What I do — Public sector
How do you get public sector organisations to reach agreements?
In the public sector, interests are many and hierarchy is visible. In mergers and joint arrangements, people sit at the table who need each other and rarely speak. An Open Space gives those conversations a place in the programme.
For public bodies and public organisations
- You work for a municipality, agency, care institution or other public body
- Several organisations or levels of government have to move forward together
- You want input that can still change the outcome
- You have run a consultation round before whose conclusion was already set
Case: VERA — Community Day
VERA — Community Day, 2024, Halle city offices. VERA is the e-government support centre for the province of Flemish Brabant, connecting local authorities around IT policy and digitalisation. At its Community Day, VERA brought together local councils, social services, police zones and inter-municipal bodies. I facilitated the interactive part, where participants discussed ethical digitalisation, information management and data-driven working in small groups. The audience reached well beyond IT: policy officers, communications, civil registry, and heads of finance and organisational control. VERA’s write-up
Why this works in the public sector
In most public sector challenges, someone in the room already knows the answer. That person usually is not speaking. Or is not in the same room as whoever decides.
In an Open Space the people present set the agenda. Hierarchy does not disappear. It just matters less, for one day, in deciding who speaks. What you are left with are agreements made by the people who have to act on them.
EU institutions and international groups
Do you work for an EU institution or with groups from several countries? What I have done there, and in which languages, is on Open Space in Brussels and the EU context.
From gathering to agreement
An Open Space produces a harvest, not a decision. So during preparation I agree with the public body who decides after the day, how, and by when. How that plays out in practice: the approach.
More on the preparation: the invitation is the design.
What an Open Space costs depends on the format and the preparation: how I put a price together.