Virtual Action Learning offers a supportive, structured peer-learning environment. It involves a small group of peers coming together regularly, for six sessions initially every 4-6 weeks for around 6 months. Sessions are facilitated by me – Claire Antrobus. I’ve been involved with Action Learning as a trained facilitator and participant for over a decade.
What if I’m new to Action Learning?
No previous experience is necessary – in our first session we’ll cover what Action Learning is, how it works and you’ll have an opportunity to try it out and meet the rest of the group. I’ll also provide you with a simple PDF guide with useful resources to support your Action Learning.
What will I need to do?
Participants will be asked to sign up to the principles of action learning, which include working in a non-judgmental, supportive and confidential learning space, and to attend a minimum of five of the six sessions.
In return we offer you:
Access to a regular safe and creative space to think through your own challenges in a reflective and solutions-focussed way
Opportunity to practice and develop your reflective learning techniques and coaching skills to improve your own and others’ performance
A supportive community of practice working together over a six-month period
Support from a highly experienced Action Learning facilitator/ trainer, including advice and resources about how to set up your own set after this series.
By the end of the sixth session the group can decide to complete its work together – or may choose to carry on independently, self-facilitating using the skills and experience you will have developed.
Previous sets have included people with a wide range of experience from across the cultural and wider non-profit sector including self-employed coaches, artists, CEO/ senior leaders from arts organisations, creative consultants and producers and those working inside organisations in a variety of roles. The vast majority of previous participants were new to Action Learning, although some have experience of coaching (being coached).
What to expect – feedback from previous groups
‘It’s a great way of creating space for your own reflection with a group of supportive peers. There are also huge benefits in developing your active listening skills and the ability to ask questions that help unlock insights for others in the group.’
‘I simply can’t recommend it enough. It was a rare opportunity to step off the treadmill to reflect, learn, listen and share challenges and ideas with a fantastic group of people. The facilitation of the group ensured that there was a really, warm, caring and human touch – where people felt able to share challenges with authenticity, vulnerability and generosity. It has really developed my active listening skills and given my working practices a reboot. Brilliantly organised, robustly managed and a great take away handbook that I’m referring to regularly.’
‘It’s a brilliant chance to connect with peers you might not otherwise meet, to practice the skills of group action learning, to have your challenges heard and to help others, with a concrete accountability framework that’s also easy to stick to and access.’
‘I joined the action learning set at a point of transition in my career and immediately found a supportive group of individuals willing to share their wealth of experience. During busy times attending the session felt like coming up for air.’
Ready to sign up or want to know more?
To book your place or to have a chat about whether this is for you just get in touch claire@claireantrobus.com
Intro session (3hrs) : 2-5pm Thursday 18 January
Set meeting dates: 3-5pm on Thursdays 22 Feb; 14 March; 18 April; 16 May and 13 June
Cost: £250 employer-funded /£200 freelance (payment in instalments possible)
Sara Wajid and Zak Mensah, Co-CEOs of Birmingham Museums Trust
Many in the UK cultural sector will already be familiar with co-leadership in the form of the Artistic Director / Executive Director co-CEO model which theatres have used for nearly 50 years. Co-leaders share overall responsibility for organisational strategy and performance, whilst each also leads different areas. This model evolved as the management of cultural organisations became more complex in the late 1980s and ensures the overall strategy balances artistic and business considerations.
The recent past has seen an explosion in interest in co-leadership across other sectors internationally and new experiments in co-leadership in the UK cultural sector in response to an increasingly challenging operating context and an urgency to increase diversity. Recent adopters of co-leadership in the cultural sector are experimenting with less familiar models including co-CEO part-time job-shares; co-CEO models that avoid the executive/artistic binary and co-AD models. Across the UK cultural sector organisations are recruiting co-leaders for the first time, for example the appointment of Zak Mensah and Sara Wajid at Birmingham Museums Trust who are the first co-CEOs of a major museum group. The Royal Shakespeare Company announced the appointment of its first co-Artistic Directors in 2022, following a growing trend that includes Clean Break, Royal Exchange Manchester, Diverse City and Paines Plough among others. Sometimes co-leaders job-share, working part-time around caring/parenting responsibilities or external artistic projects, other times the co-CEOs are both full-time roles.
Internationally co-leadership is beginning to be viewed by commentators in healthcare, higher education, business, and non-profits and as a vehicle for enabling greater diversity in leadership. Others go further still, suggesting co-leadership enables a more inclusive organisational culture and offers an alternative to highly gendered leadership norms. In the business sectorco-leadership has been found to offer competitive advantage and improved profitability and performance by widening the leadership capabilities and perspectives available to organisations facing unparalleled challenges in this VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous) operating environment.
This autumn I received support from the Clore Leadership Programme and Arts and Humanities Research Council to undertake research explored the potential of co-leadership to increase leadership diversity.
Join us online for a panel discussion exploring how co-leadership works on 14 March, chaired by Sandeep Mahal MBE and including speakers from four of the case study organisations:
Euella Jackson – co-Director of Rising Arts Agency
Niels de Vos – Chair, Birmingham Museums Trust
Anna Herrmann – Artistic Director and join CEO, Clean Break Theatre
Parminder Dosanjh and Sajida Carr – Co-Directors, Creative Black Country
I’ll be launching a new User Guide including advice for boards on the 14th March – in the meantime if you’d like a copy of the full report, or Executive Summary, you can find this below.
We live in what has been termed VUCA times: volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous. Certainly the past few years have seen the world turned upside down by a pandemic and now by a war that threatens peace in Europe. But given it was the Greek philosopher Heraclitus who said, ‘the only constant in life is change’, I rather suspect the pace and scale of change has always felt overwhelming.
As a leader knowing how to navigate and respond to change is therefore an essential skill, and one which is often part of the leadership courses I design and run for organisations. As a leadership and organisational coach enabling others to create and respond to change is my core business, so I thought it might be useful to share some of the tools I regularly use to help others understand, respond to and plan for change.
Sometimes change is forced on us, but there are also times when we want to make changes. We might want to tackle inequalities in society through our work, or creating other positive social changes. Or we might want to change some aspect of how our organisation works, maybe shifting to hybrid working or becoming more environmentally-sustainable. All of these scenarios are about creating change and these tools apply to internal and external change and are scalable from individual life changes to restructuring an organisation or creating social change.
Is it worth the effort?
Change takes effort and resource. We often need to support of others to achieve change. So, before we start making a change it’s a good idea to be really clear for ourselves and with others about the ‘why’: the case for change.
The Opportunity/Threat matrix offers a really simple format to think through the benefits of making a change, and the risks of not making it.
You basically work through 2 questions – what are the opportunities if we do this, and the risks if we don’t – in both the short-term and the longer-term. It’s up to you to define what short/long-term horizons make sense for your situation, but be specific – e.g. in the next 12 months/ the next 5 years.
It can be really helpful to involve others in this exercise. This broadens the perspectives involved in the analysis but also enables those with a stake in the decision to fully understand the arguments around opportunity and risk.
You might decide, after completing this exercise, there isn’t a strong enough case to press ahead with the change – but if there is then the following tools can help the process go more smoothly.
How to make change happen or ‘tip’?
This simple ‘equation’ sums up the key considerations at play when we’re trying to make change happen. I came across this version at Henley Business School on a change leadership course and it’s based on the Gleicher modelled, popularised by Beckhard-Harris, with one important variation.
This model identifies 4 key ingredients that need to be in present for change to happen, and one factor (cost) which inhibits change. These ‘ingredients’ are outlined in the illustration below:
Change ‘tips’ when the other ingredients outweigh the cost.
This model I’ve used countless times since encountering it at Henley, includes ‘capacity’ which the original Gleicher version lacks.
In my experience capacity is often the missing ingredient in the cultural/ creative sector – we lack the time or resource to invest in enabling change. Technically this is what is referred to as ‘development capital’; resource which we can use to invest in doing things differently, experimenting, doing training, buying new hardware and software. Too often our budgets and diaries are over-committed and we lack this space and resource.
I use the equation to assess the likelihood of success of change and identify where there might be blocks so we can identify what actions are needed if change is to happen. It can be used at the planning stage, and during review of how things are going.
How to respond to unwanted change?
You may well have heard or seen ‘the change curve’? There are actually two curves, but the one most of us know is also known as the grief curve, as it emerged from the work of psychologist Elisabeth Kubler-Ross looking at the main stages of bereavement. However, it has also long been applied more generally to understand how we respond to external changes we perceive as negative.
I find model this helpful for a number of reasons. It can be helpful to be aware of these psychological reactions so we can be sensitive with others and self-aware. For example, it can be unrealistic to expect people to be able to quickly process ‘bad news’ and adapt, it might take some time.
And we need to be cautious not to allow ourselves – or others – to spend too much time in the ‘bargaining’ stage. Bargaining is when we offer a solution to the change which doesn’t take full account of the situation: re-arranging deckchairs on the Titanic. Thinking we’re doing ‘our bit’ for climate change by buying a re-usable coffee cup but not making the bigger changes to our lifestyles really needed.
We might need to do a little bargaining before we’re ready to accept the full reality of the situation (the ‘depression’ stage). But we want to avoid spending too much time bargaining if we want to adapt constructively to negative change and reach the stages of testing and acceptance.
The other thing I like about the Kubler-Ross change curve is that it sits well with my experience of what makes me feel better when Shit Happens (another technical term I learned on that course at Henley). Working out what I can do to be helpful or to improve things, where I do have some agency, usually helps me feel a lot better.
How to keep the momentum going?
I promised you two change curves. The second applies to changes we want, hence it’s name ‘the positive change curve’. What is shows is that – basically – our enthusiasm wanes over time. We start off ill-informed about what exactly the change will involve and how long it will take, and as we discover more about the reality our optimism is likely to drop. If the gap between expectation and reality is too big we might decide to quit. But also we might form a more realistic but still positive view of the change and move into the ‘Informed Optimism’ stage.
How is this model helpful? It reminds us that we need to attend to morale along the way; to celebrate our successes, give ourselves some ‘easy wins’ early on etc. Simply making time to review, constructively, and acknowledge what’s been done and achieved can be enormously helpful – and the simple set of questions are typical of the kind I use with individuals and teams to this end.
Also, the smaller the gap between expectations and reality the fewer morale issues lay ahead. So the positive change curves reminds us of the importance of realistic plans.
How to involve/ engage others?
Last but not least, this final tool offers a simple framework (and worked example) of how to explain what you’re trying to do, and why, to others so you can engage them. Whether you want other people to do things differently as part of the change, to generate ideas about what needs to change or simply to support or approve of the change you’re planning – you’ll need to be able to clearly and simply explain what you’re doing, why, how and what you need from them.
These 4 simple questions are a template for those communications – whether they take place via face-to-face informal conversations, a formal presentation or written formats (or all three).
I hope there’s something in these tools that’s useful for you. If you agree with Heraclitus that ‘the only constant in life is change’, then learning a few new techniques about how to master change is time well spent.
Virtual Action Learning offers a supportive, structured peer-learning environment. Using simple group coaching techniques, Action Learning enables fresh thinking and builds confidence. It involves a small group of peers coming together regularly, for a finite period of time initially, to support one another to work through their work challenges and reflect on their learning: typically around 6 people, for 6 months every 4-6 weeks.
What’s on offer?
Starting in September I’ll be offering an opportunity to join a new virtual set. Sessions are facilitated by me – Claire Antrobus. I’ve been involved with Action Learning as a trained facilitator and participant for over a decade. No previous experience is necessary – in our first session we’ll cover what Action Learning is, how it works and you’ll have an opportunity to try it out and meet the rest of the group.
If, after the first session, you decide Action Learning is not for you then you are under no obligation to continue.
Participants will be asked to sign up to the principles of action learning, which include working in a non-judgmental, supportive and confidential learning space, and to attend a minimum of five of the six sessions. In return we offer you:
Access to a regular safe and creative space to think through your own challenges in a reflective and solutions-focussed way
Opportunity to practice and develop your reflective learning techniques and coaching skills to improve your own and others’ performance
A supportive community of practice working together over a six-month period
Support from a highly experienced Action Learning facilitator/ trainer, including advice and resources about how to set up your own set after this series.
Pay What You Can rate for anyone earning less than UK average wage (or self-employed equivalent).
I’m interested – what’s involved?
A three-hour introductory training session covering the foundations of Action Learning and opportunity to practice the core skills of active listening and open questions.
Four x 2hr follow-on monthly Action Learning sessions via Zoom.
A final 3hr review session, covering self-facilitation to enable to group to continue self-supporting after this initial period.
A PDF Action Learning handbook to support you during and beyond the sessions.
By the end of the sixth session the group can decide to complete its work together – or may choose to carry on independently, self-facilitating using the skills and experience you will have developed.
Previous sets have included people with a wide range of experience from across the cultural and wider non-profit sector including self-employed coaches, artists, CEO/ senior leaders from arts organisations, creative consultants and producers and those working inside organisations in a variety of roles.
What have previous participants said about it?
Feedback from recent AL participants includes:
‘It’s a great way of creating space for your own reflection with a group of supportive peers. But there are also huge benefits in developing your active listening skills and the ability to ask questions that help unlock insights for others in the group.’
‘I simply can’t recommend it enough. It was a rare opportunity to step off the treadmill to reflect, learn, listen and share challenges and ideas with a fantastic group of people. The structure of the Action Learning Set creates a space for exploration, idea generation and action. The facilitation of the group ensured that there was a really, warm, caring and human touch – where people felt able to share challenges with authenticity, vulnerability and generosity. It has really developed my active listening skills and given my working practices a reboot. Brilliantly organised, robustly managed and a great take away handbook that I’m referring to regularly.’
‘It’s a brilliant chance to connect with peers you might not otherwise meet, to practice the skills of group action learning, to have your challenges heard and to help others, with a concrete accountability framework that’s also easy to stick to and access.’
‘I joined the action learning set at a point of transition in my career and immediately found a supportive group of individuals willing to share their wealth of experience. During busy times attending the session felt like coming up for air.’
Action Learning is also very cost effective and I include training as part of the sessions so you’ll be equipped to run your own sets after this initial period, should you wish to continue. In 2021 I hosted two new sets, both of which have continued to self-facilitate and now function independently.
When recent studies have shown reflective practice – at the heart of Action Learning – can improve performance by 23%, the real question is how can you afford not to do it?
How do I find out more and what are the dates and costs?
Feedback can often feel like a spoonful of cod liver oil – you know it’s meant to be good for you, but we don’t relish it. And it can be hard to hear when you mainly hear about the things that are going wrong. You might wish someone also made time to tell you what’s going right? You’re doing your best after all….
And how often are you giving feedback to others? Research tells us that receiving regular (weekly), useful, feedback is one of the key factors for working at our best. Yet I often find people receive far less than this.
Giving useful feedback is a key responsibility of all managers and an important skill for those of us who work with others. Below I’ve outlined a few principles about what good feedback looks like from research into productivity and staff performance. I hope these are useful whether you’re wanting more useful feedback for yourself or wanting to improve the feedback you offer others.
Let’s focus on useful feedback: rather than ‘negative’ and ‘positive’ feedback
Feedback should be useful and constructive – whether it concerns what is working well or what is not working well. ‘Feedback’ is simply information which enables a system or process to adapt. If ‘feedback’ doesn’t enable learning and improvement then it isn’t feedback – it’s criticism (generalised negative comments) or praise (generalised positive comments). Criticism has no place in the respectful and productive workplace. Praise is less useful than feedback, and arguably also has its downsides.
But we need to get the ratio right: we need to hear five times as much about what works than what doesn’t. Feedback about what works is the fertiliser prepares the ground to receive the tougher-to-hear feedback about problems. So don’t neglect the fertiliser!
Ensure it’s useful
How can you know what feedback is useful? Simply ask – would you value some feedback? What would you like feedback on? What format works best for you – written, a chat after the event etc?
Providing useful feedback takes time: make sure you’re using your time well by focussing on the areas where feedback is most helpful. If someone already knows there’s a problem with X, it’s pointless or maybe even demotivating to be told it again. If they’ve asked for you to look at Y, they are more likely to be receptive to what you have to say about that.
BOOST performance with feedback
There are a few similar models around, but I really like this BOOST model from Andi Roberts (which I’ve slightly adapted) not least as it starts with balanced: reminding us of the ratio in favour of what works. The other aspect of balanced is that we invite feedback as well as offering it. If you’re in a position of power then others might take some encouragement to offer feedback. You can help by avoiding being defensive and showing you’re listening by acting on what you hear.
Ownership is important too – we might avoid speaking directly for fear of offending but being clear is critical. And this cuts both ways – we need to feel feedback is sincere, so that’s going to require us to take time to observe and notice what others are doing well so we can let them know directly.
Providing useful feedback is an essential skill for any manager, and we cover feedback skills and practice on a number of the courses I run in-house for organisations and as open online courses. Get in touch if you’re interested in finding out more about training. And let me know how you get on with the BOOST model.
Things not going quite right with someone you’re working with but you’re not sure how to broach the topic? Worried about upsetting someone, but feeling increasingly frustrated by their behaviour or assumptions?
Too often we allow things that are not working to continue unchecked for fear of damaging our professional relationships – and yet the longer we leave things, the harder they are to resolve.
Conversations that feel hard to initiate are sometimes referred to as ‘difficult conversations’ but they need not be hard. With a shift in how we’re looking at them and a couple of simple tools we can get things back on track. And if we practise having these conversations more often, before issues get harder to discuss, then we can save ourselves a lot of time and trouble.
Stop calling them ‘difficult’ conversations
If we go into a conversation thinking it’s going to be difficult then it’s often a self-fulfilling prophecy. Instead of assuming the other person is in the wrong, and that this will be awkward to discuss, it’s far easier and successful if we approach these as curious conversations.
Rather than assuming the other person is at fault, try staying curious about what the problem is and how it could work better.
Stay ‘curious’
There’s lots of great guidance about effective communication, and I’m a big fan of Marshall Rosenberg’s Non Violent Communication approach from which I’ve extracted some of the key principles into a mnemonic that spells CURIOUS:
Notice context comes first. If we want to resolve the issue we need to avoid the other feeling attacked or blamed, or they are likely to become defensive. If we’ve demonstrated a constructive intention clearly at the outset a (e.g. ‘I’m concerned how X went and I’d like us to think about how we can ensure next time there’s a Plan B in place. When is a good time for you to discuss this?’) we’re less likely to trigger a defensive reaction.
Also don’t skip owning your response. Too often we feel awkwardness about clearly outlining what the issue is for us for fear of upsetting someone. But stating clearly what the impact was on you – what need wasn’t met and how you felt – will help the other understand why this issue is important to you. Without this information there is a risk they might not fully understand why their behaviour is a problem for you and be less willing to change.
Prepare a 3-step conversation
It is useful to think through carefully what we want to say about the impact of the issue on us, and what we’d like to request to be different in future so we can be really clear and avoid inflammatory language that might cloud the issue.
I suggest thinking about a conversation in 3 stages can be helpful:
I don’t recommend that you script the conversation in advance, but a few notes about the key points you want to make and questions you might ask to open up and explore can be helpful.
And don’t forget to wrap up the conversation with some actions: what are you agreeing to? What will each of you do or do differently in future? How and when might you check in that things are working better?
I hope you find these tools useful – if you try them out let me know how you get on. And feel free to share them, please just acknowledge the source and don’t seek to profit from them. Interested to find out more? I run a couple of courses which cover communication skills and styles, difficult conversations and how to give useful feedback – get in touch if you’d like to find out more.
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