Using the Dynamic Outline to Facilitate Collaborative Meetings: An Introduction to the Art of Technography by Bernard DeKoven adapted from Connected Executives, © 1990, 1993, 1999 Bernie DeKoven – all rights reserved 1 of 9 Using the Dynamic Outline to Facilitate Collaborative Meetings: An Introduction to the Art of Technography Regardless of goal or specialization, every facilitator should be familiar with the workings of an outline processor. The very same techniques that one learns in using an outline processor to facilitate personal productivity can be generalized to facilitate group productivity. And, vice versa. Using the outline processor to facilitate group productivity, each participant in a computer-enhanced meeting learns techniques that can be directly applied to increasing personal productivity. In the hands of one who is trained in technography, the outline processor is a potent tool, useful in almost any kind of meeting. Not that it is the outline processor itself that is so empowering to productive communications, but rather its capabilities combined with the skills of someone who has become familiar with the nature of: 1) Dynamic Structures 2) The C-Cycle 3) Viewer-Friendliness As facilitators and business leaders master the subtleties of outline processor technology, they eventually discover the most significant difference between the traditional paper outline and the electronic outline: the dynamic, flexible, profoundly malleable environment of the "live" computer screen. An outline is, in essence, a list of categories and items. Any category can "contain" a list of items, and any of those items can be used as subcategories for containing yet other lists of items. But on paper an outline is also static. Once a subcategory, always a subcategory. In an electronic outline, any item belonging to a particular category can be instantly "promoted" to become a category of its own, or "demoted" to a subcategory. Items can be moved out of one category into another. Categories can be renamed. Priorities and hierarchies all become temporary, and remain subject to change until they are put into hardcopy. adapted from Connected Executives, © 1990, 1993, 1999 Bernie DeKoven – all rights reserved 2 of 9 Renaming and Promoting Categories becomes: The dynamic flexibility of the electronic outline is the cornerstone of a host of techniques for using the outline processor to facilitate social and group process. For example, someone says something that in a traditional meeting would be ruled "out of order." Someone else, the group facilitator or leader, would then have to stop the meeting long enough to make the ruling and restore order. The contribution would be forgotten, and the contributor would feel frustrated, overruled, outmaneuvered. For fear of censorship, all contributors become less inclined to participate. With the electronic outline, the person acting in the role of technographer can create a new category which instantly puts that contribution back in order. At first, that category might be arbitrarily named adapted from Connected Executives, © 1990, 1993, 1999 Bernie DeKoven – all rights reserved 3 of 9 "Miscellaneous." As more comments are added to the Miscellaneous category, some of the items can be broken out into their own categories. No confrontation is necessary. No ideas need be dismissed. These categories are dynamic, easily shuffled or changed or even removed. As categories, they are not necessarily part of the content. They are organizational principles rather than raw information, and, as such, they can be introduced by the technographer or facilitator without encroaching on the integrity of the group-authored meeting document. During the editing phase of a group publication the skillful use of categories can help the group arrange isolated and disconnected bits of information into a well-structured and meaningful whole — without losing any of the pieces that get left over. For example: we introduce a category called "Draft" and place all of our relevant information into that category. Then we can create another category called "notes" or "for further exploration" and organize everything else below it. Nothing ever gets lost or deleted. Everything that is put into the record, remains in the record, somewhere. It is important to note that the use of dynamic categories in this way is successful only if they are periodically "emptied," all the items in them moved to their appropriate positions within the structure of the working document. As we shall soon see, the flexibility of the electronic outline gives rise to the creation of a whole new set of rules, a metastructure for maintaining consistency as well as flexibility. When working in an outline format, it is also possible to designate subcategories and sub-subcategories. The consistent use of subcategories creates a more useful document. It is much easier for the reader to find information if the reader knows that the first subcategory to any item will be, for example, commentary, or technical notes, or quotes. Having too many categories and subcategories, however, can become a nightmare for the person playing technographer. The more categories used, the more confused people become, deciding not only what to say but also where it belongs. Naturally, anyone can suggest a new category, but, for the sake of clarity and the sanity of the person playing technographer, it is necessary to limit the quantity of active categories. adapted from Connected Executives, © 1990, 1993, 1999 Bernie DeKoven – all rights reserved 4 of 9 Sample Categories adapted from Connected Executives, © 1990, 1993, 1999 Bernie DeKoven – all rights reserved 5 of 9 Sample Subcategories For an individual to keep focused on one idea for more than an hour is in itself an achievement. For a group to do so is virtually impossible. The skillful introduction of new categories can provide participants with a variety of entry points into the work at hand. Professional and personal concerns can be openly voiced and openly captured, said and read, and remain clearly and cleanly separate. The C-Cycle Another major interest of facilitators and managers alike is in new processes that are unique to computerenhanced communications. One of these processes we have called "The C-Cycle," identifying a creative cycle consisting of three phases of group document-production: "Collection, Connection, and Correction." Computer-aided discussions tend to operate in rather distinct phases. Discussions always begin at the input phase: a flow of only-somewhat-related ideas which are collected — entered into the computer with no regard to organization. The next phase is reached when no more new input is being made. The onscreen information is then connected — the list of unrelated items is reviewed for common themes and rearranged into appropriate categories. A third phase of the discussion is reached when connected ideas are corrected — further edited and rearranged until fully integrated into a well-structured outline. adapted from Connected Executives, © 1990, 1993, 1999 Bernie DeKoven – all rights reserved 6 of 9 One "C" at a Time It does not matter which phase the discussion is in; given the power of computer technology and the skills of the technographer, we can move from phase to phase with consummate ease. What we must learn, however, is to keep these phases distinct. It interferes with the flow of information and slows down communication if, just as the group is in the rush of collecting new input, people stop to debate just where in the document that information "belongs." When the group completes the next connection phase, each item will get to its proper place. When the next correction phase is completed, the outline will be properly structured, all the typos and misspellings will get fixed, all the sketchy statements and loosely connected phrases will get fleshed out into clear, logical prose. Connecting The connect phase tends to lead to the most radical changes. Large and small pieces of information get mixed around with great facility. New categories can be added that give entirely different perspectives to the meaning of the information. Technographers learn to keep two files running simultaneously: one, the archival depository of the unedited source material that is generated during the collect phase of the meeting, and one for the collaboratively edited material generated during the connect and correct phases. To protect individual contributions from misinterpretation, it becomes the rule that no major changes are made without getting the voice approval of the entire group. To institute such a rule, the technographer makes every attempt not to take editorial cues from any one individual in the group, regardless of role or responsibility. The movement from phase to phase of the C-Cycle is guided by the need for continuous individual validation of the material that is being generated by the group. The successful execution of this process very much depends on the proficiencies of the people who are leading the meeting. The more sensitive they are to the changing moods and needs of the collaborating group, the more aware they will be of the need to shift phases of the C-Cycle, moving most often between the collect and connect phases. Assigning Priorities and Structure During the connect phase, assigning priorities and structuring are the two most frequent operations. Assigning priorities is usually achieved by voice vote; structuring, by consensus. Once again, the outline processor is key. Its ability to create and manipulate long lists gives participants in computer-enhanced communications the ability to organize items, almost instantly, into virtually any sequence. This translates into an enhanced ability to arrange lists into priority order. It is important, especially before assigning priorities, to specify the criteria by which the items are to be sequenced — e.g. : in order of urgency, in order of cost, in order of long-term benefits, in order of political expediency, in order of what gets done first, in order of what is easiest to finish. Though it is decided upon by the whole group, it is the person who calls the meeting who has the ultimate responsibility of determining the criteria for assigning priorities. It is useful, after assigning priorities, to document the fact that the list has actually been assigned priorities. An efficient way to do this is to make it a "rule" that, after assigning priorities, a number is placed to the left of each item to indicate its priority order. This way, whenever we come across an item beginning with a number, we know that it has already been considered. Also, if numbered items are moved out of their priority order, use of the sort function of the outline processor will instantly return them to their proper position. In many cases, it is easier to assign priorities from the bottom of the list, up, from the least to the most. adapted from Connected Executives, © 1990, 1993, 1999 Bernie DeKoven – all rights reserved 7 of 9 Given the flexibility of the outline processor, it is not necessary to assign each item a different priority. Items assigned the same priority can be explored in whatever order the participants deem to be most expedient. When priorities are established by a group vote, the closer the items are in rank, the less precise the ranking. The outline processor also gives the group the ability to create and manipulate a structure in which one idea can not only be followed by another, as in a list, but can also be the "parent" of a whole list of related ideas. By moving topics "under" other topics, we can differentiate between major and subordinate themes, and in addressing the major theme, address all the information subordinated to it. In this way, we go from a random collection of ideas to a well-structured, detailed report. It is best if the structuring principles remain consistent. Four such rules are:  Items in a list are not related unless they have been assigned priorities, and then they are only related in sequence.  Items that are subordinated to other items are related specifically to their parent topic, but not necessarily (unless sequentially) to each other.  Higher-level items ("parents") reflect strategies and generalities.  Lower-level items ("children") reflect tactics and specifics. If structural principles remain sufficiently consistent, the group begins to evolve rules and procedures for using technography to assist in dealing with particular types of issues or for engaging in specific processes of inquiry, thereby continually increasing the profitability of communication and collaboration. Learning the nature of the C-Cycle is valuable to all potential users of technography. The C-Cycle is a new, computer-unique way of working. It is a method only made possible by the technical capabilities of the outline processor — a tool that integrates the processes of outlining and writing. Because of outline processor technology, the user can maintain a carefully and flexibly organized document while incorporating new information as needed. The C-Cycle is most evident when working with a highly flexible document editor, like the outline processor. It is as relevant to the enhanced productivity of the group as it is to the personal productivity of the connected writer, lawyer, trainer, manager, or executive. Stimulated by the success of the Macintosh interface, more and more software for more and more PCs is designed to be "user-friendly." The chief components of user friendliness are: pull-down menus, dialog boxes and WYSIWYG screen formatting. But the technographer, ever concerned with the participant, is much more interested in viewer-friendliness of the on-screen image than in user-friendliness of the keyboard interface. So, while pull-down menus make it easier for the user to remember a complex software command structure, and dialog boxes make it easier for the user to understand what the software is doing, they only confuse the viewer. The technographer must become familiar enough with user-friendly software to avoid using most of the user-friendly features. Fortunately, most software designers provide alternatives — special key combinations and macros which allow the operator to evoke whatever control necessary without using the menus or evoking the dialog boxes. Miscrosoft Word even includes a special utility which allows the user to modify the command structure, creating keyboard equivalents for any software function. With a computer display that helps both the technographer and the participants "See What You Get", the technographer is able to produce on-screen output that is easy to read and understand. Fingers never leaving the keyboard, menus never pulled down, the technographer can instantly change the size of the adapted from Connected Executives, © 1990, 1993, 1999 Bernie DeKoven – all rights reserved 8 of 9 text to make it easier for more people to read. The technographer can just as easily alter the appearance of a word or line to indicate special emphasis without littering the screen with arcane computer instructions Most outline processors have features which further enhance viewer-friendliness. During the connect phase, the technographer must make frequent use of the "collapse" and "expand" display capabilities of the outline processor so that participants can maintain an overview of the document and can exercise critical judgment about the material they are developing. The artful use of the "collapse" and "expand" commands help minimize the amount of information displayed on the screen. All of these commands and capabilities need to be learned and mastered, and mastery can be achieved only after many hours of individual and group practice. For the facilitator, the outline processor becomes a virtual Swiss Army knife of tools for enhancing and centralizing a wide variety of management activities: managing meetings, plans, projects, calendars, phone calls, ideas. Seeing the computer-generated outline as a dynamic structure, facilitators can bring that same balance of flexibility and organization to their work in the office, on the airplane or in the meeting room. Becoming familiar with the C-Cycle, facilitators are able to work with greater diversity projects and people and produce more cohesive results. Understanding the principles of viewerfriendliness, facilitators are able to extend their connectedness to the people with whom they work. adapted from Connected Executives, © 1990, 1993, 1999 Bernie DeKoven – all rights reserved 9 of 9