Helping Midlands Shared Services Forum understand members’ wants and needs
It seems ages ago now, but just before heading for a boat in Norfolk in late July, I ran an event for the Midlands Shared Services Forum before their summer social at M&B’s wonderful Saxon Mill in rural Warwickshire.
MSSF is an all-volunteer organization with members from across industry and the public sector. The aim of the event was to help the committee ensure they continue to meet their members’ needs in a rapidly evolving sector, where assumptions about the nature of work are being up-ended by automation and changing employee profiles.
I suggested we run an Open Space to create rich discussions and gather member insights. If you don’t know about Open Space, you should. It’s an extremely useful and flexible approach. I’ve used it to help clients:
- Boost productivity and safety in factories
- Increase creativity in University teaching
- Understand customer needs
- Reduce conflict
- Increase ownership and engagement
Last week I caught up with the MSSF committee at their event at Birmingham City University. It was great to hear from one committee member that – impressed by the July session – she plans to use Open Space with the staff at the shared service centre she runs, and I thought I should point you in the direction of this useful tool.
If you want to know more, check out Chapter Two of my eBook Seven Keys to Releasing Potential in Your Business, Your People and Yourself