Recording and/or Handouts:
About the Webinar:
Please join us on May 2 for this lively presentation, where you'll be introduced to the principles of good governance and get a taste of the transformative world of Sociocracy. You'll hear from the intrepid duo that leads Sociocracy For All, as well as other guests and practitioners who are using Sociocracy in varied and exciting ways.
We will explore Sociocracy and its applicability for Transition Initiatives, community efforts, and organizations of all kinds and sizes.
Every day we make countless decisions and employ these decisions in a number of different ways. When with our families, community groups, and at our jobs, could we improve the quality of our decision-making so that all involved are more deeply included and the resulting decision is more broadly accepted?
Sociocracy is a model of governance that helps us to improve the quality of our decisions in our lives, communities, environment, and society.
Watch the 4 min video introduction!
Supporting a higher degree of participation, Sociocracy unleashes more energy and creativity. It is possible too, for an organization or effort to become sociocratic simply by overlaying a policy-making “circle structure” over its existing structure. On the surface, there may seem to be little difference in day-to-day operations, but evidence quickly blossoms that a change is underfoot.
In an autocratic structure, the power to rule is vested in an “auto,” a single person. In a hierarchy, that power is held by the director, president or their team. In a socioractic structure, the power is in the people who regularly interact with one another and have a common aim. That is the “socios,” or the people, in the terms of Sociocracy. Each member of the “socios” has a voice that is more readily expressed and the managing of the organization, community group or effort takes on a fuller life.
In the sociocratic circle-organization model, the basis of decision-making is consent, which uses the principle of “no objection”. The consent principle has some subtle but important differences from that of consensus and creates more agility and ease in making decisions and in moving the effort forward.
Here are a few questions to help you assess if Sociocracy could help your organization or effort:
- Do a few voices dominate your meetings?
- Do you sometimes leave meetings wondering what was accomplished?
- Could your group be much more effective than it is now?
Sound familiar? Please join us on TUESDAY, MAY 2nd for this free and informative online event and find out if Sociocracy is right for you!
MAIN PRESENTERS:
Jerry Koch-Gonzalez. Imagine a world where people enjoy working equitably together to meet personal and planetary needs. Jerry’s work is in service of that vision. Jerry helps companies and organizations implement sociocracy to create adaptive and effective organizations where all members’ voices matter. He is a consultant and certified trainer in both Dynamic Governance/Sociocracy and Compassionate Communication (NVC), with a focus on governance, decision making, communication skills, and conflict resolution.
He has been a Board member of the Institute for Community Economics, United for a Fair Economy and Class Action, and a trainer with Movement for a New Society, the National Coalition Building Institute, DiversityWorks, Cambridge Youth Peace & Justice Corps, Lesley College Center for Peaceable Schools, Boston College Center for Social Justice, the Association for Resident Controlled Housing, and Spirit in Action.
Jerry is currently the CEO of The Sociocracy Consulting Group (itself a limited liability company run on sociocratic principles). Jerry is a founding and current resident of Pioneer Valley Cohousing, a 21-year old community in Amherst MA that has been successfully using Sociocracy for the last 3.5 years.
Jennifer Rau is a PhD linguist, songwriter, and mother of five daughters. She moved from Germany to the USA in 2010 and into the Amherst Massachusetts Pioneer Valley Cohousing Community two years later. There, she dived into NVC and sociocracy. She began producing sociocracy videos and co-founded Sociocracy for All and its Sociocracy Leadership Program (SoLT) as a volunteer. She is inspired about giving people the skills and knowledge so they can be empowered and can have the group experience they are longing for productive collaboration as equals with a meaningful human connection.