Open+Space+Technology

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=What Is Open Space Technology? =
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Open space technology was first developed by business consultant Harrison Owen in the 1980s (and covered in his book Open Space Technology: A Users’ Guide, 2008, 3rd ed.). It’s a method for running meetings of any size – from 20 upwards – and enables participants to reach firm and meaningful decisions. It works especially well in situations where more traditional methods frequently fail – that is, when the participants are obliged to consider and evaluate complex matters, where is a diversity of opinions and conflict between them and there are time constraints of reaching a decision.

Thus, Open Space Technology can be defined as a workshop design tool to use when situations include a diverse group of people who must deal with complex, and potentially conflicting material, in innovate and productive ways. With Open Space, people tend to be creative, synergistic and self-motivated. It is a facilitation method in which people can identify specific issues on a given topic, self-select into discussion groups, and work the issue with people also concerned with that issue.

=The Genesis of Open Space Technology=

Owen states that his ideas about open space technology drew out of his experiences of organising an international academic conference with 250 participants. This took him many months to organise, causing many frustrations and involving him in many conflicts with his colleagues. Yet, despite all of his efforts to organise an excellent conference, what the participants appeared to enjoy more than anything else were not the formal proceedings, but the coffee breaks and opportunities for them to socialise informally and to network. It was therefore the period of times in the conference agenda where the participants could decide for themselves what to discuss and how that were perceived by then as being the most enjoyable and most beneficial to them.

The conclusion that Owen drew from this experience was simple, but truly radical. Meetings and conferences ought to be organised like coffee breaks – this is, after all, where the real work gets done!

=Open Space Technology as Self-Organisation =

A coffee break is self-organised. In other words, the people drinking coffee around the table decide for themselves what they want to discuss, how and for how long. Nobody from outside that group is imposing an agenda on it and dictating what it should be doing.

Owen is committed to the philosophy that self-organisation can be an effective mode of coordination in so many different situations and he provides many convincing examples in his writings. Let me give you one example of effective self-organisation based on my own experiences. Every September for the last seven years my street in the central Bristol has held a street party. Other than a collective decision taken by my neighbours to hold the event, and the application to the Council to close the street, there is very little deliberate coordination involved. Yet every year the bunting goes up, the tables come out into the street, the kids play football, barbeques appear and the adults party into the night. It’s all self-organised and highly effectively.

Even though Open Space Technology has a lack of structure and is filled with surprises, it looks like it is somehow very organized. It is structured by the people that work in the discussion groups and because of that, people work in a structure that they like and feel comfortable in.

In many ways, Open Space Technology takes a similar approach to Collaborative Learning. All parties involved are, to an extent, equally responsible for the running of the lesson (or in this case the meeting) and the content. With such responsibility and flexibility, more can be gained and learnt with the hope that everyone will get involved and each benefit.

=Conditions for Open Space Technology to Work =
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Using the Open Space technology in the wrong situations might bring more issues than it actually solves. It is effective only when dealing with complex and possibly conflicting issues. In order the open space technology process to work, then those involved need to meet these five conditions:


 * 1) There needs to be a real issue
 * 2) It needs to be an issue that participants care about – there needs to be some passion involved
 * 3) It needs to be too complex for a single person to resolve – it needs input from a number of people
 * 4) It needs diverse skills to resolve it
 * 5) It needs to lead to action – participants need to realise that they can make a difference

=How Open Space Technology Works =


 * The process begins with a facilitator, who outlines the session’s purpose, how it might unfold and what the group might explore. Other than this, the facilitator has no further role.
 * Participants are then invited to identify topics. They then announce them to the group and post these topics on the wall. These topics are then the meeting’s agenda.
 * Participants then decide what topic they want to explore and form a group to do that. The person who originally proposed the topic acts as the convenor of that group, but other than that it is self-organising.
 * Participants can switch from group to group depending on their interests and motivations.

=The Rules of Open Space Technology =

Owen argues that this process needs to follow some very simple rules and one law. His four rules are:


 * 1) Whoever comes is the right people – people are there because they care about the topic and that’s enough – nobody is appointed to a group
 * 2) Whatever happens is the right thing – people are encouraged to focus on the moment, rather than consider ‘what-could-have-been’ and ‘what-might-happen’
 * 3) Whenever it starts is the right time – people are encouraged not to look at the clock and to attend to what is happening in that moment
 * 4) <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">When it’s over, it’s over – people shouldn’t waste their time and should accept that if something isn’t working, they should move on and do something else.

=<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">The Law of Open Space Technology =

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">There’s only one law – the law of two feet. If at any time you find yourself in a situation where you are neither learning nor contributing, use your two feet. Go to some other place where you may learn and contribute. In other words, don’t hang around and get bored – move on and find a more positive experience!

=<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Watch- Example of Open Space Technology =

[|Using Open Space Technology]

=Questions=

These are questions you might want to address when you reflect on open space technology and its uses:


 * 1) What are the weaknesses of open space technology - are there contexts where it is unlikely to help a group to reach a clear and rational decision?
 * 2) Why does it work? We usually assume that for something to work in needs direction, a hierarchy and management. But these are characteristics that open space technology lacks.
 * 3) Can open space technology be used in teaching and classrooms? Would this lead to more effective learning for students?
 * 4) Is there are problem with free riders in open space technology? A free rider is somebody who gains from a group's work, but makes no contribution to it.

=Further Reading=

[] [|Open Space World] - the main internet source on open space technology - informative and comprehensive [|Open Space Technology: A Users Guide] - here's the link to Harrison Owen's 2008 book