TEAM

What went well

• Pods went well – structure helped, color coded post it notes, intent of having a dialogue.  Last session use stickers to identify connections.
• Don’t ask pod members to create categories/themes rather ask them to make a connection to something I was thinking about. Find 4 things that connect.
• Both speakers made great connections to opening session and CM theme

Things to consider changing

• Read or say it to the group. Discuss first then post.

Feedback at the end of day 2

What went well

• Tim made explicit connections to Timo’s work. Maybe try to set this up as a “normal” task for the speaker.
• Dialing back the expectations not to do thematic clustering but connections
• Not to have last pad time after the so now what.
• Lots of new people and they incorporated into the community well.
• Making the 3d session in April more concrete.
• Having a tighter containment in the space worked and increase energy.

What would do differently

• In the last pad which focused on the top 10, there were people from different pads and there was a bit lost because they were making references to the ideas from the pad.  Should the last cafe take place in pads.
• When new people come to LILA make sure they know about LILA more.
• When people leave, attend to taking away the chairs so the space doesn’t feel empty.

MEMBER

Joel:  Army.  One suggestion for future sessions, there was not a great deal of ethnic diversity in the group.  I know that is often hard to achieve and may have been particular to this session, but I took to heart your request for feedback.  Thank you and your team again for the enriching opportunity and opportunity to collaborate with a very interesting and eclectic group.  Everything from the support staff, to the speakers, to the food was fantastic.  I appreciate the opportunity to participate.

Steve (Visa)

• What did you of find most interesting?  Because of the pace of change and business at my work, it is rare that we actually make time to step back and look at things more holistically.  We are so focused on ‘doing’, and on meeting target dates, that we don’t always evaluate the way in which we are working.  That’s why the concept of collective mindfulness, of making sure we avoid organizational autopilot, was very intriguing and appealing to me as a general theme.  The sub-topic around emotions in the workplace was also extremely interesting—looking at emotions not as annoyances or unprofessional, but as valid signals/input into our planning, processes, and organizational culture.

• What feedback do you have about the ways in which we support your learning including:
  • The briefing document:  how did the brief help you prepare for the gathering?  The brief was EXCELLENT.  This was my first time attending a LILA gathering, but after reading the brief beforehand and taking some quick notes, I felt very prepared as the discussions began at the gathering.
  • Stickers of the graphic images:  is it important to have them at the end of the gathering?   Are these the post-its that we used to post our puzzles, actions, etc.?  Or is this something else?  I am not clicking with what these are, not sure if I used these (unless I am totally spacing what these are).  Sorry!
  • Large group presentations by invited faculty:  what specific ideas were intriguing? Loved the case studies that demonstrated successes and failures resulting from how emotions were handled in organizations.  Was particularly intrigued by the case study of the consulting firm that managed their own emotions to give a feeling of self-confidence… what seemed like a recipe for failure actually looked like it worked well for their culture.  Both speakers were extremely engaging!

• • Small group discussion groups  I am a bit introverted, but I found the discussion groups extremely interesting.  Everyone was great at asking for input, perspectives, etc.  I found myself contributing more in terms of discussion than I normally might.  Great job by the LILA staff at facilitating and encouraging thought-sharing and discussions at every stage!
  • Learning round
  • Networking opportunities  Again, being introverted, I don’t find networking to be a particular strength of mine, but the earnestness with which people approached the gathering made it very easy to meet and make new contacts.  I came away with several contacts with whom I very much hope to remain in touch!
  • LILA pads I liked having the small table group to discuss things with initially, before opening up to the larger group.  Allowed for a less daunting way to share thoughts and ideas initially, and also spurred questions and thoughts as I listened to my ‘pad-mates’ share their perspectives.
• What specific idea from the gathering are you hoping to experiment with in your organization?  I definitely want to share with our leaders the importance of seeing emotions not as ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ or unprofessional responses, but rather as important data input to consider (just as we consider elements like budget, timeframes, etc.) when making business decisions and planning.  Also, encouraging the exploration of emotional responses as a first step toward uncovering underlying causes that could be important considerations for the organization.

• What would you suggest we consider changing when designing future gatherings?  I really can’t come up with anything I would change.  I loved being able to walk to/from the meeting location.

Teresa

• What did you of find most interesting?

Both presenters had new material that I had not been exposed to and of particular interest was Tim’s session on infusing, sustaining and replenishing compassion in organizations. I reflected deeply on the question “how do we create space for more compassion>”

• What feedback do you have about the ways in which we support your learning including:
  • The briefing document:  how did the brief help you prepare for the gathering?  It grounded me in thought and was a great foundation in which to listen to Timo and Tim.
  • Stickers of the graphic images:  is it important to have them at the end of the gathering? Always helpful to have as I reflected on them during the plane ride home.
  • Large group presentations by invited faculty:  what specific ideas were intriguing?Tim’s Mindful organizing and thinking about the framework: enabling, enacting and elaborating.  And Timo’s insights on protective practices and proactive shame avoidance.

• • Small group discussion groups Always helpful to reflect and make meaning.
  • Learning round This was an experiment to try something different—the content did not grab me as much as observing others and myself in this dialogue.
  • Networking opportunities JOY
  • LILA pads I think we have really caused something good here—connecting to a group throughout and weaving thoughts was very helpful—Michele was an activator and it was helpful to have her presence.  Without her leadership, we might have floundered a bit and it may be important in the future to have the directions for what the outcomes specifically stated.   I found the LILA pads to be mini group sessions.
• What specific idea from the gathering are you hoping to experiment with in your organization?  I am going to use the two frameworks of Tim’s to provide reflection to my colleagues on infusing, replenishing and sustaining and enabling, enacting and elaborating—my City Manager thinks in models and these two will help me share the insights gained and provide a way to consider where we are at the City.

• What would you suggest we consider changing when designing future gatherings? I encourage us particularly with next year’s themes to share learnings from each session and what has happened at a few organizations—it does not need to be major but how has something shifted personally or organizationally.  Making learning conscious seems relevant.

Ken R from ParExel

• What did you of find most interesting?   The guest speaker’s case studies/presentations.

• What feedback do you have about the ways in which we support your learning including:
  • The briefing document:  how did the brief help you prepare for the gathering?
  • Stickers of the graphic images:  is it important to have them at the end of the gathering?   Yes – I think the graphic depictions of the presentations are a great idea and useful as a reminder of what was discussed.  I have used them already to share some of the key points covered.

Suggestion – For the graphics, it might be helpful to have the day/date included on the charts/sticker.

• • Learning round                                                I thought the small/large group discussions helped reinforce the key/main messages.  I think the challenge was trying to connect and apply the messages to each member’s personal experience – a greater focus on application.
• What specific idea from the gathering are you hoping to experiment with in your organization?
  • • “Code Lavender”… a potential HR Business Partner strategy and practice
    • Connection between High Reliability and Emotional Exhaustion (Clinical Studies)
    • Use of a graphic illustrator in high profile sessions

• What would you suggest we consider changing when designing future gatherings?
  • • Provide a list of participants and background to those attending.
    • As noted above, day and dates on the graphic charts.
    • Having participants share in the sessions how what they heard from the guest speakers applies to their work situation.  This may trigger ideas in others.

Michael Noonan

Lila was really thought provoking as usual and I really enjoyed my time, so thank you to you and the team.

One comment I would make is around the LILA Pads. These work really well I think, but I would prefer not to sit in the pads for the whole time with the same people. There is nothing wrong with it, but I think how it was done in October and the first day in February works better where you can sit with anybody during the day and then move into your pads later for deliberate sessions. I feel that this exposes you to more thinking and more ideas and increases the ‘community’ aspect of the event.

Ben

I thought the briefing was great. I always find myself looking for even more and end up tracking down and reading the top 4 or 5 most highly cited papers from the speakers in advance. This helps me get a stronger context for the arc of their work. I’m not sure everyone would be interested in reading this much in advance, but it helps me.

I think the LILA pads are really working. Having a stable, small group to process with is really helpful because you can build on other’s ideas and have more of a chance to share your own. I like having a facilitator in the group too because this keeps us on track. I would keep this going.

The large group presentations are great. I was talking with David and he shared with me his framework for taking notes (Definition: what is the idea, Value: why does it matter, Understanding: how does it work, Application: how might I apply it) that I think might be helpful for the speakers to have this in mind so they are hitting each of these important points to the right extent. Tim Vogus spent a great deal of time talking about HRO and why they matter and one slide on questions you can ask to become a HRO. The application could have been a much bigger part of his presentation and the value could have been a smaller part. I thought Timo’s case studies were really powerful because I could see the way that my organization was doing the same thing… which raised my fear in a way that is helpful! The speaker selection was great!

I really like the learning round because I feel like it is a chance to both apply what we are learning and help a fellow LILA community member.

Networking was great. I wonder if a private group on Linkedin would be a way of extending the the networking for alumni, but you already have a site which might be deluded by this move. A linkedIn group might be a good way to advertise LILA.

Overall, I consider LILA an unparalleled, ultra-premium learning experience. Making progress from this point might be hard because there is so much to preserve that is really working.