Change management has been very present in management practices with lots of well-known methodologies, primarily originating from project management environments. But do they always yield the desired benefits? What about the non-linear aspects of organizational change? Whether that’s an adjustment to a new environment, letting go of well-known and liked ways of working or facing loss and uncertainty. How clear is the desired end-state, when we lead change and when does the change work stop? In this episode, we discuss questions around, the position of change management in large organizations and the role of senior management. The usefulness and limitations of a process-focused change management approach. But mainly we explore the human side of change, how to deal with seemingly small experiences of human change that can have a major impact on the organization’s ability to handle change. Change as something that happens to and must be digested by people. We are joined by our guest, Minola Jac, who describes herself as a journalist by trade and a changed practitioner by choice. We discuss not only learnings based on her extensive experience as a change practitioner in a large corporate organization, but also insights from her book “Everyday Inspiration for Change: How Daily Experiences Can Be Your Mentor for Change in Life and Work.” With her book in mind, we discuss the power of storytelling in change.

The intensity of polarization in everyday life or in organizations can make us feel toxic, even though we want to take a stand for our values, interests and beliefs. In this episode, our guest Martin Ringer, helps us understand and explore this topic: How does polarization form? Why do we need to belong to opinion blocks and when does it turn toxic? How do we experience it in everyday life and society? How can we coach polarized teams in collaboration breakdown? Why seeking common ground too early can prove very ineffective? How can consultants establish neutrality and what happens when we fail to do so? If you like this episode, you might be interested in the ISPSO Annual Meeting in Sofia on July 1-7 2024, which offers similar paper presentations and professional development workshops: https://ispso.org/AM2024

Some consider the climate crisis, the most urgent issue for the earth’s future and ourselves on it. Yet, why is it so hard to engage with it, systemically and as individuals? Why is it so hard to inspire action for those working on the climate crisis? What does it take to work in sustainability within large corporations? And how do each of us, Earth’s inhabitants, get emotionally impacted by the climate crisis? Why does this topic evoke polarization in society and politically, between activists and deniers?  In this Lateral Dialogue, we are exploring all these questions, through the so-called climate psychology, a relatively new discipline concerned with understanding the dynamics and emotional experiences, related to the climate crisis. For those actively working on this, as well as for all individuals exposed to its consequences in everyday life.   To explore these questions we are joined by Dr Rebecca Nestor, who has researched the experience of working in the climate crisis and has consulted to people who work in organizations that deal with this matter, climate scientists, and campaign groups. Rebecca regularly runs climate cafes, which are opportunities for people to come together in small groups and share their emotional responses to the climate crisis and create meaning together. Next to this, she's also a board member of the Climate Psychology Alliance. As her tagline says, she provides support for those who are facing the climate crisis.  Hosted by Petros Oratis and Warden Hoffman from The Lateral Space.

How can we engage in social dialogue on geopolitical or social conflict, such as the war in Gaza or Ukraine? How can we have a meaningful dialogue beyond polarization or political correctness? Why are we psychologically mobilized to fight, even when we are not directly linked to these conflicts and why are we impacted in our ability to think, talk, and act? We are joined by Bijan Khajehpour & Regine Scholz from the International Dialogue Initiative. They explain Vamik Volkan's theory of large group identity and collective trauma to understand how we are mobilized psychologically during a crisis or war. We explore how the dynamics of polarization and political correctness work and what we can practically do, to engage in meaningful dialogue. We finally discuss what organizations and management can do when their workforce is directly or indirectly affected by geopolitical conflict. Hosted by Petros Oratis and Warden Hoffman by the Lateral Space.

Dr Veronica Azua got motivated to research self-doubt, after noticing a very common paradox in senior leaders: despite having led successful lives and careers, they would still experience heightened self-doubt and self-criticism. In this Lateral Dialogue, Veronica shares some of the key moments, when we are prone to experience such feelings. How being surrounded by high-achievers or part of "elite" organizations intensifies feelings of self-doubt which may not reflect realistic expectations of our role or results. We explore how organizations or particular contexts eliminate the space to feel doubtful or to tolerate not-knowing, and therefore as individuals, we stay with these feelings privately, often resulting in a systemic vicious circle of Doubt -> Unrealistic expectations -> Hard work -> Despair. Veronica finally shares a few practical strategies for individuals and teams to turn this around. Maybe self-doubt and self-criticism is a secret best kept. Hosted by Warden Hoffman and Dr Petros Oratis from The Lateral Space.

Why do we create hierarchies in groups, even when we intend to be flat? Why are we so preoccupied with ranking, and yet we operate with absolute equality? This episode explores how we are unconsciously impacted by hierarchy, how to recognize the dynamics of hidden hierarchy, and what its unintended effects on teams and leadership are. Dr Petros Oratis explores these questions with Warden Hoffman in this Lateral Dialogue.

1. Illuminating the hidden aspects of organizational culture: How can we uncover its unconscious aspects? What happens when we expose uncomfortable truths of how we function? Why often culture doesn’t shift even when we explicitly cascade how we should behave differently? Dr. Karen Gray joins Warden Hoffman and Petros Oratis in this Lateral Dialogue to explore these questions.

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