“The child must know that he is a miracle, that since the beginning of the world there hasn't been, and until the end of the world there will not be, another child like him.” Raising A ChildMaybe we will ultimately decide that engaging people in our organizations is as complex as raising a child. And maybe like all prospective parents, we will still embrace that complex idea and make it our focus! I recently re-read Getting to Maybe i and this time viewed much of the text from a people-first perspective. In the foreword, Ric Young talks about complexity being an opportunity rather than an obstacle. That is how we have come to view the idea of people engagement at Volunteer Vancouver – a huge opportunity. Yet it is complex, and maybe we haven’t given enough weight to the fact this can be a threat to many people in many organizations. The authors outline many metaphors in this work and they reference the indirect comparison we make to how people are like machines. We are seeking “management tools” and talk about “ticking along like a clock.” One of our most common practices is to make reference to a team of people – particularly fundraisers – as a “well-oiled machine.” This kind of thinking can lead us to believe we can work with people like they are machines and it is an easy three (or five or ten) step process. We will follow those same steps every time and we will always achieve the same results. We know from experience, however, that isn’t the way it works and maybe subconsciously that is why we are reluctant to intentionally engage people in our organizations. My mother raised her children based on the work of Dr. Benjamin Spock, The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care, from Pocket Books. This book initially sold for a modest 25 cents in 1946. He later wrote other books - and as our children have children, we know there are thousands (and thousands) of books from which they can choose. Each of these books espouses a different way to raise a child. However a good friend (from academia) once told us the reality of raising a child is so incredibly different from what authors write in books. That hasn’t prevented many authors from writing, and it is interesting that parents continue to read them – often searching for answers they probably already have inside them. On page 9 in Getting to Maybe, the authors outline a matrix that compares simple, complicated and complex issues. It is based on other complex theory and compares six components of baking a cake (simple), sending a rocket to the moon (complicated) and raising a child (complex). The sixth comparison in the Simple Complicated and Complex Problems ii makes it very clear that a recipe notes the quantity and nature of the “parts” required, specifies the order in which to combine them, and there is room for experimentation. When sending a rocket to the moon, success depends on the blueprint that directs both the development of separate parts and specifies the exact relationship in which to assemble them. When raising a child you cannot separate the parts from the whole; essence exists in the relationship between different people, different experiences and different moments in time. When we talk about engaging people in our organizations, we create an environment very similar to raising a child. We cannot separate the parts from the whole, the essence of our business exists in the relationship between different people (Executive Director and Board Chair, Board Chair and Board Member; Program Director and Program Coordinator; Program Director and Volunteer Business Analyst) and there are different experiences every day at different moments in time. There is very little that is predictable or simple about working with people – whether the person is a child we are raising or an employee or volunteer working with us to achieve our mission. Are the answers there for us who work in not-for-profit organizations? Do we really have those answers inside? Or do we want the metaphor of person to machine to hold true – even though we know it does not? Do we want it to be about finding the right tools? Do we know we could be truly successful if we decided to focus on simply engaging people in our organizations – both those we pay with money and those we pay in other ways? Or are we overwhelmed by the prospect of the complexity? As a parent of four grown children, I highly recommend we embrace the complexity, understand it is a long journey, and know then, by intentionally engaging people, we can reap the rewards of building a strong and vibrant organization. About Colleen Kelly
About Volunteer VancouverThe mission of Volunteer Vancouver is to inspire & build leadership in the voluntary sector. This publication is intended to be a medium of communication and information for the many organizations active in the volunteer and not-for-profit sector. The opinions expressed herein are solely those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect official policy of the Board of Directors of Volunteer Vancouver. Volunteer Vancouver |
