Three Theories for Interpreting Participatory Strategic Planning

Stuart A. Umpleby Research Program in Social and Organizational Learning The George Washington University Washington, DC 20052 [email protected]

The plan is nothing. Planning is everything. Group facilitation methods are a way of improving Dwight D. Eisenhower the performance of groups and organizations. Participatory Strategic Planning, which aids organizational adaptation, may be particularly helpful in Abstract the post-communist countries. In addition to dramatic changes in the political The post-communist countries are currently systems and the economies of the post-communist experiencing a difficult social, political and countries, universities are also being affected. The role of economic transition. Managers need to universities is particularly important, since they have the acquire new skills to operate in a market task of training people for the new society. Some of the economy and to manage more independent- trends causing change in higher education in all countries thinking employees. Group facilitation are listed in another paper in this volume. [Prytula and methods have proven to be effective in Umpleby, 2008] The paper by Ospanova and Kazbekova guiding new styles of management. The [2008] in this volume describes how participatory results of a participatory strategic planning planning is being used to help create a PhD program in exercise are described. It was conducted Almaty, Kazakhstan. with professors from post-communist countries. Finally, three theories are 2 Facilitation Methods suggested as ways of connecting group For several years the Research Program in Social and facilitation methods to a general theory of Organizational Learning at The George Washington management. University has hosted visiting professors from the post- communist countries under several State Department 1 Introduction programs. See www.gwu.edu/~rpsol/visitsch.html. While The post-communist countries are going through a long- the visiting scholars are on campus, they become familiar term process of changing their management practices. with the American literature in their fields, meet The previously unified USSR economy is now distributed colleagues with similar interests, write papers for among fifteen republics. The collapse of the USSR cut conferences, revise course syllabi, observe American business ties. The vertical structure was destroyed, but teaching methods and improve their English. We also the horizontal structure is still forming. The introduce them to group facilitation methods, because we “administrative mechanism” is being supplemented by a believe these methods will help them to become more “market mechanism” and a “legal mechanism.” The effective change agents when they return to their home economy is changing from a command structure to countries. choice. New management functions have been In the spring of 2005 a Participatory Strategic introduced, including public relations, marketing, and Planning activity was conducted with the visiting capital management. Within firms management methods scholars then at The George Washington University. The are changing from hierarchical relationships to more exercise was conducted both to practice this method of flexible methods including self-directed work teams. strategic planning and to guide a discussion of how the Training managers how to lead such teams is a scholars could act to improve their universities when they challenging task for management educators in the post- returned home at the end of the academic year. A series communist countries. of two hour meetings was held from January to March 2005. Two groups of people were involved in the weekly The second, “distance” group consisted of 91 Junior sessions. The first, “face-to-face” group consisted of Faculty Development Program (JFDP) scholars then in fifteen visiting scholars from the countries of the former the U.S. and about 100 alumni of the JFDP program at Soviet Union and Southeast Europe together with a few GWU. The second group received summaries of the face- George Washington University (GWU) faculty members. to-face discussions via email, and they were asked to JFDP fellows (and others) cooperate to make our contribute their ideas. universities more integrated in the global academic In the 2004 exercise described by Prytula in this community?" For the results of the planning activity see volume the meetings were held every two weeks. In the Figures 1-4. 2005 exercise described in this paper the meetings were For each of the discussions on vision, held each week. We received fewer responses from the contradictions, strategies, and actions, the overall Focus distance group in 2005 than in 2004. Holding meetings Question was the one formulated at the first meeting. For every two weeks provides more time for people in the the implementation timeline, we defined four quarters in distance group to be involved. the year 2005. During the first two quarters, the The method used to guide the discussions was participants were still at universities in the U.S. In the Participatory Strategic Planning (PSP). It is part of the second two quarters, they were at their home universities. Technology of Participation, a set of group facilitation Ideally, the planning process would be repeated each year methods developed by the Institute of Cultural Affairs on the home campuses of the participants. [Spencer, 1989; Umpleby, et al., 2003]. The method is The results of this planning exercise suggest several described in this volume in the article by Prytula. actions to work on in the coming years: improve The Participatory Strategic Planning exercise began interuniversity contacts, find new sources of financing, with an introductory conversation among the participants. promote faculty development, increase faculty oversight The goal of the first session was to define a Focus of university administration, improve university Question to provide direction to the planning process. infrastructure, and strengthen academic publishing. The Focus Question that was chosen was, “How can

Figure1. Practical Vision

High quality, Cooperation in Cooperation on Annual A more world Email lists Cooperative Expanded fund teaching publications and participatory progressive recognized and listserves programs raising research strategic planning mentality among programs meetings professors Organizing an Success of Frequent Parallel network Professional event for high graduates as email Cooperation Cooperation in within the endowment Exchanges of ranking prominent invitations to agreements publishing articles University (JFDP specialists are curricula and university political figures, local between in each other's alumni to work as employed on textbooks officials to business people, conferences universities academic journals a separate body at campus discuss academic etc. and forums the university) issues Maintaining the Many Regular skills of Exchange universities have Distance learning Research work More similar Answering participatory professors and programs for an Office of courses being between JFDP perceptions emails within planning events students professors and Research Support offered to our alumni and their among young and 24 hours in departments through students to help professors students and others mentors old professors and schools exchanges get grants Involvement of International Quality Informing Projects Higher tuition to older generation students from Distance learning Research among improvement each other involving more bring in more of professors in developed courses offered by JFDP fellows in the methods are about than one money for our meetings, to countries on our our professors same fields of study being used on publications university faculty salaries maintain their campuses many campuses support Networks among JFDP Our business Publications in fellows' Conferences and schools ranked A well-developed internationally Reduced home projects Participation in among other accreditation recognized journals tension between institutions organized by two various grant business system and participation in young and old to cooperate or more programs schools in the international professors on universities world conferences conferences and projects Joint publications Visiting New accrediting of JFDP More openness to professors are organizations participants in new ideas on campus overlapping fields World References to each recognition of other in our professors publications Unreliable, Insufficient Low quality of A closed mind to Political situation Government Fiscal mismanagement undeveloped information and academic research cooperation does not support interferes in infrastructure oversight cooperation education

Electricity Insufficient Different levels of Unwillingness to Political situation In some countries Free tuition at some sometimes does not faculty review of capability among cooperate within prevents desire to the government universities reduces work how university university professors and among cooperate requires courses student willingness to money is spent universities in “State pay tuition Ideology” Insufficient access Insufficient Focus on local not Don’t see a benefit Few incentives for Government Low tuition reduces to PCs and the measures of global social and in cooperation universities to policies restrain pressure from students internet faculty administrative systems improve education educational for quality education performance innovation Some classrooms Insufficient Lack of qualification No incentives for Many more Government University takes a large do not have accreditation (skills and recognition) cooperation students than prescribes the percentage of revenue blackboards or oversight of young and openings in content of courses for general overhead projectors progressive professors universities administration No PCs in many No tradition of Businessmen do not First time a little Demand for In some countries Not enough tuition is faculty offices faculty request and fund scared, innovation education exceeds the government being paid governance academic research inertia supply controls the evaluation system of students Insufficient Few contacts with Faculty focus on Many approvals Professors have low knowledge of local businesses that the basics of are necessary in salaries resources available could contribute earning income order to publish on the internet money/equipment an article Faculty have no time Lack of Few private The business model is for research Interdisciplinary universities unclear and does not theories stimulate revenue generation Insufficient language Specialization in Little competition skills academic fields among impedes universities collaboration Some leading professors do not know English

Figure 2. Underlying Contradictions

Improve inter- Find new sources Promote faculty self- Increase faculty Improve university Strengthen Support university of financing development oversight of infrastructure academic academic contacts university publishing freedom administration

Increase Search for Encourage faculty Give faculty more Improve office Create journals Privatize some participation in sponsors of members to develop independence in equipment (PCs, with double state partnership research programs themselves decision making internet, phones, blind review institutions programs fax, copiers) processes

Create special Increase contacts Improve reward system Give more decision Improve classroom Allow students Flow with the centers for with local business for international making power to the equipment to publish in current international people collaboration universities rather (blackboards, academic political collaboration than government overhead journals situation rather projectors, PC than oppose projectors) state policies

Create office to Cooperate with Create a faster Increase faculty manage businesses to do promotion system for involvement in the international research capable faculty budget process contacts members

Create inter- Establish a Improve language skills university university of faculty and students research endowment teams/networks Figure 3. Strategic Directions 1ST QUARTER 2ND QUARTER 3RD QUARTER 4TH QUARTER Strategic Directions

1. Improve interuniversity Email announcements/ Begin preparing an Establish a JFDP Alumni contacts invitations international conference network in home university, for 2006 – 2007 city and region

2. Find new sources of Exchange email with Write a grant proposal for a) Talk face-to-face with a) Finish and submit a grant proposal financing home university research at home home university President to Presidents to university. Discuss it with create a consultant position b) Talk with the dean and the chairman encourage creating a grant-makers in DC for writing grant proposals of the local business association about consultant position for creating a business research center on writing grant b) Start a seminar series to campus proposals respond to the needs of local academics and business people

3. Promote faculty self- Give a lecture series on Establish a free-of-charge English class development preparing grant applications and writing resumes and cover letters

4. Increase faculty oversight At home universities hold a a) Call a weekly faculty meeting (involve of university administration faculty retreat focused on both old and young faculty) oversight b) Consider splitting off schools from universities

5. Improve University a) Create an agreement with Teach a free-of-charge basic computer infrastructure businesses to teach their class through IREX employees about computers

b) Encourage faculty proposals for improving infrastructure

6. Strengthen academic Talk to University editor-in- Reprint and/or translate foreign articles publishing chief to consider articles from at home universities abroad

Figure 4. Implementation Timeline

3 Theoretical Interpretations application of epistemologies that emphasize the role of the observer. [von Foerster, 2003] Since the 1960s a wide variety of planning and Although widely used, group facilitation methods facilitation methods have been developed. [Ackoff, 1981; are usually not explained in terms of a theory. Three Mintzberg, et al., 1998; Chambers, 2002] These are part theories from cybernetics can aid in understanding the of a larger trend toward empowering people to make role of group facilitation methods in organizations. decisions. [Bebbington, et al., 2006] This trend has been possible both because of the more educated workforce 3.1 A Theory of Adaptation now available to organizations and because increasing participation has been found to be effective in improving The role of Participatory Strategic Planning (PSP) organizational performance. [Spencer, 1989] These in aiding the transitions in the post-communist countries trends are quite consistent with recent developments in can be explained using Ross Ashby’s theory of epistemology that emphasize the great variety of adaptation. [Ashby, 1952] PSP can be regarded as one interpretations that people can construct. [Maturana and example of process improvement methods. Process Varela, 1992; von Glasersfeld, 1995] Consequently, improvement methods are based on a distinction between working IN a process and working ON a process. An group facilitation methods, such as Participatory Strategic organization is envisioned as a collection of processes. Planning, can be thought of as a practical management [Walton, 1989] The people who work IN a process constitute the process improvement team. Work IN the Group facilitation methods define a set of process is the work they do each day to make the process interaction rules for an organization. They create an function. Work ON the process is the work they do when opportunity for people to practice more open they meet as a team to discuss how to improve the communication and decision-making behaviors. process. [Joiner, 1994] This conception of how to improve processes within an organization, and hence how 3.3 Reflexivity to improve the organization, is an example of Ashby’s theory of adaptive behavior. Reflexivity refers to the mutual influence between an Ashby showed that any system having two nested observer and the system observed. [Soros, 2006] In the feedback loops, one inside the other, would be able to natural sciences we assume that our theories do not alter display adaptive behavior. The inner feedback loop the phenomenon described. For example, we assume that operates frequently and makes small adjustments. The atoms did not change when theories of atomic structure outer feedback loop operates infrequently and initiates the changed. The same cannot be said of social systems. learning of a new pattern of behavior. When economic theories change, and people act on the Adaptation encompasses learning. Learning can be new theories, the behavior of an economic system defined as a change in behavior in the direction of changes. In social systems, particularly organizations, improvement. To learn means to acquire a pattern of there is an interaction between cognition and behavior that is suitable for a particular environment. participation. However, when the environment changes, the pattern of Reflexivity is a particularly difficult problem to behavior may need to change. A system that can change cope with because it creates uncertainty. If describing a its behavior when the environment changes is said to be social system and acting on the description changes the adaptive. The changes in the post-communist countries system, one is dealing with a moving target. One are requiring adaptation by people and institutions at all approach has been to focus attention on the importance of levels. methods in addition to theories. Whereas theories are descriptive, methods tell managers how to act. [Umpleby, 3.2 Self-Organizing Systems 2002] Creating methods rather than theories is a way to include the observer in what is observed. Historically Ashby’s conception of self-organizing systems provides a scientists have sought to remove the observer from the general theory for organization studies. Ashby defines a observed. Their goal was to create theories that were self-organizing system as consisting of interacting independent of the person conducting the experiment. But elements whose behavior does not change during a period for reflexive phenomena, including the observer within of observation. He states the principle of self- the observed yields a conception of science as a social organization as follows: every isolated, determinate, activity involving mutual influence and experimentation dynamic system obeying unchanging laws will develop and the construction of successive descriptions. organisms that are adapted to their environments. [Ashby, [Umpleby, 2005] Conducting a Participatory Strategic 1962] This principle is a more general statement of Planning activity about every year or six months leads to learning theory, Darwin’s theory of natural selection, and successive descriptions of what a group of people is the basic concept underlying incentive systems whether trying to achieve and the means they feel will be most in organizations or in government regulations. effective. When a manager creates an incentive, such as a sales commission, the manager assumes that salesmen 4 Conclusions will strive to achieve the reward. In terms of Ashby’s The benefits of group facilitation methods are that they theory a new set of interaction rules has been defined and the people in the organization change their behavior result in strategies, solutions or action plans. Participation accordingly. Similarly, if the government wants to reduce leads to greater commitment and increases the likelihood energy consumption, it can create a tax deduction for that decisions will be implemented. Involving people expenditures intended to reduce energy consumption, for from outside as well as inside the organization generates example by adding insulation in an attic or installing a larger set of ideas and brings more experience to bear. storm windows. Each homeowner or business can decide Participatory Strategic Planning can help where the energy savings would be greatest relative to universities improve their performance and become more cost. The government’s purpose – reducing energy involved with other universities both at home and abroad. consumption – is achieved not by directing people to These methods can be particularly helpful for universities make particular changes but rather by creating an in transitional societies, since they stimulate local incentive for people to change. The principle of self- initiative and improve accountability. In addition to organization leads to a general design rule: in order to improving the performance of universities, group modify any object, organism, or organization, expose it to facilitation methods, if included in the curriculum, would an environment such that the interaction between the prepare students to manage organizations with an object and its environment moves the object in the important new set of skills. direction you want it to go. Several of the visiting scholars have used these methods at their universities after they returned home. [Umpleby, et al., 2003] A few have used the methods to begin a consulting practice in addition to their university [Ospanova and Kazbekova, 2008] Zhaukhar Ospanova work. The three theories described in section 3 provide a and Zhanat Kazbekova: How Group Facilitation Methods way of connecting Participatory Strategic Planning with are being used in Building a PhD Program in Almaty, other examples of adaptation, self-organization, and Kazakhstan. In Robert Trappl, editor. Cybernetics and reflexivity. Systems ’08. Austrian Society for Cybernetic Studies, 2008. Acknowledgements [Prytula and Umpleby, 2008] Yaroslav Prytula and Stuart Otabek Hasanov, a visiting scholar at GWU from Umpleby: Improving the Performance of Universities in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, originally prepared Tables 1 to 4. Transitional Economies. In Robert Trappl, editor. Walter Sandi and Afrora Striniqi helped with formatting Cybernetics and Systems ’08, Austrian Society for the paper. Cybernetic Studies, 2008.

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Published in Robert Trappl (ed.) Cybernetics and Systems ’08, Vienna: Austrian Society for Cybernetic Studies, 2008.