel (http://www.garyhamel.com/) speak at the opening general session where he shared some best practices for management and business/organizational structure. To quote Hamel - "how do you thrive in a world that is shaken rather than stirred."  As we all know (and experience on a daily basis), the pace of change today is the fastest that it has ever been in history. The traditional change management model is flawed - it is reactive and often by the time change is being implemented it is too late or in response to a crisis. So how do we change the way we change? According to Hamel, becoming more adaptable involves four steps.

Get over denial. We need to start treating our beliefs as a hypothesis. Listen to the dissidents within our organizations. Challenge industry dogma. The longer we deny there is a need for change, the more expensive adaptation will become.

Create options for renewal. The case for change needs to be better than the case for the status quo.But to get to these ideas, individuals need to be able to express them and organizations need to be able to capture those ideas, and spend a  lot of time diverging before they converge on the idea(s) they will move forward with.

Realign talent and capital. We need to get better at moving resources to support new ideas. If we want to be truly innovative, we need to allow people time to do this and provide the resources to support new idea development.

Change your management principles.How do we build an adaptable/innovative organization? How do we create a workplace that inspires people to bring their best? We need to reinvent the management structures within our organizations. Creating workplaces that inspire people to bring their best.

If you were at the session and heard Gary Hamel speak, or if you have heard him before - let us know what you think about these ideas. Or if you are working in an organization that is adapting and thriving, share how. I look forward to your comments.

Nikki

Canadian Meetings Industry Coalition

Earlier this week, a group of meetings industry professionals met to discuss how we can work together  to elevate the profile of the industry. As industry insiders, we understand the economic value of meetings and events, however those outside of our industry often fail to recognize their importance.

The meeting, to which all industry associations were invited to participate, lay the foundation for future meetings and activities. Doug Bolger, L(earn)2 facilitated the discussion and is encouraging feedback from the industry at large via the MPI Toronto's LinkedIn Group.

If you wish to add to the conversation, join the discussion on LinkedIn http://www.linkedin.com/groupAnswers?viewQuestions=&gid=1888685&forumID=3&sik=1243627403094

Watch for updates on the Coalition and planned activities in the near future.

Nikki

Connecting the Dots to Your Future

On Thursday February 5, those of you who were at MPI Toronto Chapter's Monthly Meeting know that Joan Eisenstodt's presentation sparked some lively conversation. Whether you think that the economic downturn spells disaster for the industry, or if you see this as an opportunity - your opinion is relevant and we need to hear from you on this issue.

There is a conversation going on at MPI Toronto's GroupSpace that was started as a follow up to Thursday's meeting. If you have an opinion - whether glass half full or half empty - I encourage you to join in this conversation.

http://www.mpiweb.org/cms/mpiweb/community/CommBoards.aspx?TopicId=4539

A salient point that comes out of this economic downturn is the reminder that we are all in this together.

Nikki

One List To Hang On the Wall

I don't know about you, but I make lists - things to do, books to read, movies to see, quotes I like, places I want to go. I try to review these lists periodically to see how my progress is coming along. That is not too say that everything I do is on a list to begin with - but the long term stuff makes it on. You know, thinks like you've always meant to read Thoreau's Walden but have never found the time... or watching The Godfather Part I and II back to back.

Making lists helps you see progress, it also helps you see change. Sometimes when I review a list I wonder what was I thinking... and so things come off the list and other things get added.

In part of my list review, I came across another list that I had stored in my list file, a list of 10 great words. The article that these words are from is by Jim Carroll, his article talks about adopting ten simple words to get you into the right frame of mind to take positive steps to manage change. The ten great words for innovation are:

1. Observe
2. Think
3. Change
4. Dare
5. Banish
6. Try
7. Empower
8. Question
9. Grow
10. Do

Regardless of the situation, these words have powerful meanings. This past weekend the MPI Toronto Chapter Board held their annual mid-year retreat. The MPI Toronto Chapter Board put these words in to action in dissecting the Chapter's progress, challenging our assumptions and realigning goals and activities for the rest of the year. As 2009 kicks off it is a great time for each of us to look at our businesses, our lives, our careers, whatever it is we need to examine. 

To read the whole article by Jim Carroll, visit http://www.jimcarroll.com/10s/10words.htm

Nikki

Traditions

With Thanksgiving around the corner it's time to dust off the family recipe book for the turkey and stuffing recipe your grandmother used to make. Traditions are essentially a way of transferring knowledge from one group of people to the next, and they exist within our cultures, families, workplaces... we are surrounded by tradition when you think about it. 

A couple of years ago we started hosting Thanksgiving Dinner... this was a big step. No longer was it the children going to the parents, we now had everyone coming to us. And I will admit that first year was stressful... I needed to be sure that the traditions of the family were followed for dinner - that the traditional recipes (especially the stuffing) were incorporated into the meal. Fortunately, we managed to pull it off and now Thanksgiving has a new tradition of two families meeting at our home for dinner.

Last year I abandoned the stuffing recipe - a brave step indeed. Everyone LOVED the new stuffing - said it was better than the family recipe. If I had dropped the recipe in the first year I don't think the reaction would have been the same. Small steps are sometimes needed to make change. People need to get comfortable with the idea that change can be a good thing. Traditions evolve. New knowledge is shared.   

Happy Thanksgiving!

Nikki