Narrative, action and organisational change

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Narrative, action and organisational change

• Trisha Greenhalgh
• Professor of Primary Health Care
• University College London

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Purpose of this talk

• To show how narrative can be used in
  organisational change efforts
• To raise and explore some theoretical issues
  about organisational narratives
• To demonstrate the link between narrative and
  general systems theory

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The maternity services story
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Stories 10 unique selling points as tools for
organisational change
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1. Stories are a natural and universal form of
communication
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2. Stories are performative and action-oriented
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3. Stories create engagement and a shared
living-through
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4. Stories embrace complexity and embeddedness
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5. Stories occur in both formal and informal
space
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6. Stories are sense-making devices
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7. Stories are a window to wider truths about
the organisation
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8. Stories are inherently subversive
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9. Stories have an ethical perspective
The singular case arises only in the act of
narrating it and duties are incurred in the act
of hearing it Rita Charon
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10. Stories have imagined future possibilities
(subjunctivization)
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Examples
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How do we make this happen?
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Structure of one-day session

• Introduction narrative/complexity
• Group storytelling task
• Informal tell some stories about X
• Formal fill out the template as a group
• Lunch (informal discussion/reframing)
• Group reflection and action planning
• Plenary learning points, evaluation

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Set task
Informal (safe) storytelling
Formal sharing of good stories
Abstraction with help of template
Action planning
Evaluation
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The storytelling template
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• Who is the story about?
• Why did you choose this story?
• What happened in the story?

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• How did the people in the story feel or react?
• What aspects of the story had most impact on you?

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• How could the story have ended differently?
• What would the organisation be like in order for
  this different ending to occur?

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Conclusion

• Stories are a flexible, fun and creative tool for
  engaging people in organisational change efforts
• Storytelling is particularly useful when
  analysing and changing complex systems
• Set a clear structure within which groups can
  imagine and begin to enact a future

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Thank you for your attention

• Trisha Greenhalgh
• University College London
• p.greenhalgh_at_pcps.ucl.ac.uk

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A slant from complexity (general systems) theory
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What is a complex system?

• Collection of actors/agents who can act
  independently and creatively
• Share an environment or space
• Parts are interconnected interfaces and
  relationships between the parts are key
• Action by any part affects the whole

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Distinguish between

• Simple system
• Complicated system
• Complex system

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(No Transcript)
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Complexity science key principles

• Relationships
• Patterns
• Simple rules
• Adaptation
• Non-linearity (small things, big effects)
• Embeddedness
• Attractor effects

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Attractor effects

• Throwing a rock
• Throwing a bird

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Making sense of complex systems

• MUST THINK ABOUT relationships patterns
  simple rules adaptation non-linearity
  embeddedness attractors
• Aaaugh!

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Making sense of complex systems

• Use a sensemaking device that incorporates and
  promotes all these perspectives
• Tell a story

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Stories

• Are about relationships
• Are inherently patterned (plot)
• Illustrate simple rules and attractor effects
• Show development / adaptation over time
• Incorporate devices for demonstrating
  non-linearity (suspense, surprise, twists in the
  plot) and embeddedness (plot within a plot)

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Thank you for your attention

• Trisha Greenhalgh
• University College London
• p.greenhalgh_at_pcps.ucl.ac.uk