Progress on two fronts
Progress point 1 -
Cycle two is nearly over - all that remains is to send out my peer review requests and then evaluate whatever data those return. Last week I saw what may be evidence that I'm having an impact.... and it cam from a most unexpected direction. A colleague who whose views and opinions are very dominant in our group (I've reflected on observations about this colleague before) performed a "final" editorial (LD) review on one of my projects. In the past, this colleague would generally make/"suggest" changes by crossing out what I'd written and inserting what he/she felt was more appropriate. This technique was used regardless of whether the comments concerned grammar/usage or content. Quite often, upon receiving such comments, the majority of us (myself included) would accept the version that this colleague supports. I should note that this person knows every rule of grammar (that I am aware of) and is a walking "manual of style." Because of this level of expertise, the entire team tends to defer to this person even when the commentary isn't about grammar/usage. As part of my effort to reinvent the way I engage in the review/critique process, I have initiated a dialogue with this colleagues regarding specific comments in the critiques I receive (especially comments regarding content). In each case - I believe the end result has been better than either my original work or the initial modifications suggested by my colleagues.
So - now I come to the most recent review performed on one of my projects by this one specific colleague. There were few comments (this was a very small and narrowly focused project) - only one was about content. The noteworthy thing is that in this case, rather than rewrite the content, this colleague asked me a clarifying question about what I had written... a question meant to make me look again at what I had written and compare it to what I was actually trying to convey without re-writing it for me (and thus making an assumption about what I was trying to convey). This particular colleague has never (in my experience or recollection) done that before (at least not with me). As part of my work in Cycle 2, when the timing is appropriate I've been discussing ways to approach the work we do with each other (on the education team) as an opportunity to learn from each other. As I critique the work of others, I've talked about my approach and explained how I hope we can teach and learn from each other and how sharing our methods and rationale helps make this possible. I've worked to share this approach with everyone and in different formats (both casual conversations and formal meetings and critiques). I really wasn't sure it was making any difference to anyone but me... this one little comment from this specific colleague has given me hope that I am making a difference.
Progress point 2 -
Cycle 3 begins! I was concerned that I would not find a cycle three - I found out a couple of weeks ago that moving cube walls is out of the question and I struggled with how to approach my third cycle, as I really wanted to do something that was a little more "extroverted" than my first two cycles. Last week an opportunity presented itself - to organize the first real celebration of a big interdepartmental collaborative effort. This will give me a chance to act on some of the things I've been saying for months now. For some time I've observed (and shared my observations) that the company may talk about supporting, facilitation, and nurturing collaborative work... but the culture still rewards individual efforts and competitive efforts. When appropriate - I've tried to bring the disconnect to the attention of certain managers and directors but this has been a slow process. Now - I have a chance to really walk the talk. Last week I received the support of our department Director and one of our managers, today I received the very enthusiastic support of our other manager. So - now I get to do the real work... come up with a plan for the event and a budget... then work out the date and get the info out there! This will have to be a fairly fast turn-around - as the first training starts the week of June 6 and I'd like the celebration to happen sometime during that two week period (while the training is happening). If I can do it the week of the 6th that would be best... that way I'll have time to write the cycle up before the last minute. :)
Cycle two is nearly over - all that remains is to send out my peer review requests and then evaluate whatever data those return. Last week I saw what may be evidence that I'm having an impact.... and it cam from a most unexpected direction. A colleague who whose views and opinions are very dominant in our group (I've reflected on observations about this colleague before) performed a "final" editorial (LD) review on one of my projects. In the past, this colleague would generally make/"suggest" changes by crossing out what I'd written and inserting what he/she felt was more appropriate. This technique was used regardless of whether the comments concerned grammar/usage or content. Quite often, upon receiving such comments, the majority of us (myself included) would accept the version that this colleague supports. I should note that this person knows every rule of grammar (that I am aware of) and is a walking "manual of style." Because of this level of expertise, the entire team tends to defer to this person even when the commentary isn't about grammar/usage. As part of my effort to reinvent the way I engage in the review/critique process, I have initiated a dialogue with this colleagues regarding specific comments in the critiques I receive (especially comments regarding content). In each case - I believe the end result has been better than either my original work or the initial modifications suggested by my colleagues.
So - now I come to the most recent review performed on one of my projects by this one specific colleague. There were few comments (this was a very small and narrowly focused project) - only one was about content. The noteworthy thing is that in this case, rather than rewrite the content, this colleague asked me a clarifying question about what I had written... a question meant to make me look again at what I had written and compare it to what I was actually trying to convey without re-writing it for me (and thus making an assumption about what I was trying to convey). This particular colleague has never (in my experience or recollection) done that before (at least not with me). As part of my work in Cycle 2, when the timing is appropriate I've been discussing ways to approach the work we do with each other (on the education team) as an opportunity to learn from each other. As I critique the work of others, I've talked about my approach and explained how I hope we can teach and learn from each other and how sharing our methods and rationale helps make this possible. I've worked to share this approach with everyone and in different formats (both casual conversations and formal meetings and critiques). I really wasn't sure it was making any difference to anyone but me... this one little comment from this specific colleague has given me hope that I am making a difference.
Progress point 2 -
Cycle 3 begins! I was concerned that I would not find a cycle three - I found out a couple of weeks ago that moving cube walls is out of the question and I struggled with how to approach my third cycle, as I really wanted to do something that was a little more "extroverted" than my first two cycles. Last week an opportunity presented itself - to organize the first real celebration of a big interdepartmental collaborative effort. This will give me a chance to act on some of the things I've been saying for months now. For some time I've observed (and shared my observations) that the company may talk about supporting, facilitation, and nurturing collaborative work... but the culture still rewards individual efforts and competitive efforts. When appropriate - I've tried to bring the disconnect to the attention of certain managers and directors but this has been a slow process. Now - I have a chance to really walk the talk. Last week I received the support of our department Director and one of our managers, today I received the very enthusiastic support of our other manager. So - now I get to do the real work... come up with a plan for the event and a budget... then work out the date and get the info out there! This will have to be a fairly fast turn-around - as the first training starts the week of June 6 and I'd like the celebration to happen sometime during that two week period (while the training is happening). If I can do it the week of the 6th that would be best... that way I'll have time to write the cycle up before the last minute. :)
posted by susan @ 6:06 PM
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