Speakers
Kit Turen
Kit Turen will be our Master of Ceremonies for the day. Expect to be delighted! Kit Turen has been observing the world and telling stories in one form or another all her life. (Growing up, she kept a horse in her basement; she felt sorry for anyone who pretended it wasn’t there.) Kit has 20 years of experience as a writer/producer in radio and television production, during which time her work has earned an Emmy Award, a Cable Ace, the New York International Television and Film Grand Award and a Corporation for Public Broadcasting Grant. She also writes and performs original stories and she still laughs when she tells people she had her New York debut at Brooklyn’s Blah Blah Lounge. As a Certified Celebrant, Kit creates and facilitates personalized ceremonies and rituals to mark the passages and events in the lives of individuals, families, groups and organizations, weaving personal, and/or organizational, stories into each ceremony.
Your Story on the Social Web
Social networks and social media offer tremendous business opportunities in 2010. Yet many professionals find the task of learning about these new technologies daunting. If that’s you, take heart. Even though you do need technology to construct a business web presence, learning how to use the available tools is only one piece of the puzzle. Success comes from having a plan and then telling a coherent, compelling story over time and across platforms. Are you ready?
In this interactive workshop we’ll start from wherever you are—with the core qualities that matter to your business—then focus on approaches to self-education that build on what you already know so that you can start using the Social Web with confidence. A coherent approach to Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn, the big 3 networks for business, will also help you understand how to leverage the structures and norms of the Social Web to communicate your story. Join us for exercises, presentations, discussions, and demonstrations to get you moving in new directions.
About Jo Golden & Tracey Holinka
Jo specializes in education, communication, and moving through conflict around learning and change in the digital world. Tracey supports clients by teaching how to make the most of computers and the Internet while getting your business or professional self online. Together they run Chaos To Clarity LLC.
Sustaining Innovation in the Face of World Class Challenges
Ever consider building a dream home? If you have, you are already familiar with the journey Larry Forster will take you through. The first thing someone realizes in building a dream home is that the builder has a completely different perspective than they do. And this is only the beginning. The same situation exists in innovation, in this case introducing new technology, into an oil and gas facility. There are many different perspectives in play, and the greater the business challenges, the more divergent the perspectives become.
About Larry Forster
Larry is a Staff Engineer with Shell Exploration and Production Co., and works in Technology Deployment in New Orleans. Involved with technology throughout most of his 25+ year career with Shell, Larry is featured as a pioneer in the use of story in Wake Me Up When the Data Is Over: How Organizations Use Stories to Drive Results, edited by Lori Silverman, Jossey-Bass, 2006.
Stories through Song and Movement
Songs are stories strung together by notes and rests. All powerful stories come from our engagement in life, and one way to become and stay engaged is through the breath which is central to both singing and yoga. Come learn a new way to access and tell stories. Through SingYo, a new tool which combines the joy of song with the presence of yoga, we can find the flow of music in our bodies; this flow assists understanding and accessing our past, present, and future stories.
Participants will be guided through a step-by-step process to enter a state of relaxation and focus, learn a technique for enhancing diaphragmatic breathing that is the core of both singing and yoga, and be taught basic yoga and singing exercises. They will then break into groups and combine their favorite yoga poses with their favorite songs to tell a story. Participants will leave with a deeper understanding of the power of whole brain/whole body storytelling. No previous yoga or singing training is necessary. Please wear comfortable clothing and bring your favorite songs.
About Lynne Feingold
Lynne pioneered applied storytelling in the government at GSA and the Departments of Treasury and State to share knowledge, engage people with the human side of technology, and spark organizational change. The video produced of her oral storytelling was shown at the G7 (now G8) on-line meetings. Her work in using ballroom dancing as a metaphor for leadership stories is acknowledged in the Jossey-Bass publication, Wake Me Up When the Data is Over: How Organizations Use Story to Drive Results (2006). Lynne is a founding member of Golden Fleece. She has a certificate in business narrative from the Center for Narrative Studies. Currently, she serves as an Executive Program Officer at the Department of Treasury’s Executive Institute, a life-learning center for the senior leaders. She is a certified yoga instructor, music therapist, and classically trained singer.
Story and Life Long Learning – Turning the I to We
Blogging grew 68% in 2008. There are hundreds of thousands of podcasts. We spend almost 12 hours a day consuming information – 3 times what we consumed in 1980. How do you deal with such a deluge and how does story fit in? The role of story in learning is sometimes subtle, but always essential for lessons that are remembered. Based on her latest book, Riding the Current: How to Deal with the Daily Deluge of Data, this workshop will present 
the stages for building learning into a life long habit for yourself and show how story is woven into each step. This workshop will be highly interactive, allowing participants to learn and begin their own exploration process of how they can better deal with the deluge of information that streams into our lives every day.
About Madelyn Blair
Madelyn is founder and president of Pelerei, Inc. She is a facilitator, designer of learning experiences, and expert researcher, building her work on strength-based techniques. Her joy is in working with individuals and groups to bring them to another level of accomplishment. Her clients include Bank of Canada, The World Bank, Brookings Institute, Transamerica Reinsurance, American University, Smithsonian Institution, and the National Institute of Health. She is a founding member of Goldenfleece, co-moderator of Worldwide Story Work on ning.com, an Associate of the Taos Institute, and co-director of the Center for Narrative Studies. Dr. Blair received her doctorate in organizational psychology from the University of Tilburg, The Netherlands, and holds an MBA from The Wharton School. Madelyn is the author of Riding the Current: How to Deal with the Daily Deluge of Data. She is a contributing author of Lessons from the Field and Wake Me Up When the Data Is Over. She is a wife and a mother and enjoys mountain climbing.
The Stories We Work By
We live by two stories at work and the problem is the stories are incongruent. They require people to pay attention to different things and we are torn between them. One, we know as ‘management’. It’s a story about data, directives, deliverables, deadlines, and dollars. This is the official story we work by. The other, ‘organizing,’ is about making sense of what is happening and getting on with things. ‘Who made these rules?’; ‘lets try it this way’; ‘what does she want?’ It is the story people tell when they’re working and is unofficial and ‘unseen’.
Explaining what I see as the consequences of living in two stories, I’ll pose a series of questions and ask the audience to respond with their own stories to: see if what I’ve outlined resonates; hear how people experience the two stories in their own work lives; discover what the incongruence means to them. The challenge I want to throw out is, if my story about two stories rings true and we live schizophrenic work-lives, how do we escape. What actions can we take?
About Mark Addleson
Mark is an Associate Professor in Organizational Development and Knowledge Management at the School of Public Policy at George Mason University.
Story 2.0: The Evolution of Organizational Storytelling
In this interactive session we will explore ideas for how to build brand visibility, thought leadership, and the perceived relevance of storytelling. How can we bring a bigger notion of storytelling into popular culture and popular consciousness? Join me for a provocative conversation around the current and evolving state of storytelling as a business practice. The world is changing. Yet how is the field of storytelling adapting to keep pace with societal needs, of both institutions and individuals?
We all know the trend and tactic of storytelling is of growing practical value. Whether it’s the innovation economy, social media, or the re-invention of society, the need for storytelling couldn’t be greater. Yet the way many of us present and package storytelling is often limiting and only perpetuates existing misperceptions. There’s always a much bigger story to tell.
About Michael Margolis
Michael advises businesses, nonprofits, and entrepreneurs on how to get others to believe in their story. As the founder of Get Storied, an education and media company, Michael champions the power of “bigger storytelling” at the level of branding, strategy, culture, and communications. With a background in social enterprise and cultural anthropology, Michael has worked with dozens of world-changing efforts, helping to revitalize their bigger story. Michael teaches brand storytelling at the executive MBA level for the Schulich School of Business and is the author of Believe Me – a Storytelling Manifesto for Change-makers, which you can download as a free digital copy or buy the print version at www.believemethebook.com
The Geography of Human Life – Story-Mapping and Tracking
Australian indigenous people use stories and songs to map their territory. The way they travel safely though often inhospitable landscape is to tell or sing the story and that tells them where the water holes are and what places contain danger. Participants will be invited to explore the idea of stories as maps – to imagine their narrative work as life geography.
About Paul Costello
Paul is the Executive Director of the Center for Narrative Studies, is a pioneer in narrative theory and practice. In addition to writing and teaching, Paul directed the Washington-Ireland Program from 1998-2008. This year as he retired from this role, he received public recognition from the US Congress and the Northern Ireland Assembly for his contribution to building a new story for Northern Ireland and discovering in the process, a powerful narrative way of peace-building. He is now returning to full time narrative practice, writing and teaching and eager to share the findings of his research.
The Liminal Power of Storytelling: Exploring the place between worlds
Liminal space takes us from one reality to another, bridging the soul with the world. An ancient story of transformation, the story of organizational storytelling, and his own journey from ritual artist to corporate consultant – in his keynote Seth will braid these three strands exploring the place between worlds. He will perform an original piece that connects work-in-the-world to the inner landscape of psyche-and-dream in the spirit of authentic transformation.
About Seth Kahan
Seth is not only a motivational and keynote speaker, but also a prolific writer releasing numerous articles, books, and recordings every year on topics such as leadership styles, communication management, organizational change and storytelling as a business tool. He is also the author of Fast Co’s expert blog, Leading Change.
Expanding the Potential of Narrative Practice: Creating a Living Archive
The session will showcase Sparknow’s recent work with the Asian Development Bank in creating a Living Archive. The session will begin with a presentation of the assignment and how the concept of a Living Archive was developed and implemented. It will also include a short live performance by musician/ artist David Gunn of material from Sparknow’s project for the Asian Development Bank.
Featuring atmospheric sounds, narrative fragments and arresting visuals from fieldwork conducted in Manila and Cambodia. Finally, a facilitated session will explore potential uses and advantages of sound and audio in narrative practice.
About Victoria Ward & David Gunn
Sparknow is a knowledge and communication consultancy founded over a decade ago to bring some warmth back into the workplace. We specialise in unearthing useful truths that were almost known but not quite expressed. Visit Sparknow for more information.
The Power of Stories in Turning Community Theater into Theater for the Community
The vision of two individuals, Mark Delancey and Ken Martin, who dared to make a difference in their community, is a compelling story in and of itself. The story of how these two individuals used stories to achieve their vision is a great example of shared community building. In this session, participants will learn how the founders of the theater company are engaging their community by seeking to We Create their future.
Mark Delancey will describe some of the struggles and constraints he and his partner have dealt with over the past 10 years and share his hopes and dreams for the future. Lynne Route of daVinci Consulting will describe the design of the campaign, the process for gathering the stories, and the methodologies for sharing the stories. Vince Pelote of daVinci Consulting will then take the audience through a mini “World Café” where they will participate in story sharing. The participants will take away tools to use for their own story-sharing campaign.
About the Presenters
Vince Pelote and Lynne Route are the Managing Partner and Founding Partner of davinci consulting. Mark Delancey is the Managing Director of M & D Productions and Your Theater.