December 2024
A lot seems to have happened on the world stage since we last wrote to you in September. And of course, like it or not, this always forms the context for our client work. As the year draws to a close, here is a bit of an overview of what we have been up to; and, perhaps more importantly, some dates for your diary to look forward to, as look forward we must!
Transformation is still a word on the lips and to do lists of many clients. And we’ve been reminded that it is not only the large interventions that have impact. A large industrial client is in the midst of transformation on multiple fronts, and working “live” in small virtual action learning groups with change agents in the system has been a hugely rewarding way of making a real difference one conversation at a time.?And we are still seeing an increasing demand for internal capability around organisation design as organisations shift and adapt. We continue to work building capability with internal OD / HR / Transformation teams. Running these interventions in house not only allows for a deepening of practical skills and sharing of key tools and frameworks, but can also serve as a “live case” on organisation design within that organisational system, building both understanding and relationships across teams.
Through November we’ve also been working with the US leadership team of a multi-national pharmaceuticals business on questions of structure and accountability. The group were very conscious that increasing accountability requires both structural and behavioural and cultural change, and so following a successful organisation design process we’re moving into supporting the transition. Alongside further detailed design work, we’re helping them think about how decisions are taken, and how leaders take up their new roles, broadening the understanding of the new design and the behaviours that will be required in order for this to succeed. Arriving for a key workshop the day after the US election result also added an extra layer to proceedings!
We continue to work with a highly regarded in-house design agency of a global retail group. Over the last year our work has been predominantly about culture and ways of working amongst a talented team of 100+ creatives.?Given the gradual globalisation of this well-known high street brand, the focus of our support has shifted to the Senior Leadership Team who are grappling with the challenges of rapidly changing market dynamics and a global marketing function in the midst of a transformation process. The context they face is how to deliver today's demands whilst adapting to customer channels that are becoming more hybrid, and the relentless shift towards digitalisation.
We are also working with several clients (in quite different sectors) with ongoing concerns about organisational culture. What they have in common is how their leaders have expressed their frustrations about how to change it, for example to develop more wholesome or more productive relationships and ways of working. We’ve noticed the temptation for leaders (and consultants!) to grasp for easy solutions, often locating any problems within a particular group. Our approach has involved a deeper dive into the factors that contribute to particular attitudes and behaviours, and taking seriously the way that organisational processes, structures and habits set the scene for culture to emerge. This has also revealed the practical steps leaders and their colleagues can take to make a difference that can result in new outcomes. It’s always rewarding for us when it becomes palpable that things are starting to shift, and when we see there are strong signs that real ownership and agency within the organisation is starting to take hold.?
As ever, we try and share as much of we can of our work through case studies available here:?https://metalogue.co.uk/case-studies
And if you’d like to talk more about any of the above, do get in touch:?[email protected]
People Director & People Partnership Collaboration
We’ve really been enjoying collaborating with Richard Goff at the People Director and Partnering?Partnership networks. Most recently Andrew Day joined the panel for a session exploring “The Relational Dynamics of Executive Teams”; always a topic of interest to us in our work. For more on this also see our practitioner research on “The Unspoken Life of Executive Teams” here.
Participative Organisation Design webinar
At the end of November we ran a webinar with Dr. Timothy Gore looking at his recently published research into Participative Organisation Design. This is an area close to our hearts, and we thoroughly enjoyed hearing Tim’s key findings, and exploring resonances and implications with him and fellow practitioners. You can find an executive summary of Tim’s findings attached here.
Missions through an OD lens
“Missions-led” approaches to strategy and organising are appearing more and more in our work and we will be hosting an emerging practice seminar on Monday the 20th of January from 09:30 – 11:00 looking at “Missions through an OD lens”. Drawing on our experience of working across the Civil Service, NHS, Health Research and local government and with inter-organisation alliances in the Private Sector, we have some insights about what could help. We are also curious to learn from others about what is working and what might work in the future. For details about how to join: [email protected]
Dancing in the triangle – the wonderful world of contracting…
In the world of complex organisation development (OD), success hinges on a delicate dance—a dynamic interplay between the primary client, internal consultants, and external consultants. This triangular relationship is not just an operational necessity; it is the core of impactful and satisfying work. Based on a?paper that Andrew Day and Sophy published earlier this year?we’ll be running an interactive webinar exploring what this means in practice on the 11th of February 2025 from 10:00 – 11:30 (GMT). This follows a similar session we ran with our friends at OD Network Europe on the 12th of December – many thanks again to them, as ever, for hosting us.? If you’d like to join us for the session on the 11th of February, do get in touch: [email protected]
OD Network Europe and Metalogue – get involved in our ongoing research…
The practice, role and understanding of OD varies significantly across organisations, and so we’ve become interested in understanding current strategic change and transformation challenges and opportunities across different organisational contexts, across Europe. Our key areas of inquiry include:
We are conducting a series of interviews in January and February 2025 to gather qualitative data, with the intention to share preliminary findings together in the spring.?If you’d like to contribute to the research please do let us know: [email protected]
Participative Organisation Design Programme
And in spring we’ll be running another cohort of our popular participative organisation design programme (Virtual). Facilitated by two Metalogue Partners this will take place on the 12th and 13th, and 26th and 27th of March. This is always a small group (usually max 8) to ensure there is plenty of individual attention, and a maximum of two from any single organisation. There’s more on our approach to organisation design here. And to find out more about the programme do get in touch: [email protected]
As the year draws to a close we’re even more aware that we live in a world of tricky tensions and dynamics. This is of course always part of our work, and we are grateful to the talented supervisors that we get to work with. We enjoyed a final 2024 session with the ever insightful Charlotte Sills to close out the year, followed by the opportunity to raise a festive glass together.
Wishing you all the very best for the festive season, and a good start to the New Year.
Andrew, Dev, Jayne, Kevin, Sarah, Simon, Sophy
P.S. for those of you looking for some Christmas reading here are some highlights from the year:?How Do We Bring Missions to Life? Materialising the Project Matrix. Dancing in the Triangle.