Swimming in a sea of change - the exhilarating work of facilitating organisational transformation

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A few years ago I facilitated a workshop for an organisation that I was accompanying through a transformation process. At the end of the workshop I gave the group an individual reflection exercise in nature and fortunately we were at a most beautiful beach resort so I took the opportunity to find a place of rest and do some reflection of my own. I found myself pushing my feet into the lovely therapeutic beach sand and watching the waves and thinking what a wonderful analogy the ocean presents us with about transformation and change.

More recently I went to the beach with a friend after a long hiatus and jumped and swam in the fresh blue ocean allowing the waves to bash against me and it was the most exhilarating feeling - I felt refreshed and energised. 

This is exactly the work of facilitating transformation in organisations. When visiting the beach you have to be willing to embrace and step into nature, get sand in your feet, trust even though you may not know what lies beneath the water and sand, and step into the ocean and be prepared to get wet. So it is with transformation journeys (you may not know what you are really going to discover and the work it will require but it needs to be done and you need to prepare well, have your proper gear and tools and then trust the process). When in the ocean you have to be okay with being knocked over more than once and at times you can be lifted as well and carried along with the strong thrust and push and pull. The same with transformation work - it will knock you down and sometimes lift you up, it will push and pull you in different directions. You will need to find a balance between standing firm and being carried along by the energy in the organisation, and you may have to swim against a current when it is pulling you down. You have to be ready to hold your breath when you are under the water and resurface as soon as possible pushing through and quickly standing up or swimming to the surface before the next wave comes along.   

If you are wanting to begin a transformation process you will have to prepare yourself to be engaged fully (be prepared to get wet and be willing to have sand everywhere). Transformation processes are not once off - once you have started something you will need to be in it for the long haul (experiencing the ocean is not something you can do quickly and most times you will feel the need to return again and again). 

Like the ocean, transformation journeys are vast and expansive and often endless, with surprises, stormy times and calm times. As with the unpredictability of the ocean, so it is with transformation journeys - even your best plans may need to be put aside in favour of a more emergent and flexible approach. 

Be prepared to withstand the heat (you may have hot moments of conflict in organisations and you have to ride this wave and let it unfold, let it have its release). There may be cold icy times when you will have to bring warmth like a cosy blanket to enfold the organisation and thaw it out so that it is able to engage once more. 

As a facilitator swimming in a sea of change requires being prepared for any season - and if you happen to be in Cape Town you could often encounter four seasons in one day. This means you have to work with emergence, be adaptable and willing to improvise and handle things in the moment. You have to be creative if something happens that you were not prepared for eg. strong winds may blow your towel and you will need to find some stones to keep it down. Or when you have not brought your cooler box and you need to find a cold rock pool to store your cooldrinks or watermelon, like we did when we were kids. The facilitator role in transformation requires creative and out of the box responses as often you are making the road whilst walking the path and there may not be a recipe to follow, you need to design the process and facilitate and lead it and encourage the organisation you're working with to tap into their wisdom and creativity. 

It does help to have a map of sorts which will tell you the path to take, and then be prepared to let go of the map and plan if once you are there you discover a different path, or that the road is no longer viable as it is covered in sand or water.

The ocean also has predators or animals that sting and cause pain, so have your medical aid box ready, and also be wary and mindful of which beaches to avoid and how far to go out to sea, or watch out for the warning signals from those who see the threats. In organisations, predators come in the form of bully's or denialists and those who are not willing to change and see the process as a threat so will bite or sting anything in its way - be aware, ready and mindful and know how to handle these threats to the transformation process.   

For most of us who are facilitators we find the work exhilarating and even though there are always challenges, the fulfillment one finds when you see the benefits of transformative change and the improvement in organisations, far outweighs all the difficulties and storms. 

So if you are willing to ride the waves and become one with ocean join me in this work, it is always safer if you are holding someone's hand so they will be there to lift you up when the wave takes you down. I promise you will be drawn in and it will change you forever!





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