493 Search Results for networks

The Networks Revolution

May 20, 2015 – Those who see networks as a fad likely see them only as a tactic, as opposed to a fundamental way of being. Not long ago, Scientific American published a guest blog looking at the revolution in human thought that is being... Read More

Networks for Change: Full Benefit Accounting

May 13, 2015 – “Out on the edge you see all the kinds of things you can’t see from the center.” ~Kurt Vonnegut Last week while having a discussion with a group about food system economics, I was reminded that the word “externalities” does... Read More

“Mapping” Questions to Enrich Networks

May 7, 2015 – A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to facilitate some of Farm to Institution New England‘s (or FINE’s) Summit at UMass-Amherst. Specifically I was asked to offer a bit of thinking, a few prompts and guide conversation here and there around the potential... Read More

Networks, Collective Impact and the Place of Expertise

April 8, 2015 – “Too many of us … feel pressure to be experts. But the most valuable thing you can do is to express vulnerability, to listen to people working things out.” – John Hagel “Expertise” is one of those concepts that seems to... Read More

Networks: Balancing Acts for … Life

March 20, 2015 – I have had many conversations recently about network form and transition, all of which have me thinking of what we often talk about in our practice at IISC: balancing acts. The core approach that informs our work in the world... Read More

Developing Potential Through Networks

March 12, 2015 – “We add value to society-at-large when we dare to connect.” – Gibran Rivera This week I was in a conversation with someone who asked me what the difference is between “networking” and “network building.” I’ve been asked this before, and... Read More

Why Equitable Networks?

October 21, 2014 – Readers of this blog know how much promise we at IISC see in networks to bring about greater depth and breadth of change in our country and communities. At the same time, we do not see networks as a panacea.... Read More

Networks, Sensing and Surface Area

October 8, 2014 – In recent work with a couple of different leadership development programs, I shared a few stories about organizations that failed to recognize the value of informal networks within and beyond their formal boundaries by choosing to see themselves primarily through... Read More

How Networks Can Change Systems

October 2, 2014 – At this point a couple of networks with which I am working have reached or are reaching the three year mark in their formalized existence. By many accounts, this is a milestone and inflection point worth noting, as these initiatives have... Read More

Networks as Responsible Structures

July 23, 2014 – There is growing awareness that current organizational structures can breed irresponsibility.  That is, arrangements are created where people are less able to be responsive in helpful ways.  This happens, for example, when accountability is bottlenecked in hierarchies and decision-making is... Read More

Nurture Networks

July 18, 2014 – We partnered with a foundation as they built a network of leaders who shared a deep passion for their city. In the beginning, many of the leaders wanted to do something together quickly. We encouraged them to pause, build deeper... Read More

Networks: A Love Story

July 8, 2014 – Over the past 8 years at IISC I have seen and experienced some interesting progressions. When I first joined the organization, in our Facilitative Leadership trainings, we talked about the “interior condition” of effective collaborative leaders. At the core we... Read More