Creating a Mindful Organization

Session Submission Type: Workshop

Short Description

Leaders who seek to create mindful organizations can do so, even within larger systems that are overwhelmingly complicated and bureaucratic. Creating mindfulness in any organization takes desire, intention, and persistence using simple processes to create a healthier work culture that promotes mindfulness and joy during work. Based on qualitative action research, this session will engage participants in a series of reflection and awareness practices and small group exercises, to discover how they can create such an organization within their own workplace. No advance preparation is necessary and a wide range of levels of experience with regard to mindfulness will be accommodated.

Detailed Abstract

(Problem, Need, and Significance)
The theme of Leadership in Turbulent Times focuses us on the uncertainties reflected nationally and globally, and how this may even be the new normal. It is critical for executives and higher education professionals to nourish healthy cultures for all people within their organizations during such times—and this means being able to be fully present while holding steady through the chaos. Developing mindfulness is one valuable approach for leadership under these conditions. Mindfulness and a healthy organizational culture enhances the capacity to be a committed citizen—something that seems increasingly needed in our turbulent world. For students, learning comes not just from the courses, but very much from the environment in which one studies (Feldman & Newcomb, 1969; Goldman, 1979; Halpin & Croft, 1963). If we are to have a peaceful world, the organizational cultures students experience during their education have a huge influence on their understanding of what creates peace (The 14th Dalai Lama,N.D.)

(Framework)
Creating a mindful organization is possible for any leader who is willing to attend to being fully present and intentionally introduce simple processes, based on qualitative action research, to assist and support employees to be in the moment, “awake,” and present at work. Based on our research and personal practices of mindfulness and awareness, we regard a mindful culture as being one that encourages people to be present in the moment to themselves and one another, that has processes which give people time to reflect individually and together, and that supports compassionate action through how we evaluate performance. Our experience as both leaders and researchers suggests to us that in order to create such a culture, leaders need to be self-aware and have practices to nourish such awareness or they cannot create a mindful culture (Bertram Gallant, T., & Getz, C. (2009); Carroll, 2007; Getz, C. (2009); Good et al., 2016; Goldman Schuyler, 2010, 2012, 2016; Gunnlaugson, Baron, & Cayer, 2014; Rakoff, 2010; Romano, 2014; Weick & Putnam, 2006). In addition, research has shown that those who participate in some form of mindfulness practices are less reactive, more open to diverse viewpoints, and have an increased capacity for making informed decisions (Hunter, 2013). The choices that people make at work are strongly influenced by the organizational culture and also by their perception of their leaders’ behavior, so creating a healthy and mindful organization involves a combination of many areas of organizational design, as well as the influence of the living presence of their senior leaders (Berila, 2016; Chandwani, Agrawal & Kedia, 2013; Goldman Schuyler, 2004; Goldman Schuyler & Branagan, 2003; Wilson, 2016).

(Questions and Content)
The facilitators of this workshop will participate from three distinct points of view. Kathryn Goldman Schuyler will speak as a consultant who guides organizations toward mindfulness and as a professor who incorporates awareness practices in her courses. Cheryl Getz is a professor who is also a university leadership administrator. She specializes in problem-based learning, in the moment action inquiry, and other experiential methods to encourage students to make meaning of their experiences and use this knowledge to expand their leadership capacity. Subhanu Saxena is a global executive whose experience has spanned markets in Europe, North America, Africa and Asia. He is currently a Director with The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in London. All of us have years of training and experience in developing and facilitating experiential workshops that shift participants’ thinking in ways that lead to new actions afterward.

We will invite participants to explore how to create (or strengthen) a healthy, mindful organization in their respective places of work. The intended audience is anyone interested in creating such a culture within higher education and any other organization, despite the size or whether it is embedded within a larger system that may be overwhelmingly complicated and/or bureaucratic. The session will be appropriate for administrators, leader/managers, faculty members, students, and consultants. It is anticipated that all workshop members will participate in non-threatening reflection and awareness practices, as well as in conversation in dyads or small groups. No advance preparation is necessary and a wide range of levels of experience with regard to mindfulness will be accommodated.

(Design – Times approximate)
The workshop will open with useful information:
- An overview of what is known about introducing mindfulness in organizations,
- Executive perspectives on the importance of a mindful, healthy organizational cultures and what this asks of leaders,
- Thoughts on the interconnection of mindfulness and action research.
Next will be experiential practices inviting all present to calm their minds and then bring this into reflections on what they wish to do in their lives and work in this context.
We will close by integrating our work together and leave all with a few actions to take home.


(Results, Findings, Outcomes)
1) Appreciate the value of creating healthy, mindful cultures in colleges and universities, especially during turbulent times.
2) Appreciate the role of mindfulness in organizational health.
3) Understand the challenges of introducing mindfulness in any organization and be prepared with solutions to address these hurdles.
4) Learn simple processes that can be used to introduce mindfulness in teams and organizations.
5) Understand the importance of persistence in creating a mindful organization.
6) Leave with ideas about strategies for introducing or strengthening mindfulness and a healthy culture in the participant’s work organization.

(Conclusions)
The ability to incorporate mindfulness in the workplace increases satisfaction both personally and professionally (Carroll, 2007; Etmanski, Fulton, Nasmyth, & Page, 2014; Goldman Schuyler, Skjei, Sanzgiri, & Koskela, 2017; Reams, Gunnlaugson, & Reams, 2014). Leaders who would like to create a mindful and healthy organization can accomplish this, even if the organization is embedded in a larger complex, even turbulent, institution by sustaining their own personal awareness practice and using simple processes on a consistent basis.

Sub Unit

• Leadership Development

Presenters

• Kathryn Goldman Schuyler, Alliant International University

• Cheryl Getz, University of San Diego

• Subhanu Saxena, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation