Living democracy

I wonder how many of us really think much about the quality of the democracy we live in? 


When compared with what we have witnessed across the Middle East, our political arrangements look incredibly benign. Complacency or frank disinterest would be the response of many in this country to debates about the quality of our democracy.


For instance, how many of us have rushed out to read and respond to the Boundary Commission review of constituency boundaries? What are the implications of having fewer MPs representing more of us? 


Are these proposals a good move to strengthen democracy or about saving money by having fewer MPs, or a conspiracy to skew the constituencies in order to increase the chance that a particular party remains in power. 


To my shame, I cannot give an informed response to this issue - and I would say that I am interested and informed about UK politics and democracy! 


On the other hand, the recession is prompting debates about how we organise local and global finances (the Occupy movement); the Health Bill's seeming threat to the NHS has galvanised tens of thousands to debate, march and sign petitions; public service cutbacks are forcing us as a country to weigh up whether public services are the villains some politicians would have us believe. 


All these jumbling thoughts were prompted by an email from a friend at the week-end confirming that he had handed in his resignation from a job that he loves.



He is a senior public servant of long years standing and lives in a country that is openly proud of its democratic credentials and history.


Over the last couple of years, he has become deeply concerned about the 'systematic and methodical' action being taken by corporations and political extremists that have started to do real damage in communities and wider society. From his particular position in the public sector, he has had to deal with the fallout. He has become so alarmed that he feels he can no longer remain in a public position where he is unable effectively to challenge and resist - hence his resignation


Even in an allegedly mature democracy, standing up to challenge powerful interests is still not for the faint-hearted. My friend has not been put off by the thought that he is one man. His soundings and early actions have uncovered others who share the concerns. With his deep understanding of communities and a track record of building citizen participation, he will certainly create a force to be reckoned with.


I am reminded of Margaret Mead's now famous words:


“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” 

Play, Creativity and Impact

Are you and your colleagues or employees fully engaged at work? Are you continually in a position where you have the right challenges that employ your skills, stretch them and cause you to want to develop further? Are there creative opportunities for you to contribute and develop ideas or innovations? If the answer is no, you might find this illuminating.


If you are an employer and are not sure how to maximise the potential of your employees then here is a video that might give some food for thought.
With thanks to 99% - Behance.

The enterprising path to peace?

Stef Wertheimer

Next month I am going on pilgrimage to the Holy Land to visit the sites associated with the life and ministry of Jesus. What though of contemporary sites of hope and vision for peace in the places that I will visit?

This week-end, thinking about this, I realised that I did know of one. When studying with David Cooperrider, co-originator of Appreciative Inquiry, he was explaining to us the concept of 'appreciative intelligence', the ability to see 'the mighty oak in the acorn'.  To illustrate this he told us the story of Stef Wertheimer.

David had been giving a lecture at the Arison School of Management in Israel. He raised questions of where peace was to come from. From the military? From governments? From religious leaders? All he felt were unlikely. He argued that the world of business could be 'the most important ground and force for peace'. Though at that point he said hadn't any examples to back up his thesis!

After the lecture, David was approached by a businessman, Stef Wertheimer, who invited him to go the next day to see this thesis in action. 

On a once barren hilltop, Wertheimer has created the Tefen industrial park surrounded by beautiful homes and neighbourhoods. As well making money, attention is paid to the social, educational and cultural life of the community that lives there. Wertheimer describes it as a 'capitalist kibbutz'. David told us:  'The whole park is based on the principle of co-existence, Arab and Jewish living together, going into business together, building schools and museums together, and dramatically transforming entrenched conflicts into collaborative energies for economic empowerment, development and peace'. 


Three more industrial parks have been set up in Israel and work is well underway to develop these parks in Turkey and Jordan as well. The Palestinian Authority are positively disposed though plans to develop sites there have had to be put on hold for the moment. The fuller story is told in 'The Tefen Model Book' and can be found at: 
http://www.omuseums.org.il/data//The_Tefen_Model_Book.pdf

In the book Stef Wertheimer gives his thinking behind the inspiration: 'Our survival in this region depends, ultimately, on the resolution of current conflicts. Alongside the security issues there must, however, be a road map for economic development, for industrialization, for job creation and for export production. Only by increasing the income levels of all countries in the region, will we begin to reduce the immense friction of disparities between neighboring countries and between the Middle East and the developed nations. While the Middle East produces 60% of the world's oil, it manufactures just 2% of the world's goods. With high levels of unemployment in the Arab countries and a rapidly increasing young population, there is a desperate need to generate meaningful employment opportunities and the hope for a better future.

For me, the term “Middle East” has no real meaning. Rather, I see two areas separated by their ownership of oil resources, whereby those of us without oil are the eastern Mediterranean countries that formed the old “Levant”. Among the “non-oil” countries are those that would choose to compete on world markets and seek economic independence such as Jordan, Turkey, Israel and, potentially, Lebanon and the Palestinian Authority. Successful advancement along this path can lead the countries of our region towards the creation of a thriving economy, towards a work ethic based on reason and responsibility and towards the achievement of peaceful coexistence between like-minded neighbors.

Recent history in other regions of the world has shown that the deep-rooted conflicts of the past can be overcome by investing in the creation of a prosperous future. We can learn much from the success stories of European integration through the development of joint economic interests and of the achievement of economic prosperity through the development of export markets in countries such as Singapore, Ireland and South Korea. These models must be copied by those of us who choose economic and social freedom and peace - those who embrace the goal of being part of the European economy and of the free world.'

Perhaps the Tefen Model, as well as a vital path to peace, has something else to show us. 


The growing wave of protest about the austerity we are all having to embrace because of the misdeeds of financiers, signals a growing desire for more responsible ways to create wealth. Does the Tefen Model of collaborative enterprise, where profit is created and some of it invested in the  development of quality, healthy communities, show us a more humane version of wealth creation?

Values and standards - why Ward Sisters matter

The news reports about the Care Quality Commission findings on the care of elderly patients made for grim listening this morning. Their conclusions about what made the difference between good and poor practice identified the quality of leadership and staff attitudes, rather than resources.


It reminded me of a time in my life when I worked with vulnerable, elderly people as nursing assistant for six months. It was 1973, I was nineteen and taking a gap year from my social work degree. My experience chimes with the CQC's conclusion about the importance of leadership.


The Lancaster Moor Hospital was then a 2000 bed psychiatric hospital, almost a small town in its own right with shops and a Post Office.  Over the years my family were involved in the hospital, at times as staff (my Nan and Mum) and sometimes as patients (Great-grandparents and two Aunts).


It had dozens of wards. At the far end of the hospital were the 'back wards' and it was to one of these that I was sent.


Ward 22  had been newly re-furbished and rather daringly, the male and female wards shared a common day room. The patients were elderly men and women with severe dementia conditions.


Presiding over the wards was the senior Ward Sister. A tall imposing presence, immaculate and with a scathing way with words for the young and thoughtless. The first part of her working life had been in the mills and she had that brilliant ability to lip read and to enunciate her words with her lips so clearly that everyone could lipread what she was saying from a distance of twenty yards. She did not need to shout.


The end of my first day saw me walking home in tears. How was I ever going to cope with people in such a complete state of mental and physical disintegration? How was I going to cope with all the shit and urine without vomiting every day?


By the end of the week I was an old hand, able to change filthy bedding in the early morning, wash the excrement off the ladies, wash hands thoroughly, feed them breakfast and then sit down to enjoy my own breakfast break without a qualm.


So what wrought the transformation? Without doubt a growing appreciation on my part of the uncompromising values of that Ward Sister about how the women patients were to be cared for. All patients were to be treated with dignity. With such good standards expected as a norm, I was also given the background of each patient, so that I was able imagine their past and look for signs of it in the present. As a result, what had at first seemed irksome and distressing, became part of a satisfying sense of achievement.


Key practical arrangements that I remember:
- at mealtimes, every member of staff, including the Sister and Charge Nurse, helped to feed those that needed such help;
- the atmosphere was kept cheerful and light, we bantered, sang and even danced with patients;
- it was seen as important that we had time to sit and talk with people, listening to stories of their past and a daily routine was established that allowed this;

- no-one was to be 'toileted' in the dayroom in front of the other patients. If there were any 'accidents' in the day room, portable screens were to be erected around the person;
- teeth did not remain in jars at the side of the patients' bed!

It would have been so easy for high standards never to have been established on those 'back wards'. Doctors rarely came except when there were acute episodes, nor were there many visitors. But the staff on the wards were proud of their work, there was an excellent spirit and good relationships between the staff on that ward. 


My mum was the first Volunteer Co-ordinator appointed by the hospital. She remembers that a formal, measured quality of care across the hospital was established later that decade. One initiative that emerged from that was the recruiting of volunteers to come in to help with feeding patients. 


I wonder what sense of professional satisfaction is being felt by those nurses whose wards came out badly in the CQC report today? What has caused them to lose sight of the values that motivated them to come into nursing in the first place? I hope someone is going to provide them with a proper opportunity to design the right kind of care for their patients. Care that is worthy of their profession and most importantly worthy of the people they serve.

Parents and business - more than just helicopters?

This week I am helping out at my son's business. 


Tom is enjoying his honeymoon and his business partner is spending time with his brand new baby son. A double set of joys and testing for a small business.

In the spaces between managing the phone calls, I am struck by how much I am enjoying this glimpse of what Tom and Graham have created. It sheds new light on the man that our son has become.


Musing on this I realised that I have been given similar glimpses of my daughter in her professional role in PR in London. 


The first glimpse came when she and I were enjoying a gin and tonic on the South Bank. She was hailed by a group of people from one of the national arts organisations. One of them detached himself from the group to come and talk to her. I listened in as they engaged in banter and work talk. Latterly I had a meeting with Libby's boss, as it transpired we had similar interests in creative methods for organisational development.


We have 'Take your daughter and son to work day', so maybe 'Take your parents to work' is a logical follow on. It turns out this is not a new idea. 


There is a Facebook page trying to set this up. Others have run it as a one off idea, as a Wall Street Journal blog shows: http://blogs.wsj.com/juggle/2007/10/19/should-you-take-your-parents-to-work/.


Some recruiters and companies with graduate schemes are choosing to deal with the phenomenon of 'helicopter parents' by providing information packs (Enterprise Rent-a-Car) or even meeting them. Attracting the right talent is important to them and they recognise the influence that parents can have on their children's decision-making (www.prospects.net).


Employees' parents provide other untapped or unseen support for businesses: 


- parents, and their friends, are potential clients and customers;
- they are the ones ensuring that members of the workforce can still turn up for work when their children are ill or have school holidays;
- they play a key role to helping ensure members of the workforce are fit for work when their personal life is tough;
- they sometimes provide a sounding board or act as an advisor to their children about their work situations.


Any other examples of this potential being exploited by businesses?

Surprised by joy

Our daughter's wedding

This last Saturday our son Tom married his lovely fiancee, Katy. It was the second September wedding in a row for Tim and I, as parents. Last September our eldest child Libby married Paul.


These two wedding days have provided us with the most amazing and unexpected experience of what I take to be 'joy'. 


It sounds a bit stupid to say that this emotion was unexpected. We had approached Libby's wedding anticipating a happy day with family and friends. The careful planning had been a shared and enjoyable process. We knew too that everyone we had invited had a special relationship with Libby and/or Paul, so they would be determined to make it a happy occasion. And then the day came....


What neither of us had anticipated was the powerful effect of the love between two people being made manifest in front of a crowd of witnesses. Nor the depth and power of the love for our children being made manifest in and through parents, family and friends. 


I know now why we use the phrase 'to burst with joy'. The body cannot seem to contain the emotion - smiles cannot be wide enough, tears flow at the slightest prompt. The emotion, carried us, glowing, through the following few weeks.

Approaching Tom's wedding, I was apprehensive about being opened up again in this way quite so quickly. So not to be surprised a second time, but readier and steadier........ha ha, not a chance.


Reflecting on this second experience, I have to acknowledge that joy is also a highly disruptive emotion. It opens us up and makes us vulnerable. It is overwhelming. It creates in us outward expressions of love, generosity, and gratitude to others.  At the time, all this is on open display and has a public impact because it cannot be contained.


Whilst this level of intensity is not sustainable on an everyday basis, it is interesting that the expressions of joy can be accessed daily. Positive psychological and management research show major benefits are to be gained, both in personal life and business productivity, where people make opportunities and are proactive in practicing these expressions. 


'Deviantly successful' teams (i.e. successful beyond what might reasonably be expected) were found to be the ones who were encouraged to notice the best in themselves and others, to celebrate together, to express gratitude and to show their compassion for others.


Soft stuff ? The profit line says otherwise! I wish you just enough joy in your life to create greater happiness and peace every day.

Inside Knowledge - uncovering hidden wisdom

- What best helps families with complex needs to become stable? 
- What else needs to happen to prevent people of Pakistani descent losing their sight, as a result of diabetes? 
- What can we do to help young people use alcohol more wisely? 


These three major questions have been occupying my work and waking life over the past six months. 


In each case the work involved asking those with the inside knowledge - the families, people of Pakistani descent and young people and their parents.


 Of course, we listened to what all the relevant professionals had to say as well. In fact we listened to the 'whole system' i.e. everyone who had a contribution to make in one way or another, to the issue being considered.


There was thoughtfulness and animation in the focus group discussions; a real willingness to share experiences generously, even painful ones, in the individual interviews. Parents who had never been involved in anything like this before helped to design and shape community responses to family needs. 


Revelations and insights abounded. From the interviews with families who have succeeded in becoming far more stable, a common pattern emerged of what things had helped them to change life for the better. Their analysis provided a possible model for professionals to use to help more families at an earlier stage. 


It took nerve and not a little courage to turn up to a workshop with professionals; to air ideas; to listen and to be changed what you heard.


This sort of involvement, engagement , designing and learning is immensely powerful for everyone participating. It shows that people, no matter how vulnerable or how complex their lives, can deliberate and analyse with others, offering insights that the professionals could never guess at. 


The most surprising thing for some professional participants was just how much consensus there was about what needs to be done, when all the different perspectives had been shared and heard. 


I would love more public services to dare to draw the public in to help with innovation, strategy and planning. 


What are your best stories of work like this?