Stimulate Organizational Change with Natural Metaphors

We have been using the metaphor as a catalyst for understanding complex change issues for years. But our recent travel has exploded our use of this linguist multiplier (ability to use language to convey our understanding of change quickly). This new approach uses our Facebook site - Quality of WorkLife Consultants - to bring many of these insights to our practitioner network by linking a picture to an appropriate metaphor.

So, what's a metaphor? A metaphor is a way of associating something familiar with something that might be relatively unknown or unfamiliar using a specific language structure. Here's an example: "Learning something useful is like a breath of fresh air." The word like is critical because it links the familiar "a breath of fresh air" with something unfamiliar "learning something useful."

To multiply the impact of the metaphor, we:

Generate metaphors from participants in our RGB Foundational Workshop. One exercise common to all RGB foundation workshops concludes with a challenge, "So, how is playing SPOONS like working in your organization?" By answering this question, participants create a metaphor that can be easily used to show that all organizations have common issues. A common answer to our question is usually, "Some people don't play by the rules." The unstated metaphor is, "People breaking rules playing SPOONS is like people breaking rules in our organization." This is a common issue that now gets validated attention. Some organizations have these issues more prominent than others, but human systems have commonality. It is useful for people to know that they are part of a pattern of humanity rather than a uniquely negative oddity. As long as all organizations have these oddities to some degree and some organizations are far more productive than others, one can draw a reasonable conclusion that less-than-ideal conditions can be improved with well designed effort. That concept is often refreshing to participants that may not have the hope they need to make improvements.

Locate metaphors in our RGB Roadshow travels. We try to visit sites in our Roadshow travels that have a connection to other collections of interest to us. For example, we collect: coins (that attest to a specific time period), photographs of Colonial historic sites (that have meaning in the quest for Liberty), celebrity autographs (that capture a character(s) being played that dramatize specific points), and other special memorabilia (that helps to connect with our classical organization development work). When these interests can be combined, there is even more synergy. For example, when we visit a colonial historic site such as the Minute Man Memorial in Concord, Massachusetts and link that to the State Quarter from Massachusetts, we've really hit a home run. There are connecting stories here that can be fresh to the realities of work today - "Sometimes it's important to take a stand like the Minute Men in Massachusetts did when they launched a revolution."

Embed metaphors in our RGB Technology with CODE WORDS. When we use the CODE WORDS "Council of Colonels" we are using a shortcut metaphor that represents a group of senior officers that report directly to the commander in a military unit. In addition to being effective gatekeepers, they also perform the function of filtering information, often to the degree that there is an undercurrent of subversion to their activities. In it's worst case scenario their loyalty is to the commander rather than to their oath of office and the very military culture they are sworn to defend. These same characteristics are often found in civilian organizations. When this happens those deep in the organization get to the point of futile subjugation. There are many more CODE WORDS in our technology used as shortcut phrases between practitioners. Some are linked to sites we visit and are referenced on our Facebook site. Can you imagine what the CODE WORDS "Carpet Land" referenced in one of our client systems?

Link metaphors with our ongoing user Educational Mission. Many of these metaphors are used in our educational literature and occasionally constitute at least one item on RGB Certification examinations. Many of those in our informal network of RGB Practitioners depend on each other for reciprocal support when larger teams are needed for specific work. Being able to use a language unique to the specific work we do for clients has enormous time saving utility. It also puts that language into a formally universal context.

Reward users with gifts as part of a fun Metaphor Scavenger Hunt. Users are eligible for significant gifts, such as week-long vacation condos or network computers, if they are able to answer questions about our CODE WORDS shorthand metaphors. This adds one dimension of fun to the equation as well as continues the education even after Certification. The real benefits reside in the work we do for our client organizations. The more in sync we are as practitioners, the better the quality and consistency of the services we offer. Over 15 years ago a small contingent of practitioners worked hard to design and install a SERVUS program (now a CODE WORD) that has evolved into a specific meaning - customer service in a public school system.