The Conversation Factory

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Episodes

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Welcome to The Conversation Factory, where I investigate how to create change through changing conversations. Each episode I'll talk to an amazing conversation designer about how to Amplify, Shift or Transform conversations in Organizations, Teams, Communities and our own lives. Visit www.theconversationfactory.com where I distill these insights we can bring into our work and lives.

Episodes

Organizational Change is a Conversation

Buckle in, ladies and gentlemen, for some straight talk about the future of work, the nature of the universe and the power of changing systems to change behavior. Today I’m sharing a deep and rambling conversation I had a few months back with Aaron Dignan, author of Brave New Work and founder of the Ready, an org transformation partner to companies like Airbnb, Edelman and charity: water. He is a cofounder of responsive.org, an amazing community of like-minded transformation professionals. If yo...

Jun 19, 2019•47 min•Ep 5•Transcript available on Metacast

Grief and Loss in Organizational Change

Design means change and change means loss of the old. Even if a new design is better in every way, there is no design so perfect that you can “flip a switch” and step into the new instantaneously. Change takes time. And in that space between the old and the new there is a sense of loss. I’ve been doing my own work around trauma and healing it, and I couldn’t agree with more with Bree Groff’s sentiment that “Sometimes you have to step into the darkness with people” in order to heal things. Don’t ...

May 27, 2019•43 min•Transcript available on Metacast

Asking Better Questions

Today’s guest is Robin Peter Zander, an author, strategist, and performance coach. (scroll down for Robin’s full bio and links) The big insight for me in this episode is to ask myself a simple set of questions, often: why am I opening my mouth? What’s my goal? Wanting the best for the other person you’re talking to is a fine place to start. But there’s a level of humility we could all benefit from: Starting from a firm belief that each person has their own wisdom, rather than believing I know be...

May 14, 2019•48 min•Ep 3•Transcript available on Metacast

Don't Trust the Process

On this episode, I’m talking with Bárbara Soalheiro, founder of the Mesa method, a five-day process for bringing people together and solving extraordinary problems. Sound familiar? Think again. Mesa is unlike any other accelerated work environment I’ve encountered. And Bárbara is the first facilitator I’ve heard say “don’t trust the process.” We philosophize about power distribution, problem framing, Masculine vs Feminine leadership and the difference between a mystery and a quest. It’s a jam-pa...

Apr 12, 2019•1 hr 8 min•Ep 2•Transcript available on Metacast

Facilitating Co-Creation

Hey there Conversation Designers! Welcome back to the Conversation Factory, Season Three! I’ve got some amazing interviews lined up for the coming weeks and months and I’m excited to get cracking. Douglas Ferguson is a deep and brilliant facilitator, entrepreneur and technologist. Douglas and I met at the Google Sprint Conference and got to know each other a lot better when he came to NYC to join my Facilitation Masterclass. It’s always humbling to see the caliber of leaders who come out the mas...

Mar 30, 2019•1 hr 3 min•Ep 1•Transcript available on Metacast

The Power of Perspective

This episode features Michael Roderick, founder of Small Pond Enterprises and Host of the Access to Anyone Podcast. Michel is a coach and consultant who knows how to design conversations large and small. We talk about closing the loop on free advice (let people know if if it works…otherwise we’ll keep giving bad advice!), teaching through simulations and how to see patterns and build frameworks. Michael sends a daily (yes, daily!) email that I actually read! His claim to fame is that he went fro...

Dec 21, 2018•58 min•Ep 19•Transcript available on Metacast

Building an ethical sprint culture

Today’s episode features Kai Haley, Lead of Design Relations and the Sprint Master Academy at Google. We talk about design sprints and building a “sprint culture” as well as a much bigger question: The need for ethics in design. If you can build anything, faster, it’s a kind of super power. And with great power comes great responsibility. While you might have heard Spider-Man say that, it also made me think of my favorite Plato’s Dialog, Gorgias, which points out that power without knowledge of ...

Sep 26, 2018•48 min•Ep 18•Transcript available on Metacast

Changing the Cultural Conversation About Men

This episode is about four really big conversations that are worth designing: 1.How do you shift an entire cultural conversation? 2.How do you build a sustainable business and team around it? 3.How do you sustain yourself as an entrepreneur though all of this changemaking? (that is, take care of your own internal conversation through it all!) 4.How do you get the help you need to grow in all of these conversations? Dan Doty is the founder of an organization called Evryman that exists to help cha...

Sep 18, 2018•44 min•Ep 16•Transcript available on Metacast

Designing a culture of critique

Critique is one of the most crucial conversations there is. How to ask for and get feedback when you need it is a core life skill. Without it, we’re in the dark. Setting up a special time and place with clear rules and goals to get the crucial feedback you need to move forward…that’s designing the conversation, and I can’t think of a conversation that’s more critical. Pun Intended! My guests today are the authors of the wonderful (and quick reading!) book “Discussing Design: Improving Communicat...

Sep 07, 2018•54 min•Ep 16•Transcript available on Metacast

Everyday Design Sprints with Dee Scarano

Our guest today is Dee Scarano, Head of Design Sprint Training at AJ&Smart. They're an agency based in Berlin that is 100% google-sprint-based. They have a *fire* youtube channel that you should check out if you want to run more sprints, well. I met Dee at the Google Sprint Conference back in late 2017 and when I saw her run a large group workshop, I knew I had found a kindred spirit! Dee is what I would call an Atomic Facilitator. Not because she's small and powerful (which she is) but because ...

Aug 07, 2018•53 min•Transcript available on Metacast