Los Alamitos Unified School District Health Benefits Committee Meeting

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Los Alamitos Unified School District Health
BenefitsCommittee Meeting

• February 11, 2008

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Agenda

• Checking In
• Calendar
• Protocols
• Purpose of the Committee
• Responsibilities of the committee member
• Insurance definitions
• LAUSD Health Insurance History

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• Power in any organization is generated by
  relationships.
• Robert Garmston

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Meeting Calendar

• Meeting time- 100 300 PM
• Meeting location- District Office Board Room
• Meeting Dates- February 11, March 10, April 14,
  May 12, June 9, July 14, August 11, September 8,
  October 13, November 10, December 8.

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Welcome and Checking In

• Name
• How are you?
• Time constraints?
• Rumors/elephants ?
• Expectations for the meeting?
• Reflections/Questions?

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Why we do check in

• Calibrate the agenda
• Focus
• Build understanding
• Time accordion

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Norms for Health Benefits Committee

• Attend each meeting
• Be engaged! Participate!
• Turn off cell phones
• No side conversation when someone is speaking
• Be on time
• Bell means stop and listen

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Responsibilities

• To share with your negotiations team information
  gained from meetings
• Be prepared to represent your constituents
• To park your self interests about you and your
  families health benefits at the door
• To think what is best for all employees that you
  represent as well as what is best for the
  District
• To attend all meetings
• To assume a charitable intent

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Seven Norms of Collaboration

• Pausing
• Paraphrasing
• Probing
• Putting Ideas on the Table
• Paying Attention to Self and Others
• Presuming Positive Intentions
• Pursuing a Balance Between Advocacy and Inquiry

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Pausing

• Pausing before responding or asking a question
  allows time for thinking and enhances dialogue,
  discussion and decision-making.

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Paraphrasing

• Using a paraphrase starter that is comfortable
  for you So. or As you are... or Youre
  thinking and following the starter with a
  paraphrase assists members of the group to hear
  and understand each other as they formulate
  decisions.

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Probing

• Using gentle open-ended probes or inquiries such
  as, Please say more or Im curious about or
  Id like to hear more about increases the
  clarity and precision of the groups thinking.

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Putting Ideas on the Table

• Ideas are the heart of a meaningful dialogue.
  Label the intention of your comments. For
  example, you might say Here is one ideas or
  One thought I have is or Here is a possible
  approach

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Paying attention to self and others

• Meaningful dialogue is facilitated when each
  group member is conscious of self and others and
  is aware of not only what she/he is saying, but
  also how it is said and how others are
  responding. This includes paying attention to
  learning style when planning for, facilitating
  and participating in group meetings. Responding
  to others in their own language forms is one
  manifestation of this norm.

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Presuming positive intentions

• Assuming that others intentions are positive
  promotes and facilitates meaningful dialogue and
  eliminates unintentional put-downs. Using
  positive intentions in your speech is one
  manifestation of this norm.

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Pursuing a balance between advocacy and inquiry

• Pursuing and maintaining a balance between
  advocating a position and inquiring about ones
  own and others positions assist the group to
  become a learning organization.

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Protocols

• You represent a large group of employees not
  your self interests
• Your group makes decisions as a group not as
  individuals
• Decisions will be made by consensus

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Tips For Reaching Consensus

• Insist that all views be heard, understood, and
  respected.
• Legitimize all perceptions.
• Confront problems, misunderstandings and bad
  feelings early in the phases.
• Address issues, not people

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Tips For Reaching Consensus

• Get agreement on the problem or the vision before
  going on to the solutions.
• Be explicit about each phase of problem-solving.
• Look for ways of breaking fixation and redefining
  the problem/solution space. Avoid win/lose and
  either /or propositions.
• Keep backing up to the phase and level of
  generality where a foundation of agreements can
  be developed. Keep summing up agreements.

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Tips For Reaching Consensus

• 9. Get agreement on criteria before evaluating
  the alternatives.
• 10. Look for little successes before tackling the
  big problem.
• 11. Avoid premature motions.
• 12. Use formal voting as a last approach.

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Consensus

• Thumbs up- I agree
• Thumbs down- I do NOT agree
• Thumbs sideways- I can live with it

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Insurance Definitions

• See handout

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LAUSD Health Insurance History

• See Pattis information