As our understanding of organizations shifts out of the mechanistic model into a more organic-holographic awareness the dimensions of success are changing. The mechanical model emphasizes the parts, and each part’s success is emphasized in planning for the success of the whole. In the holographic systems view, the interfaces and interactions throughout the organization are the interesting feature. That is where the results happen, where synergies are realized, where insight becomes product/service, and goes to market quickly.

Music fits in because it is its own new dimension. You can read the lyrics to a song and get the meaning and truth of it, but when you hear it, you experience it, and your perception is taken to a much richer field of awareness—like going from the flatness of 2 dimensional space into the fullness of 3 dimensions. You are transported, and the music makes an emotional connection as well as a mental one. Sometimes how to use the 3rd dimensional insight is readily apparent—a new product idea, a re-org that makes sense to help people work together better. But it seems mostly to be mystifying; we feel good, we have an interesting perspective and some poetry about our situation, but so what?

I’m seeing music as a pathway to a “whole-self workplace,” where the full energy of the people participating is brought into the formula and makes a contribution to the common purposes. It strikes me as more of a tribal model, where the economics, spirituality, emotional well-being, music, dance, family life, and art meld together to contribute to a common understanding that is at a higher level than the last mode.

This committee will be a major part of your life until the event is over, and you want to have a great event and have your colleagues to have a great time while getting full business and cultural value for the effort and expense.

I can’t give you a whole lot of advice, but I have one suggestion: give away a section of it to Face The Music. I wouldn’t want to take on your whole event (any more than you do), but we can deliver a rockin’ teambuilding, interactive, innovative session, and manage all the details with your venue.

You just show up and look like a hero!

We are experienced project managers, and have worked with hundreds of event planners to put on exceptional events since 1999. One recent example: A large global bank is putting on a retreat for one of its divisions. They want to have an afternoon session that will close their event with a bang. A trusted source recommends Face The Music. The drafted committee member that is assigned to interface with us lies the concept—is enthusiastic about it actually—and says “let’s do it.” When he starts talking about room setups, load in times, travel, accommodations, etc., I say to him, “I’ll tell you what. Why don’t you give me your contact at the hotel, your agenda draft, and I’ll get back to you in a few days with all this set up?”

He seems somewhat relieved, and mumbles something about doing his regular job as well as planning for this meeting and gets off the phone. We coordinate all the logistics, put it all together with the site, the a/v people, and accounts payable, and come back with a show that’s ready to go.

Let us know if we can do that for you.

When continuous learning is in place in an organization, it enables it to adapt, grow and maximize the benefits of collective experience. The organization and people develop learning as an expertise and become increasingly effective as a result of their activities and experiences. But we also have an opportunity for discontinuous learning—a quantum jump in understanding and performance that is a result of an event or circumstance that releases previously unused potential energy. Similar to the quantum jump in physics, where the new energy state causes the atom to exist at a new energetic state, a team or organization can spring board off of found energy to discover new levels of results, new markets, or new ways of doing business.

Use the words that sound profound
Dish out BS by the pound
Never say what you really mean
In the corporate world that’s obscene
Be confusing don’t be plain
Make lawyers sound like Dick and Jane
The more you sound like you’re sayin’ something
The more you’re really saying nothing
They’ll never ask what you just said
‘Cause they’d look dumb and turn bright red

–Marketing Mike and the Suits–

Now Marketing Mike may be overstating the case, but the message and the feeling is a familiar one to many people–what does that really mean? Isn’t there a plainer way of getting at what’s really going on? As a consultant I run into this all the time, especially in the first meetings with new clients or prospects. The current buzzwords and language of the company come out and many times I have to repress the urge to laugh, not out of malice, but I get a flash of the larger picture of the absurdity of human communication, and end up reflecting on the history and evolution of language and expression. What we say/the words we choose, how we say it, and the tone and gestures in how we express it tells volumes about the culture, beliefs, fears, hopes, and intentions of the speakers.

What’s the smallest thing you can do this week to make your truth know for the benefit of all involved?

Last week in La Jolla, California we did a Face The Music event with a group called Renaissance Executive Forums. They bring together top executives from non-competing companies of similar size, into an advisory board process to gain fresh ideas and new insights. It was a great night with a great group of people. It was clear that their deep connections support them in making the most out of their business, and they feed off that to gain their own insights, get inspired, collaborate, and compete to be their best.

What can you do to provide opportunities for connection in your workplace?

Face The Music helpe many organizations do their work in different ways, adding energy, insight, and inspiration to the deck. Below is an example of some of our work at a conference focusing on alleviating unconscious bias in an organization.

Event: Accenture, Changing the Face of the Practice, Miami
Objectives: Examine how to improve retention and promotion of women and minorities in the business by examining how unconscious biases were hindering progress.

FTM role: Blues interactive songwriting, acting in skits, debrief of songs and process to gain insights into the topic at hand, write custom songs, coach leadership team to write and perform a song about their goals and intention

Summary of how it went: “Incredible!! That is how I will summarize The Face the Music experience in Miami. Everyone, from Steve [CEO] on down had a lot of positive feedback on how this segment of the Workshop helped set the stage for the difficult discussion.” Pedro Suriel, Inclusion Director, Accenture
What client got: A lot of fun and excitement, insight and truth telling about the issues they wanted to address, a forum to do their work that kept them engaged and in action, clear direction and actions moving forward.

What you can use: Look at the work you need to accomplish in your team, department, or organization. Define and devise ways to approach the work that facilitate a new dialog in a new way. Arts based methods are a great way to reframe—drawing or collage, ad lib or skit writing, drumming together to align rhythmically. Use the new framework to have the discussions needed, even if they are tough (or especially if they are).

Leadership team delivering their song

Mountain Winery above San Jose

I’m realizing that sometimes I take the energy and magic for granted as I get caught up in the planning, travel, details, logistics, and the continual evangelism to get the word out about what we do. The unique exuberance that the people feel, and the great creativity and the funny stuff they come up with to express their experiences and perspectives on what it’s like to work at their various companies.

Play list-page 2

Memphis, Tennessee

Often, when we announce at the beginning of a program what we’re going to be doing (it’s usually a surprise for the participants) we get a response that can look like “what-now, are-you-kidding-me?” from the stage. That response seems more common from technical or “serious” professional-type groups, like engineers, research scientists, accountants and auditors, or deep science R & D types. Marketing, HR, creatives, PR, and especially sales tend to jump right in.

Onstage in DC

Stopping in at City Lights Books–San Francisco

But (knock on wood) whatever the profile, the groups respond to our invitation and by the time they are creating their lyrics and get to rehearsing their songs, they have taken ownership and are ready for their few minutes of stage time, laughing, coming up with strange choreography, and donning hats, sunglasses, wigs, and other costume items to deliver their best. It’s great to see, and to be a part of.

Secret client site, outside of Denver

So, we’re back home, getting ready for the July round, and I’m thankful for my clients, our musicians, and the chance to do this for a living–I wish I had 5 bucks for every time someone has come up to me after a gig and said, “I want your job!”

Crossing the Rockies

Hot-lanta

On Beale Street, Memphis

Woodstock ’69 stage site–Bethel Woods, NY

Flying back into La Guardia

Link to more pictures