Program Information

• Creative Process (updated May 21)
• Meditation
• Coaching
• Pathways
• Schedule (updated May 20)
• Accommodations and Travel
• Scholarships
• Logistics Bulletin
• Kayak Outing
• Testimonials

Program Faculty

• Thomas Arthur
• Brian Bacon
• Dorian Baroni
• Barbara Bash
• Mille Bojer
• Barbara Cecil
• Michael Chender
• Glenda Eoyang
• James Gimian
• Jerry Granelli
• LeAnne Grillo
• Arawana Hayashi
• Yolanda Hegngi
• Michael Jones
• Adam Kahane
• Art Kleiner
• Toke Moeller
• Wendy Morris
• Barry Oshry
• Karen Oshry
• Wendy Palmer
• Cheryl Rose
• David Sable
• Otto Scharmer
• Peter Senge
• Mary Stacey
• Bill Torbert
• Meg Wheatley
• Bob Wing

Catalyzing Organizational Change

with Art Kleiner & David Sable

Organizations are circulatory systems made up of hierarchies, networks, markets, and "core groups." In this module we will develop our capacity to catalyze change in these systems, as we help them become more capable, ethical, and effective. We will learn to combine individual mindfulness techniques with the sequencing of high-leverage "small acts" that have large impact. And we will explore the kinds of organizational (as opposed to individual) capabilities that are needed for effecting meaningful change: consciousness, discipline, and empathy.

We will do this by drawing upon knowledge and practice from contemplative and consultative traditions, neuroscience, social network studies, Elliot Jacques' studies of hierarchy, dialogue and intervention work, and "lean/quality" traditions. These bodies of work all have different roots and histories, but they fit together into an understanding of organizational circulatory systems and the role of individuals within those larger systems. There will be at least one major interactive exercise each day. We will focus on real-life organizational issues — including those brought by participants — and work towards catalytic solutions. Exercises will include

• diagnosing problems using the circulatory system model
• creating "human sculptures" that illustrate situations where we were able to catalyze (or failed to catalyze) the desired effect
• practicing "reflection in action"
• engaging in dialogue about the nature of ethical behavior by a larger system.

This module is for anyone in a position of some responsibility within a company, organization, team, or community who wishes to become an effective catalyst. In the course of this module you will increase your ability to

• understand, influence, and catalyze change in organizational systems
• move from an isolated view to a collective approach, recognizing and gathering support from others with mutual interests and affinity
• intervene in ways that do not backfire or isolate you, and that sequence different types of actions within an organization so that they help make your moves effective
• create informal criteria to monitor the value of action: to set expectations, communicate those to the broader system, translate them into something meaningful to the broader system (which may or may not be quantifiable), and realistically calibrate your progress in terms of your authentic goals as opposed to nominal goals

Art Kleiner is the editor-in-chief of strategy+business, the award-winning management magazine published quarterly in print and weekly online by Booz & Company. He is the author of The Age of Heretics ("A secret history that links the medieval monastic orders, the counterculture of the sixties, and the key agents of corporate change in the modern world" - Howard Rheingold), 2008, Jossey-Bass; and Who Really Matters: The Core Group Theory of Power, Privilege, and Success (2003, Doubleday). Formerly, he was the editorial director of Peter Senge's Fifth Discipline Fieldbook series and an editor at the Whole Earth Catalog. He is a founding member of the Neuroleadership Institute and has taught at the Shambhala/Alia Summer Institute since its founding in 2001. He teaches a scenario-planning-based course, "The Future of The Infrastructure" at New York University's Interactive Telecommunications Program, and lives with his wife and three daughters outside New York City. His work on "being a catalyst" is based on a body of work in progress since the late 1990s in dialogue and organizational change practice.

David Sable, M.A., combines over twenty years of management consulting with teaching and research. His clients include Prudential, Citibank, the Nova Scotia government, the Council of Nova Scotia University Presidents and most recently the Confederacy of Mainland Mi'kmaq, the First Nations people of Nova Scotia. For the last ten years he has also been a part-time faculty member teaching and conducting research at Saint Mary's University in Halifax. He is currently completing an Interdisciplinary PhD program at Dalhousie University where he is studying the impacts of reflective practices on critical thinking.

David is a founding member of the Shambhala Institute, now ALIA and worked for the first time with Art Kleiner in 2001. What brought him to the original team was over twenty years of experience as a teacher and practitioner of meditation and contemplative practices and the desire to integrate that into his professional life. David served as the Director and Senior Teacher at the Shambhala Centre in Washington, D.C., the Director of the Information Technology Human Resources Council in Nova Scotia, and currently serves on the Board of the SMU Centre for Spirituality and the Workplace. He continues to conduct workshops for the business community and federal agencies.

In addition to published proceedings and articles, David's work will appear in book form for first time in Transformative Learning and Online Education: Aesthetics, Dimensions and Concepts (IGI Global in January, 2010).

Module List

Action Inquiry: Transforming Leadership in the Midst of Action
with Thomas Arthur, Mary Stacey & Bill Torbert

Adaptive Action, Artful Perception
with Glenda Eoyang & Wendy Morris

Building Capacity for Wise and Skillful Action with Circle, Brush, and Sword
with Barbara Bash, Toke Moeller & Bob Wing

Catalyzing Organizational Change
with Art Kleiner & David Sable

Embodying Power and Love: Two Essentials for Effective Leadership
with Adam Kahane & Wendy Palmer

Leader as Shambhala Warrior
with James Gimian, Jerry Granelli & Margaret Wheatley

Solving Tough Problems: Co-creating New Realities in Complex Systems
with Mille Bojer & LeAnne Grillo

Women and Leadership: Life Cycles, Power, and Work
with Dorian Baroni, Barbara Cecil & Yolanda Hegngi

“Attending the Shambala Summer Institute was both liberating and validating. To maintain the courage to lead requires occasional rejuvenation and re-commitment of purpose. The Institute affirmed my approach to implementing organizational goals and has reinvigorated me.”

—Daurene E. Lewis, Principal, Institute of Technology Campus, NSCC, Halifax, NS
2008 program participant

Sustain and integrate the learning, deepen the impact. Pathways for Authentic Leadership is a nine-month course that begins with the Summer Institute and continues in your home organization.