Resources - Sociocracy UK2024-03-29T09:27:55Zhttps://sociocracyuk.ning.com/forum/categories/resources-1/listForCategory?xg_source=msg_mes_network&feed=yes&xn_auth=noElementary common mistakes when applying sociocracytag:sociocracyuk.ning.com,2014-10-11:5625072:Topic:178172014-10-11T19:36:50.898ZFrancois Knuchelhttps://sociocracyuk.ning.com/profile/FrancoisKnuchel
<p>Thank you to John Schinnerer for this list of common mistakes made when implementing sociocracy:</p>
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<p>Here's a few general examples of what I'll call "common mistakes." A 'mistake' is an opportunity to learn something - IF anyone notices that there's something to learn.</p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>== Circle structure ==</strong></p>
<p>* Having poorly defined or undefined domains of responsibility for circles.</p>
<p>* Having poorly defined or undefined aims for circles.</p>
<p>* Not…</p>
<p>Thank you to John Schinnerer for this list of common mistakes made when implementing sociocracy:</p>
<p></p>
<p>Here's a few general examples of what I'll call "common mistakes." A 'mistake' is an opportunity to learn something - IF anyone notices that there's something to learn.</p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>== Circle structure ==</strong></p>
<p>* Having poorly defined or undefined domains of responsibility for circles.</p>
<p>* Having poorly defined or undefined aims for circles.</p>
<p>* Not respecting suitably/adequately defined domains and/or aims for circles.</p>
<p>* Creating circles that aren't actually necessary or useful at a given time.</p>
<p>* Failing to create circles that are necessary or useful at a given time. This can look like for example insufficient delegation, micromanaging, "everyone deciding about everything," etc..</p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>== Elections ==</strong></p>
<p>* Failing to generate clear and consented role descriptions.</p>
<p>* Confusing nominations with votes.</p>
<p>* Assuming that quantity of nominations is more important than quality of nominations.</p>
<p>* Reasons for nominations that are not relevant to the role description.</p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>== Consent Decision Making ==</strong></p>
<p>* Not using rounds consistently (rounds are not the only option, and, they are a foundational skill. Like scales in music - when I know my scales without thinking, I can improvise, and fall back on the scales if/as necessary. If I don't have that foundation, I just make noise).</p>
<p>* Allowing reactions in clarifying questions rounds.</p>
<p>* Asking for agreement instead of objections in the objection round.</p>
<p>* Objections that are not relevant to the proposal and/or the aims of the circle</p>
<p>* Addressing an objection in depth in the middle of an objection round.</p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>== Proposal Generation ==</strong></p>
<p>* Starting with idea generation (ideas for proposals) without first defining and consenting the nature and scope of the issue ("picture forming").</p>
<p>* Mixing together defining the issue ("picture forming") and generating proposal ideas to address the issue.</p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>== Meetings ==</strong></p>
<p>* Mixing operations work into a policy meeting</p>
<p>* Not preparing adequately for a meeting (no agenda, unclear agenda, unrealistic agenda, roles not identified, etc.)</p>
<p>* Digression away from the agenda item being processesd - that is, failing to maintain focus on the work to be done at the moment.</p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>== General ==</strong></p>
<p>* Failing to consent to try/use sociocracy before starting to try/use sociocracy.</p>
<p>* Assuming that people new to the organization with no training or support will be able to function sociocratically (especially when the organization itself is new to sociocracy).</p>
<p>* Facilitator taking on more responsibility than the role defines.</p>
<p>* Facilitator taking on more authority than is granted by the role.</p>
<p>* Circle members not taking responsibility for their own full participation.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>These are a sampling of general examples of course, based on the standard principles and processes. There are always situations where one or more of these might not be a mistake at all, but just the right thing to do.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Please also review this article by Sheella Meerson, <strong><a href="http://sociocracyconsulting.com/2014/07/five-common-facilitation-mistakes/" target="_blank">Five common facilitation mistakes</a></strong>.</p> Communities using sociocracytag:sociocracyuk.ning.com,2014-10-09:5625072:Topic:179042014-10-09T14:04:07.510ZFrancois Knuchelhttps://sociocracyuk.ning.com/profile/FrancoisKnuchel
<p><strong><span class="font-size-3">A message from Diana Leafe-Christian:</span><br></br></strong></p>
<p></p>
<p>Hello,</p>
<p> I specialize in teaching Sociocracy to intentional communities - from ecovillages to cohousing, spiritual communities, secular communities, and so on. </p>
<p> Here's a list of some communities I currently know of who are currently using Sociocracy, or using just some aspects Sociocracy, or, a modified version of it.</p>
<p> I assume…</p>
<p><strong><span class="font-size-3">A message from Diana Leafe-Christian:</span><br/></strong></p>
<p></p>
<p>Hello,</p>
<p> I specialize in teaching Sociocracy to intentional communities - from ecovillages to cohousing, spiritual communities, secular communities, and so on. </p>
<p> Here's a list of some communities I currently know of who are currently using Sociocracy, or using just some aspects Sociocracy, or, a modified version of it.</p>
<p> I assume there are more communities using it that I don't know about yet. If you know of some, please let us know.</p>
<p> I'm doing an article series for <i>Communities</i> magazine about using Sociocracy in communities, which is also the basis of a booklet I'm writing about it.</p>
<p></p>
<p> * Ängsbacka Ecovillage, Molsun, Sweden</p>
<p> * Bergen Ecovillage, Bergen, The Netherlands</p>
<p> * Econids Community, on the Atlantic coast of France</p>
<p> * Les Choux Lents Cohousing, Lyon, France</p>
<p> * Bridport, a forming cohousing community near Weymouth, England</p>
<p> * Some committees and organizations in and/or related to the Findhorn Foundation, Scotland, and in the wider community of friends and neighbors in the area. For example, the New Findhorn Association and Moray CarShare use Sociocracy.</p>
<p> * Aldeafeliz Ecovillage, in the mountains near Bogotá, Colombia</p>
<p> * Baja BioSana Ecovillage, near La Paz, Mexico</p>
<p> * Cohabitat Québec, Québec City, Canada</p>
<p> * Champlain Valley Cohousing, Charlotte, Vermont, US</p>
<p> * Katywil Community Farm, Colrain, Massachusetts, US </p>
<p> * Pioneer Valley Cohousing, Amherst, Massachusetts, US</p>
<p> * Hart's Mill Ecovillage, a forming ecovillage near Chapel Hill, North Carolina US</p>
<p> * Colombia Ecovillage, Portland, Oregon, US</p>
<p> * Lost Valley Educational Center, Dexter, Oregon, US -- they use a modified version of it</p>
<p> The following communities have taken workshops on Sociocracy, and/or some of their people have studied it, and/or these communities are considering maybe using it in the future:</p>
<p> * Cranberry Commons Cohousing, Burnaby (Vancouver), BC, Canada</p>
<p> * Belterra Cohousing, Bowen Island, BC, Canada</p>
<p> * Windsong Cohousing, Langley, BC, Canada</p>
<p> * East Village Cohousing, Burlington, Vermont, US</p>
<p> * Belfast Cohousing, Belfast, Maine, US</p>
<p> * Cornerstone Cohousing, Cambridge, Massachusetts, US</p>
<p> * Cambridge Cohousing, Cambridge, Massachusetts, US</p>
<p> * Jamaica Plain Cohousing, Boston, Massachusetts, US</p>
<p> * Narara Ecovillage, Sydney, Australia</p>
<p></p>
<p> At my own community, Earthaven Ecovillage near Asheville, North Carolina, US, some community members have taken one of two workshops I've done there. Now we use the following parts of Sociocracy.</p>
<p> * Sociocracy Elections for electing our annual officers.</p>
<p> * In our bimonthly business meetings, usually doing rounds instead of calling on people who raise their hands. Some committees are use rounds too. This was a cultural change; it wasn't officially decided. </p>
<p> * Now committees can decide who joins their committees; people can't just volunteer anymore. A cultural change.</p>
<p> * The official steering committee uses the policy meeting (circle meeting) four-step format and uses rounds. </p>
<p> * About 15 people (of 52 members ) are interested in switching to Sociocracy once we complete our legal and financial restructuring process. </p>
<p> </p>
<p> If you know of any other intentional communities that use Sociocracy, please tell us. Thank you!</p>
<p></p>
<p> Diana <span class="font-size-3"><strong><a href="mailto:diana.leafe.christian@sociocracyconsulting.com" target="_self">Contact Diana</a></strong></span></p>
<p></p>
<p>2 October 2014</p> MIND MAPS of SOCIOCRACYtag:sociocracyuk.ning.com,2014-08-23:5625072:Topic:177162014-08-23T10:39:07.842ZFrancois Knuchelhttps://sociocracyuk.ning.com/profile/FrancoisKnuchel
<p>Rakesh has created some fantastic beautifully illustrated mind maps of sociocracy. I have asked for his permission to publish them here. He has agreed on the understanding that the maps are his current take on sociocracy, and that they might contain inaccuracies or could be improved.</p>
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<p>This is an invitation to all, then, first to explore these mind maps and look at sociocracy from an different persepective, viewpoint and medium. Rakesh doesn't claim that all aspects of the…</p>
<p>Rakesh has created some fantastic beautifully illustrated mind maps of sociocracy. I have asked for his permission to publish them here. He has agreed on the understanding that the maps are his current take on sociocracy, and that they might contain inaccuracies or could be improved.</p>
<p></p>
<p>This is an invitation to all, then, first to explore these mind maps and look at sociocracy from an different persepective, viewpoint and medium. Rakesh doesn't claim that all aspects of the mind maps are correct and accurate, so this is also an invitation to you all to suggest improvements - using comments to makes suggestions, but also for us to query or comment in other ways. Use this as a discussion area.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Rakesh has asked me to put these mind maps here. Unfortunately, this is proving to be more technically difficult than I expected. The mind maps are in the Xmind software, which Ning does not accept. I would have to make and upload them as images, thereby loosing interactivity. I have to say the mind maps are really best viewed in the Xmind format, as you can expand and contract the different elements. I have therefore simply loaded the mind map in its original format on our main website here:</p>
<p></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font-size-4"><strong><a href="http://sociocracy.co.uk/mindmaps/Sociocracy.xmind" target="_blank">http://sociocracy.co.uk/mindmaps/Sociocracy.xmind</a></strong></span></p>
<p></p>
<p>When you click the link it will ask you to save or open the file - in order to view the map, however, you will also need to have the Xmind software installed on your computer - this is free and you can download at <strong><a href="http://www.xmind.net/" target="_blank">http://www.xmind.net/</a></strong>. If you have the software installed you can open the file directly, otherwise save it first.</p>
<p></p>
<p>There are 16 images altogether derived from the mind map, three of which are attached below. Ning doesn't allow more than three attachments. Immediately below are two more of the arms of the mind map, for sample illustration purposes. If you want to see the full set, please let me know - although I would strongly urge you to view the lot directly in xmind, which you will be able to if you download the software. Have fun mind-mapping, maybe in due course I'll find a way for us to be able to share-mindmap online.</p>
<p></p>
<p>For now, I'd like to thank Rakesh for the great visualisations of sociocracy.</p>
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<p><a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2311921089?profile=original"><img width="750" class="align-full" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2311921089?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024" width="750"/></a></p>
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<p><a target="_self" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2311921282?profile=original"><img width="750" class="align-full" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2311921282?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024" width="750"/></a></p>
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<div style="display: none;" id="raIcons"><img src="https://dfsuknfbz46oq.cloudfront.net/p/icons/kolourpaint.png" class="raImg" height="32" width="32"/><img src="https://dfsuknfbz46oq.cloudfront.net/p/icons/kolourpaint.png" class="raImg" height="32" width="32"/><img src="https://dfsuknfbz46oq.cloudfront.net/p/icons/kolourpaint.png" class="raImg" height="32" width="32"/><img src="https://dfsuknfbz46oq.cloudfront.net/p/icons/kolourpaint.png" class="raImg" height="32" width="32"/></div> External Articles of Interesttag:sociocracyuk.ning.com,2014-08-14:5625072:Topic:176372014-08-14T19:05:04.682ZFrancois Knuchelhttps://sociocracyuk.ning.com/profile/FrancoisKnuchel
<p>This section is to list articles in magzines, newsletters and various external sources about some aspect of sociocracy. If you would like to see an article listed, please send a comment with the link. We can then update the list:</p>
<p></p>
<ul>
<li><span class="font-size-3"><strong><a href="http://funologist.org/2014/08/02/consensuss-big-brother-sociocracy/" target="_blank">Consensus' big brother: Sociocracy</a></strong> (2 August 14) by Paxus Calta…</span></li>
</ul>
<p>This section is to list articles in magzines, newsletters and various external sources about some aspect of sociocracy. If you would like to see an article listed, please send a comment with the link. We can then update the list:</p>
<p></p>
<ul>
<li><span class="font-size-3"><strong><a href="http://funologist.org/2014/08/02/consensuss-big-brother-sociocracy/" target="_blank">Consensus' big brother: Sociocracy</a></strong> (2 August 14) by Paxus Calta</span></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><span class="font-size-3"><strong><a href="https://nonprofitquarterly.org/governancevoice/24503-dynamic-governance-kicking-employee-engagement-into-overdrive.html" target="_blank">Dynamic Governance: Kicking Employee Engagement into Overdrive</a></strong> (19 July 14) by Sarah Lozanova</span></li>
</ul>
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<li><span class="font-size-3"><strong><a href="http://sociocracyconsulting.com/2014/07/five-common-facilitation-mistakes/" target="_blank">5 Common Facilitation Mistakes</a></strong> (11 July 14) by Sheel;a Mierson</span></li>
</ul>
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<li><span class="font-size-3"><strong><a href="http://www.triplepundit.com/2014/07/residential-care-home-sees-jump-employee-engagement-dynamic-governance/" target="_blank">How this Residential Care Home Bumped Employee Engagement into Overdrive</a></strong> (9 July 14) by Sarah Lozanova</span></li>
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<li><span class="font-size-3"><strong><a href="http://enhanced-reality.net/scaling-agile-with-sociocracy/" target="_blank">Scaling Agile with Sociocracy</a></strong> (20 June 14) by Bernard Bockelbrink</span></li>
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<li><span class="font-size-3"><strong><a href="http://hittingthenailonthehead.wordpress.com/2014/05/07/sociocracy-a-way-of-organising/comment-page-1/" target="_blank">Sociocracy, a way of organising</a></strong> (7 May 14) by LCNC</span></li>
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<li><span class="font-size-3"><strong><a href="http://www.socionet.us/magic-belief-and-sociocracy/" target="_blank">Magic, Belief and Sociocracy</a></strong> (17 July 13) by John Buck</span></li>
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<li><span class="font-size-3"><strong><a href="http://www.sociocracy.info/about-sociocracy/what-is-sociocracy//" target="_blank">What is Sociocracy and Why do we need it?</a></strong> by Sharon Villines</span></li>
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<p><span class="font-size-2">If you send in link by comment, latest articles will go the top (so reverse chronological order) and your name will be included as contributor (unless you prefer to remain anonymous). Thank you in advance.</span></p>
<p></p> NEW WEBSITE DEVELOPMENTtag:sociocracyuk.ning.com,2013-11-26:5625072:Topic:170592013-11-26T18:03:11.780ZFrancois Knuchelhttps://sociocracyuk.ning.com/profile/FrancoisKnuchel
<p>We have formed a new Website development and maintenance circle with several aims:</p>
<p>- Creating a simple landing page (first port of call)</p>
<p>- Maintenance of existing online presence on Ning, Twitter, Facebook etc</p>
<p>- Creation of special online services for members</p>
<p>- Replacing this Ning site with a more user-friendlier interactive members' site.</p>
<p>We have many ideas, but WE WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU. PLEASE LET US KNOW WHAT KIND OF WEBSITE(S) OR ONLINE SERVICES…</p>
<p>We have formed a new Website development and maintenance circle with several aims:</p>
<p>- Creating a simple landing page (first port of call)</p>
<p>- Maintenance of existing online presence on Ning, Twitter, Facebook etc</p>
<p>- Creation of special online services for members</p>
<p>- Replacing this Ning site with a more user-friendlier interactive members' site.</p>
<p>We have many ideas, but WE WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU. PLEASE LET US KNOW WHAT KIND OF WEBSITE(S) OR ONLINE SERVICES YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Please add your wishes, ideas or suggestions as a comment to this open discussion. Thanks</p> Teaching materialstag:sociocracyuk.ning.com,2011-06-06:5625072:Topic:41092011-06-06T12:33:18.445ZMartin Grimshawhttps://sociocracyuk.ning.com/profile/MartinGrimshaw
<p>One page essentials, teaching tool</p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>'The Basics of Sociocracy'</strong><br></br> Martin Grimshaw / 2bwow.org.uk V3 Feb 2014<br></br> Uses substantial material previously made available by the Sociocratic community. Creative Commons Licence Attribution-ShareAlike CC BY-SA</p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>Version 3 <br></br> Click to download >> <a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2311920863?profile=original" target="_blank">MG Sociocracy Basics Graphic…</a></strong></p>
<p>One page essentials, teaching tool</p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>'The Basics of Sociocracy'</strong><br/> Martin Grimshaw / 2bwow.org.uk V3 Feb 2014<br/> Uses substantial material previously made available by the Sociocratic community. Creative Commons Licence Attribution-ShareAlike CC BY-SA</p>
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<p><strong>Version 3 <br/> Click to download >> <a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2311920863?profile=original" target="_blank">MG Sociocracy Basics Graphic Feb14.pdf</a></strong></p>
<p> </p>
<p>Please feel free to download, use, and share this document, on the condition that you maintain the same licence. Details here <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/" target="_blank">http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/</a></p>
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