11A Collaborative

After 3 months of work in the relaunched 11A Collaborative (11Acollaborative.com), we are pleased to share that we are making an impact in our mission to create healthy society through healthy organizations. We have: 💸 Helped a corporate foundation develop a new strategy and organization design focused on youth economic mobility 🎓 Supported another corporate foundation in the creation of a scholarship program focused on preparing individuals across the globe for med-tech careers 🏥 Advised a large nonprofit hospital system in the establishment of their own organization design and workforce planning department 🎶 Helped an orchestra engage in cross-aisle conversations on the topics of hiring and tenure 👨💼 Worked with the program team of a national reentry employment organization to ideate on new organization structures and processes ⚖️ Began work with a national social justice organization on a strategic pivot and attendant organization design 😃 Coached a nonprofit leader on issues of executive presence, board management, and staff leadership

11A Collaborative is getting stronger with the addition of an Advisory Board! A big thank you to Jonathan Bennett, C.Dir., FNI.Dir. for his continued support.

🌟 Organization Design for Social Impact: Podcast! 🌟 How can organizations design themselves for success in a world of constant change and limited resources? In this episode of the People Dividend podcast Mike Horne, Ph.D. and 11A founder Julian Chender MSOD, ACC explore how strategic design and alignment can make or break an organization's impact. The conversation delves into the distinctions between organization design and restructuring, the importance of strategy, common challenges organizations face, and the significance of alignment in achieving goals. Julian shares some insights on designing for scarcity and the impact of strategic choices on organizational success and discusses how we create healthy society through healthy organizations using organization design for social impact. 📹 Watch the video on YouTube: https://lnkd.in/e2j-asfF 📻 Listen on Apple Podcasts https://lnkd.in/eYcG4Ng3

11A Collaborative is named after our founder Julian's grandmother, Selda Chender. A refugee escaping Mussolini and Hitler, Selda arrived alone and penniless in New York City in 1941, at the age of 17. Today we made our yearly donation to HIAS, the organization that supported Selda in her escape and resettlement. Without HIAS, we would not be here. And so we pay it forward, supporting HIAS who, in drawing on their Jewish values and history, stands for a world in which refugees find welcome, safety, and opportunity. HIAS helped Selda create a new life. 11A was her apartment number, a place where she artfully hosted gatherings, salons, and family engagements, leaving a rich and lasting legacy. It is this intimate heritage that we bring to our work in purpose and strategy, organization design, change activation, and executive coaching. Please read more about our origin in the "Story" link below.

We are starting a new series called "Consulting on Purpose: Designing Organizations for Impact." Today's topic is Leadership Teams and Parallel Process! Over the last few weeks Julian Chender MSOD, ACC has observed a client's leadership team meetings and began engaging each of the leadership team members in individual coaching sessions. It was a great idea until he realized he was playing into the dynamics of the leadership team! Parallel Process ‼️ is the phenomenon by which a consultant or consulting team mimics the behavior of the client system. In this case, the client's leadership team did a lot of 1:1 work but little collective work. They blocked and tackled in their respective lanes and gave updates in the leadership team meetings. This is an all-to-common practice for leaders, and one that keeps them from engaging as a team. And in working with the leaders individually, Julian ended up perpetuating their pattern. So, he helped them to reorganize. He shared his observations with the team and they decided to forego individual coaching in favor of an additional leadership team meeting focused on governing the organization's strategy. They will still have their update meetings, but now they have a place to work together as a team on issues of shared concern. ~~~~ Is your leadership team functioning as a team or a group of independent workers managing different departments? At 11A Collaborative (11Acollaborative.com), our leadership team support is about more than alignment; it's about working together to make the decisions that guide the organization, bringing strategy to life on an ongoing basis. Reach out to learn more!

Last night we celebrated New York and the people who make it great. The New York Landmarks Conservancy honored a new cohort of Living Landmarks. Julian Chender MSOD, ACC and Jessica Phillips, MBA had the pleasure of joining Board Chair Lloyd P. Zuckerberg in recognizing significant contributions to the built environment and social fabric of New York City. Among the honorees was Jessica's longtime colleague Ann Ziff, Chairman of the Board of the Metropolitan Opera. It was wonderful to spend the evening in such good company -- friends, colleagues, and clients -- all in the historic rooms of the Plaza.

Doing more than your fair share? Working on behalf of others? Unable or unwilling to say no? There's a dynamic here... Over the last week, we have worked with individuals, teams, and entire organizations caught in the dynamic of overfunctioning and underfunctioning. This is where one entity does the emotional and other labor for another, while that other does less than is needed. This cycle mis-distributes accountability, ownership, and agency. It keeps both parties stuck in a system neither likes and it leads to suboptimal relational and organizational results. The concept comes from Bowen Family Systems Theory, which 11Aer Julian Chender MSOD, ACC had the privilege to study briefly with Kathy Wiseman and the The Bowen Center for the Study of the Family in Washington, DC. If you're interested in learning more about Bowen Family Systems Theory, please see their pithy and well-constructed explanation of the eight concepts of the theory: https://lnkd.in/eqHpJKDc. And see below for a description of overfunctioning at work.

We have reached a milestone! A huge thank you to our 1,500 followers who are cheering us on as we continue to create healthy society through healthy organizations.

This week, 11A's Julian Chender MSOD, ACC and Jessica Phillips, MBA spent three days with the fabulous Paul Tolchinsky learning Whole-Scale Change. This organization design methodology incorporates the whole system in scalable change. The foundational questions of Whole-Scale Change are: ♦ How do we design organizations faster? ♦ How do we help the many decide for themselves, rather than having the few decide for the many? If you want speed, reduce friction. If you want to reduce friction, increase engagement. If you want to increase engagement, incorporate multiple perspectives. We're thrilled to build this profound approach into our work creating healthy society through healthy organizations. For more information, or to get in touch, check out our website: 11Acollaborative.com.

Organization Design is a co-creative process. And that's not just for the client! Today, a client asked if we could rewrite a tried and true organization design process to fit her organization's unique situation. We were a little apprehensive about departing from what we've "always done," but what came out of our collaboration was a better fit for the client system. The takeaway: Consulting is about influence, two-way influence. We must be open, willing to be swayed and touched, just as much as we touch our clients. We must be willing to go on a learning and growth journey, just as we ask them to. And we must remember that while we may know a thing or two, what we create together is what matters most. A huge thanks to Edgar Schein for instilling the beginnings of humility into our practice.