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Dialogue
Think
about the average business meeting that you have attended.
Was it an enjoyable experience? Did it lead to productive
results, with shared understanding? Were individuals and
the organization clearly better off as a result of
it?
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Mostly
likely, the answers to these questions are negative. Sadly, most
of us dread meetings as a waste of our time. The idea that a
business meeting could be a positive experience seems almost as
ludicrous as a Dilbert cartoon.
Dialogue
was invented as a way to remedy this situation. Basically, the
idea behind it is to have groups use guidelines for conversation -
rules, if one wants to think it of that way. People agree to
examine assumptions, to suspend judgment, and to act in other
ways that foster deeper and clearer communication.
In
his Process Consultation Revisited, the tenth chapter of
which constitutes a classical text on this subject, Edgar
Schein says, “Dialogue makes it possible not only
to create a climate for more interpersonal learning, but also
may be the only way to resolve interpersonal conflict when such
conflict derives from differing tacit assumptions and different
semantic definitions.” The situation that he describes -
people with diverse backgrounds and approaches that make collective
understanding and agreement almost impossible - is exactly that of most
organizations!
If
dialogue sounds like a simple concept, remember that the
simplest things are often the hardest to do. In the beginning
dialogue doesn't come naturally, and it usually takes good
facilitation and a committed group to reach the level of
conversation that it makes possible. Even so, any increase in
the dialogic nature of business communication can pay notable
dividends.
The
experience of dialogue is enriching; it is understandable that
the best book on this topic is called The Magic of Dialogue.
Practicing dialogue can indeed transform an individual or an
organization. But its practical benefits should not be overlooked. Here are some useful aims for your organization
for which we would recommend this tool:
 In the current post September 11 crisis there is an
urgent need for organizations to offer forums for employees
to discuss how they are feeling and how their work is being
impacted. No one can
work well if they not feeling well, and indeed employers have an
obligation to promote the well being of their associates.
Authentic communication of the sort that dialogue creates is
exactly what is needed so that management can know what will make
people feel safe and be able to work well. Nor is there any more
effective mechanism for developing good morale than sharing
feelings and beliefs.
High performance teams are a requisite form of organization.
But teams do not work just because someone sets them up and
gives them a goal. As the leading authorities on this subject (Katzenbach
and Smith, The
Wisdom of Teams) point out, teams work well only when
they feel a shared purpose. Dialogic communication
is an essential way for such sharing to occur.
These days every organization needs new ideas and new
ways of looking at things. The information explosion, globalization,
diversity, and related trends have made business as usual - and
looking at things as usual - obsolete. Inasmuch as dialogue is
the most powerful mechanism for opening up possibilities and
creating new visions, it is a tool of preference for obtaining
the abilities and spirit needed to innovate and change in the
twenty-first century.
There are methods of whole scale change (such as the balanced
scorecard or search conferences) that can powerfully transform an
organization for the better. In dealing with one specific part
of an organization, however, dialogue may be
the most efficacious means of improvement. Indeed, given the
fact that it really costs nothing, dialogue may dollar for dollar
be the best bet for promoting a 21st century organizational
environment. We are such strong believers in this product that
we almost give it away free!
Some good references on dialogue and what it can do for you are
as follows:
·
Linda
Ellinor and Glenna Gerard,
Dialogue:
Rediscover the Transforming Power of Conversation,
1998
·
David
Yankelovich, The
Magic of Dialogue,
1999
·
William
Isaacs,
Dialogue and the Art of Thinking Together, 1999
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