Theme: Vitality in the shadows, exploring the unusual, unlikely and untapped…

We will bring this intriguing theme to life with a beautifully rich balance of practical exploration of the design implications for ‘Hybrid Working’, and a thought-provoking academic perspective on what lay in the shadows of organisations. Come and join our second UK Community event of the year. Joining from outside the UK? No problem, we’re virtual after all!

Session #1: ‘Hybrid Working – Design Implications’

In a change to Sovereign Housing case study, we will now facilitate an exploration into the topical debate of ‘Hybrid Working’ and the implications across different elements of the operating model.

What are the considerations for the big and small organisations who are announcing a “work from anywhere” approach? What is on the minds of others who are taking a more cautious and incremental approach to a transition out of fully remote work? What about those that have maintained their existing working practices out of necessity?

Join us for a fascinating discussion on the emerging world of ‘Hybrid Working’ and the considerations to achieving a balance that is contextually relevant. We will explore some key questions from perspectives of what research is saying, what the past year says, and what longer term practice says. We will also consider the topic from the perspective of different personas. Three key questions to stimulate the exploration:

• What are the outcomes that people want to achieve from committing to hybrid working?
• What are the choices around hybrid working?
• What are the changes that organisations may need to put in place to make hybrid working a success?

Session #2: ‘Creativity and vitality in the shadow of organisation design…’

Led by Dr Rob Warwick, Reader in Management and Organisational Learning, University of Chichester, UK.

Much of our work in organisational design is focused on the obvious; the making explicit of aims, objectives and the resources and organising that we need to get there. And there is work to be done to focus these ambitions into measurable targets.

But what else do we need to be aware of in the corner of our eye as our plans and expectations take shape in the here and now?

Put another way, our day job takes place in the bright light of expectation and the development of a shared purpose, but what happens in the shadow as people react, make sense, talk with each other and interpret the plans that have been laid? I am going to offer some hopeful thoughts and ideas that these shadows are creative places where extraordinary things can happen. In a paradoxical sense shadows and light are dependent upon each other.

Dr Rob Warwick will be drawing and developing on the ideas of the anthropologist James C. Scott (Scott, 1998).