An individual meets another, who meet a few more to form a group. This group comes together for a specific purpose and form an organisation. This organisation starts growing in size, scope and shape. It develops a sense of identity (who we are) and culture (how we do things here). Members develop capability to take leadership roles.
As this organisation evolves -(expands, pivots, diversifies, concentrates, splits, absorbs, is absorbed by others, responds to external context)- it requires a shift in 'the way we do things here' (culture) and 'how we lead' (leadership behaviours). What had been working well, may start becoming a hindrance. Behaviours that served earlier, may start creating a barrier. Both at a cultural and leadership level. This is the point where a shift becomes necessary. Shift that ultimately shows up in people's natural behaviour. But, behaviour change is difficult even at a personal level, and with a group it gets further complex. Many organisations still rely on 'carrot & sticks' approach for culture building and 'figure it out yourself' approach for leadership (more so for early leaders).
At such critical junctures, external support becomes essential. The relative neutrality of an external party - someone who can view the system from outside is crucial. This is where we (TAO Consulting) come in - to play the role of a catalyst, for transitions that often seem intangible. We listen carefully, paying keen attention to the invisible - what's really going on behind what's showing up. Make sense of what we are seeing from our location. And then place this sense-making with the core working group as is. Not as objective facts but as deeper observations and hypotheses, which act as a tool for dialogue. In words of David Cooperrider, "enquiry is intervention", and so is dialogue. An open, at times even confrontative, dialogue. Something starts to happen - convergence of the vision, a shared sense of direction and emergence of the next steps.
And, of course there are some PPTs, frameworks, tools, workshops, activities and coaching sessions along the way, also coupled with theatre and expressive art. But like any meaningful and sustainable change, it takes commitment, time and practice.
Our approach at TAO Consulting
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