North East Together 25: Perspective, participation and power (November 2023)

We North East Together members gathered on 22 November 2023 for North East Together’s 25th event to talk about system behaviours as part of our continuing collaboration learning journey.

This was the second in our series of four half-day in person events for 2023 and 2024, all focused on growing and developing our collaborative leadership capacity and capability. We’ll be using this time together to learn about and start to apply and develop the North East Together Collaboration toolkit and framework to support more, and more effective, collaboration across the north east. To help us translate theory into practice, we’ll be spotlighting inspiring examples of collaborative leadership in action — learning from social leaders who are currently leading the way in this work.

Our first step on our learning journey was in May 2023 Gearing up for your collaboration journey.

We know our region faces challenges and opportunities that no one person or organisation can resolve or respond to alone. We also recognise the need to embrace complexity and systems thinking when we reflect on the health of our social systems in the north east to develop more nuanced and ultimately effective interventions. Embracing complexity and systems thinking requires a fundamental commitment to working collaboratively.

The final event in this series in November 2024 will find us at the 10th anniversary of starting the network. We’re really curious to see what’s changed. We hope you’ll travel along with us as we share what we’ve learnt in our collaboration inquiry since we started out.

Together we can.

Perspective, participation and power: understanding the health of the systems we need to improve together

We bring NET members and friends together for mutual support, inspiration and collaboration, and each event includes these three elements. The event pack and slidedeck tells you more about the event…read on for our write up.

Mutual support: My own system (collaborations)

We started with a guided networking activity to get to know each other better and connect, and to reflect on the collaborations we are part of and that are working together to achieve specific goals. Our conversation in threes used these prompts: What collaborative work are you part of? Who are the different groups/organisations/people involved?

North East Together collaboration framework and toolkit

This is taking another couple of steps together around the North East Together collaboration framework we previewed at our whole network event in November 2022 (and shown below), looking at the capacity and competences we need in collaborations particularly our behaviours and mindsets.

Here’s a summary of the collaboration framework. We shared the full toolkit with those who came or sent their apologies. If you’d like a PDF copy, just ask.

Inspiration: Perspective, participation and power, Dr Max French

We explored Lankelly Chase’s system behaviours of perspective, participation and power with the help of Dr Max French, assistant professor, Northumbria University’s Business School. There’s more in Max’s slidedeck.

Lankelly Chase used a collaborative process to find answers to their question: What conditions would we expect to see in places that support people living with severe and multiple disadvantage? This resulted in three Ps of system (or collaboration) health…

• Perspective: We make up an intelligent network of people who have both strengths and weaknesses, and continually learn and grow with each other.
• Participation: People face safe to ask the difficult questions, voice agreements and disagreements and deal with the conflicts and uncomfortable emotions that may surface.
• Power: People closest to a complex situation are free to use their initiative to engage and take responsibility for their own challenge

And nine system behaviours

Perspective

• People view themselves as part of an interconnected whole
• People are viewed as resourceful and bringing strengths
• People share a vision

Power

• Power is shared, and equality of voice actively promoted
• Decision-making is devolved
• Accountability is mutual

Participation

• Open, trusting relationships enable effective dialogue
• Leadership is collaborative and promoted at every level
• Feedback and collective learning drive adaptation

We agreed with Max how this approach — system behaviours as sensemaking — helps people have conversations.

• People stop talking about their organisation, and start talking about the system
• Makes the work of “system change” more visible and tangible (and perhaps, more actionable?)
• Focus on the relationships in place, rather than the interventions

After Max’s talk, we explored the three pillars and nine behaviours in small groups led by a volunteer facilitator. We asked: How does this behaviour apply to the collaborative work you do? On a scale of 1 to 10, how well is this behaviour demonstrated across your collaboration?

You can read more on these system behaviours

• Reflections on trust and systems change by Clare Hyde, Max French and Simon Johnson, Lankelly Chase, 2019
• A look in the mirror? Can the “System Behaviours” be a useful mechanism to reflect on the health of a system? by Toby Lowe and Max French, Lankelly Chase, 2019

Collaboration: Power and participation…behaviours in practice

The second part of our event opened with a talk from Dr Joanne James about sources of power and creating an environment for participation. Dr Joanne James is lead for post experience programmes: leadership, coaching and mentoring at Newcastle University Business School.

She shared what power is or can be — power or freedom to act individually, to influence others, to control or have power over others, to act ethically with others — and recognising power is part of the social context or situation we are in at the time. And also about participation…sharing Shore et al participation equation (2011)

Participation = Belonging + Valued uniqueness

“Participation is related to how I feel I am perceived and valued (valued uniqueness) and my access to opportunity within a situation (belonging).
Facilitating participation means addressing power inequalities in your environment. Creating power with others.” Jo’s question was: How can we create environments where everyone feels they belong, and their uniqueness is valued?

Jo shared her case study example about power and how she thinks about participation in the coaching and mentoring network she leads. We then worked in small groups to think about power and participation

• What are your sources of power in your situation? What about organisational and personal power?
• Who are the other participants? How do they see their sense of belonging and valued uniqueness? How do you know?
• How might the power dynamic create uneven/unhelpful effects?
• How might you attempt to increase feelings of belonging.
• How might you value uniqueness?
• How can you encourage participation?

Thank you

Thanks to all our members for showing up and being there for each other. This is what it’s all about and we appreciate being part of this community in the north east. We are hugely grateful to Dr Max French and Dr Jo James for sharing their work, thoughts and questions, and inspiring us all. We’re also grateful to Dr Joanne James from Newcastle University Business School for continuing to collaborate with us for North East Together. Thank you all.

About North East Together

North East Together is the network for social change leadership in the north east.

Our collective mission here at North East Together is to create the conditions, and platform for, collaboration to become the norm in the north east and to nurture a healthier social change system.

Our network offers mutual support, enables collaboration and inspires social leaders. We offer a series of dynamic network events; whole day events, self-organised collaborative working groups; pathways into coaching; and independent social change events. Our events are supportive spaces where leaders can meet one another, explore issues of social change, network and begin to collaborate. It’s for leaders from the voluntary, charity, social enterprise, education, public and private sectors. It’s for experienced, new and future leaders of organisations, work, and ideas.

North East Together is hosted by Yes We Can and is a collaboration between Yes We Can and Newcastle University Business School. We’re grateful for the support both organisations give to North East Together.

2024 events

These are our plans, so far…

• 14 February 2024 — NET Connect #5, 16:00–17:15, online — bringing together North East Together members and network friends to connect, grow and nurture our relationships — book your place
• 21 May 2024— North East Together #26, whole network event, 13:00 for 13:30–16:30 + later for more informal networking — we’ll open bookings as soon as we can
• 11 September 2024 — NET Connect #6, 16:00–17:15, online — book your place

We’ll also host more NET pop ups to inspire us and nudge us to collaborate as topics and opportunities come up. If you’re feeling inspired to hold your own NET pop up event, don’t forget the NET team can collaborate with you to host your own. Talk with Robert, Marie or Stephanie if you’d like to do this.