Innerworks by Beatrice Gray

Innerworks Volume 1 April 2014

Leadership for the

21st

Century Emotional Intelligence, helping you lead effectively in an ever changing organization. 1

A word from

Innerworks

the Editor in Chief...

echnological advances are creating a world in which change is occurring at

such a fast rate that it is hard to keep up unless one applies full effort, has the vision to look ahead, and the innovation to bring that vision to fruition throughout action. Those within an organization will want it to grow and prosper. Continual prosperity requires continual growth. Thus, whether an organization is new or old, successful or struggling, developing new processes and strategies should be of the utmost importance. One should study organizational theory and development to understand how to produce effective organizational change. Organizational change is only transformational when a leader is innovative, current, visionary, and in tune with clients, staff, and stakeholders. It is through an understanding of human behavior and social dynamics that a leader can harness the creative and driving energy for positive change and best practices. Although change is the only constant, it is the way in which change is managed that can produce transformational change. Today's leaders must understand different theories in order to ensure a broader foundation and greater potential for an organization’s successful change process. Theories of organizational development will keep a leader updated, and in the know on best practices, strategies, and resources for organizational effectiveness. Just because a theory fits one organization does not mean it will fit all organizations. By understanding multiple theories one is able to customize a theory that will fit one's needs.

Editor-in-Chief Lynn Hovde 

Editorial Director Ambra Dodds 

Creative & Design Director Beatrice Gray 

Illustrations and Humor Denise Larue Sandra Vilas Ambra Dodds 

Senior Editor Heidi Simmons 

Contributor Lorena Medina Jennifer Marzocca

Thus, not only are the needs of each organization different, but the needs within one organization are constantly in a state of flux. In Innerworks, we have focused on emotional intelligence as an important aspect of transformational change within an organization. People are faced with various challenges that impact attitudes and abilities, and those attitudes and abilities can impact an organization. Understanding how everything is connected is important for personal and organizational growth. Not only is it important for leaders to embrace the concept of emotional intelligence, but all of the stakeholders within an organization should be given an opportunity through assessment and training to develop their emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence includes becoming aware of one's emotions and reactions to others, managing conflict, remaining positive when challenged, listening to one another, understanding other perspectives, and working well with a team. Emotional intelligence is what empowers individuals within an organization to work together to move it forward in new, ever-changing world--the 21st century.

Contact Information Brandman Publishing (877) 494-7052 www.brandman.edu/Start-Now

(877) 494-7052

contents 4

An interview with Dean Vogel by Ambra Dodds & Heidi Simmons

Book Review: Emotional Intelligence By Jennifer Marzocca

Environmental Scanning: Do or Die! by Beatrice Gray

Action Research by Lorena Medina

Collaborative Inquiry: Enquiring minds want to Know by Denise LaRue

An Interview with Organiza tional Psychologist, Ernie Mendes, PhD

by Denise LaRue & Lorena Medina

Internal Consultants: The untapped resource

by Ambra Dodds

The High Road

OD Intervention in the educational field

by Sandra Vilas

by Heidi Simmons

Decision Making

Don’t B.L.U.F. Me

by Lynn Hovde

“Two roads diverged in a wood and I took the one less traveled by. And that has made all the difference.” Robert Frost

By Jennifer Marzocca

Flipped Classroom by Sandy Vilas

Innerworks

April 2014

Interview with Dean Vogel, President of the California Teachers Association By Ambra Dodds and Heidi Simmons

IW: What do you feel has been the biggest challenge you have faced in becoming CTA president? DV: The hardest part for me, I think, is a personal thing. There is an aura about being the president of CTA. If I’m in Sacramento and I’m in a restaurant where lobbyists and political people are, they all know who I am but I don’t know who they are. So there’s always this eye on me. I always think of myself as a kindergarten teacher from Vacaville and so what. I guess what I want people to know, even with our own members, is if I’m walking down a hallway and someone says, “Oh my God, there’s Dean Vogel,” it’s almost like there’s something different about me. There’s just this-- aura is a good descriptor--and I have never found comfort with that. And the other thing is, I’m your spokesperson when I’m sitting with the governor or when I’m talking with legislative leadership. The kinds of things that come up are policy considerations around what teachers want and so the pressure to say the right thing and be appropriate is very great. When you’re representing over 300,000 people, you’ve got to listen really carefully. It’s a highly emotionally charged political job. I never set out to do political work, even though being part of a school is kind of political. I find myself saying and doing things behind the scenes that I never imagined I would do or say that are political. IW: You have held many positions within CTA. You have been with the organization as it has grown. There have been numerous changes under your leadership. Do you see yourself as a transformational leader? DV: Transformational in the sense that I learned about CTA like you did. I was aware peripherally when I was in a building and getting involved with my local union. When I got to state council, I thought, “Gee this is a bigger thing than I had anticipated.” I was in my second year as a council member when I got elected to the CTA Board, and I was one of those disillusioned people because I really felt that what the organization should be focused on is what is happening in classrooms. I was an instructional leader in every building I worked in because I focused my time and energy in the pedagogy and the teachers that I gravitated toward were the instructional-leader types. I was always involved with student teachers and always involved in building better practices, and I felt that CTA was not really paying enough attention to that. So once I started getting in-

volved more, like on the board, I really felt that CTA needed to change. I spoke up a lot at board meetings about how we needed a different focus, and I was told that I was naïve. I was told, “You’re a state-wide leader now and you’ve got to have a different set of priorities.” What I learned is that when you become president of CTA you are really in charge of everybody. Transformational in this sense--what organizations do to keep themselves strong and safe and vital is they take a pretty critical look at themselves and they make adjustments, and if you don’t do that, you get very rigid and stuck in your ways. That’s what we had become. We became very rigid and stuck in our ways. So I came along and I said, " We’ve got to take a more critical look at ourselves." If you want to transform an organization, one of the very first things you’ve got to work towards transforming is the culture. We have to know that it’s ok to argue with one another, it’s ok to be critical, it’s ok to question authority, and it’s ok to question leadership. What’s not ok is to be rude and disrespectful and belligerent. Differences of opinion and differences of ideas are necessary if you want to move to the next best place. What you need in order to be able to do that is, you need a leader who will bring people together and help people learn how to do that, how to maintain their sensibilities while their disagreeing over issues, and I think I do that really effectively. IW: CTA recently undertook a program to improve communication. Would you explain how you determined that to be a necessary project and the steps you took to implement the change? DV: About four years ago, state council rose up and said to the president before me, "We are tired of being told what to do. What we want is to do things differently and we want to start with CTA developing a strategic plan. We want CTA to be more thoughtful and more proactive in the way we do our business rather than just reacting to everything that happens." And what I did was I appointed a group that was very diverse. It included probably about 100 people representative of the diversity of the organization. They were diversified ethnically, demographically, and in age, gender, even temperament. After an RFP was sent out, the board hired the Labor Education Resource Center from the University of Oregon to come in and help us facilitate. We spent a year-and-a-half investigating. We touched about 30,000 members and developed these threads of focus, taking the profession back, or transforming the profes4

sion, advocating for public education, to tions, up until just most recently, have Another thing that is really interestkeep it safe, building an organizing cul- been CTA to chapter president and then ing about social media is it can be a ture, engaging the community, and orchapter president to membership, and phenomenal mobilizing tool. I’ve been ganizing unorganized workers. The fochapter presidents typically communidoing all of the organizing work necescus really was, "If you’re just trying to be cated to membership through rep coun- sary to get people to a certain event, the best second grade teacher you can cil. Yet, we only bring presidents togeth- and I’ve put hours of time in. Let’s say be, say in Fresno, the question is, do er once a year. Maybe we need a differ- I’m working with a group of about ten to you have as much right, as say, the ent kind of a structure. Instead of having fifteen people and we need 300 people president of CTA to have a say in what a president’s conference once a year in someplace on Wednesday. So three to we do?" The answer is yes. That begs summer, maybe we need to be bringing four weeks before, we start talking to the next question. So how does that presidents together periodically. This is everybody and doing the work that we second grade teacher actually access just an example of a structure that we have to do face-to-face, eyeball-tothe policy? Theoretically, it happens don’t have that we could have. eyeball, touching as many people as we through state council reps. But, in realiI read this book a while ago called can, helping them understand how serity, it doesn’t work. Most of our people Sacred Cows Make the Best Cheeseous it is getting commitments. Then, don’t know who we are. They don’t burgers. It’s really about organizational about a week before, we send out on change where you get into a rut beknow what we do on their behalf. The social media, “Hey don’t forget this; get only thing they know about us is when cause you believe, “Well we’ve always your calendar,” and two days before, they look at their paystub a whole bunch done it that way and we are fine, I mean and the day of. Basically we are using of money goes to CTA, so we’ve got to look at us.” You get kind of drunk on social media--we can be using twitter or figure out a way to bring us all back your own news clippings and you forget text messages--to alert you to get someunder the same tent. That’s what where. The opposite side of that is was really driving this. It doesn’t some people believe it is a submatter whether you are staff, stitute for doing the footwork. or board, or you’re just trying They think, "I really don’t “If you want to transform an to be the best second grade have to meet with you and teacher you can be. We’ve talk to you face-to-face beorganization, one of the very first got to learn to come together cause I sent you a text things you’ve got to work towards as one and figure this out. message." Some people The thread that was running see it as a shortcut to the transforming is the culture.” through everything was that relational work you’ve got to we don’t know how to comdo if you want to organize, Dean Vogel municate with one another in and that’s the real danger of a way that will make us feel like it. Organizing is about building we are connected, so we’ve got to relationships, it’s relational, and that some of the stuff that you are doing it’s hard to be relational in a twofigure out how to do that. is kind of a pain in the neck for everyone dimensional or one-dimensional way. IW: A follow up to that question, how else but you just keep doing it. So we’ve got to be willing to take a critical look at IW: How do you determine your efwill you know if that change has the impact you desired? ourselves and take the risk of changing fectiveness as president and how do some of the stuff. members provide feedback to you DV: That’s a really good question. One from various levels? of the things we did at this last meeting IW: Can you describe positive and negative effects of social media and was appoint a group we are calling the DV: What I try to do is give it my best. I Strategic Plan Coordinating Work how they work with CTA? take my marching orders from council Group. Their job is to going to be on the and the board. Typically what happens DV: I’ve got a Facebook page that I ground and all across the state, and is we have state council and then after there are going to be hubs of activity keep up myself. I look at it every day, state council we have a meeting. In that very much like when we repurposed usually in the morning and at night. One meeting, we debrief what happened and state council for the election. We had of the very first things I do is look to see we look at all the directives that came hubs of activity. We will have hubs as where I’ve been tagged by somebody to from council. When I say we, it’s the see if it’s either an inappropriate statecenters, where we are going to pick a officers and the cabinet, and it’s the focus. Let’s say we are going to work on ment or inappropriate picture or if it’s executive director and the deputy in community engagement, and then we something that I don’t agree with. Bechief of council, and the controller, and are going to start looking at what is hap- cause the level of understanding of what the political director, and the communipening in various locals. One of the Facebook is varies, you could post cations people, and we look at what we things we know is--and I’ll use commu- something and tag me and it, and it have and we make some determinanity engagement as an example-shows up on my Facebook page and I tions about it. Then we have to actually sometimes there are existing structures don’t even know anything about it. Then operationalize. We lay it in front of the within CTA that are actually problematic somebody else who looks at it thinks I board and we say, “Ok, what do we because they are in the way of us doing put it there. So I regularly clean it. Peo- have to do?” And in all of that, what we the right kind of work in the community. ple who don’t do that put themselves at have to do has certain directives to me, incredible risk. Another thing is that I We’ve got to be able to identify what that I’ve got to do, and I try to pay they are, and we either have to be able don’t post anything, ever, if my grandma enough attention to what’s in front of me to change them or adjust them or elimi- couldn’t read it and feel ok about it. I’ve and give it my best. When I’m not right, nate them, and that is going to take seen people post things that are just so you know, as I’m going to hear it from some doing. Another thing is, there inappropriate or disparaging about peo- the people who are close to me becould be some kind of need for a struc- ple or students because they approach cause I’ve trained them to tell me. ture that we don’t even have yet. An social media as a private communicaWhen I became president of CTA, it example is that all of CTA communication and it’s not. wasn’t appropriate to challenge the 5

Innerworks president in a meeting. If you were in a board meeting, you were not going to challenge the president, and if you were in a cabinet meeting, you were not going to challenge the president. When I got elected to president in February, even though I didn’t take office until the following June, I was invited to the retreat that the cabinet goes on, to tell them what they were in store for. I told them, “The first thing you’re going to learn how to do is argue with me.” It could be that the best and the brightest in this whole organization sitting around this table, but I just don’t buy it because I know, I’m not the smartest person I know. So if you guys rely on me and the only thing we do is whatever I think, where we are going? We are in deep trouble. What I want is, when I put something out, I want to be pushed on it. I want differences of opinion, I want us to be able to argue with one another, and I will teach you how to argue. I did the same thing to the board. Before I was president, it wasn’t uncommon for the second day of the board meeting to have six or seven people coming in with their carry-on luggage getting ready to leave the meeting early to catch an airplane. Sometimes, we’d have four or five people gone before the meeting ended. I had always--when I was on the board and when I was an officer--calendared four days for the meeting: the day before, the two days of state council, and the day after. That’s the board meeting. I told the board, David—the president before me—was really good to me. Even though there were some things he did that I disagreed with, he was kind and gracious to me, and I asked him if it be ok for me to meet alone with the board without him—you know, because I was elected president but I wasn’t president yet. I wanted just the board people that were going to be with me. And what I told them was, "I expect you to give me two full days of a board meeting. Work hard, and if you’ll promise me that you’ll stay in it, I’ll give you more work than you can handle." What I started doing was, instead of trying to cook the issue, like in the meetings I had been in before, we’d be asking ourselves, "Geez, we can’t even agree on this amongst ourselves, how are we going to show it to the board?" I would say, "Well, if we can’t agree on it, let’s put it before more people. Let’s teach them how to argue like we are learning how to argue and how to be critical." So, what I have now is a board that is really willing to work, and they’re learning how to argue with one another and how to take different positions with one another, and they’re not personalizing it. When you’ve got people who argue

April 2014 with one another, but do not get mad about it, that’s a real gift. And that’s all part of the new way. IW: It’s interesting to hear you say that. People do not like to argue. DV: Yeah, there is a certain tension that wells up in you. Like, if I know that if I start arguing with you, you are going to get weird, you are going to get tense, you are going to get mad, you are going to get belligerent, or whatever, then two things happen. I either stop engaging you or I do but I lie because I become more of a yes man. And so once I understand that it’s ok for me to have a difference of opinion, I am really open. During council, people understand that they can come to a microphone and they can have a different view than what’s coming from the side podium but they are still going to be treated respectfully and they are still going to be given their opportunity. The great thing about parliamentary procedure is that it, basically, is built to protect the voice of the minority opinion, and we have always role played that , but we haven’t really practiced it. And what we’ve been doing is, we’ve been practicing it at every level. And so, I find comfort with the tension of differences of opinion. I can all of the sudden start feeling comfort in initiating differences of opinion. IW: When working with the CTA board, do you employ specific team building activities, and if so, can you tell me about a couple of them? DV: So, this isn’t so much team building. I’m going to talk theoretical. There’s a great book right now. I think it’s a couple years old. It’s by Andy Hargraves and Michael Fullen. It’s called Professional Capital. The idea is that if you’re really building, if you really want to work, if you really want to be cohesive as a team, what you’ve got to do is, you’ve got to get to the point where when you’re at that professional level, you’re at that level of all for one and one for all. The way you get there is you start building social capital, which means instead of just being with you when we are in a meeting, I start spending time with you outside of the meeting. I start treating you as if you are somebody I’m invested in somehow, and to the degree that you start believing that I care about you. I care about how you feel and how you think, and even if it’s different than me, I value your right to be different. When you get to that point where you understand that’s what I’m putting in front of you and you start doing that with others, 6

this incredible thing happens. People start opening up. Let's pick an issue that we are working on. There’s stuff that you know about it that you don’t want to tell me. You’ll tell me some of it but not all of it. You’re holding it for some reason. Whether you’re holding it for leverage or you’re holding it because you want to be the one who gets the points for it, you know whatever that is, and I have that same thing. We get to a point in a relationship where you are just willing to say all of it, and me too. We are willing to just put it all there. That is trust. And when we get to that place with one another, then we can do anything. We can go anywhere. So the real question you are asking is, what are the things you do to get to that place? One of them is, you can’t build trust in people unless you give them opportunities to be trustworthy. I’ve got to be able to ask you what you want to do. I’m the president. I can put you in positions to do things that you really want to do. Talk to me about what you really want. If you tell me a bunch of stuff and you never hear from me again, that’s trouble. But if you tell me some things and I actually put you in that spot and you start building, here’s a good example. I had a board member, who was a diehard conservative. Her first assignment as a board member put her in a liaison position with a committee where she had to move things around. There weren’t really any set and fast rules. You had to be able to think outside the box. What the board member tried to do was figure out some rules and then not deviate from them. It was a disaster. She was hating her time there. She was always tense and it was always icky. I had this other committee where the whole thing was bound by rules. It was structured and strict, and there was no leeway; you couldn’t fudge. You followed the rules, and if you didn’t it was a violation. And that is where I wanted to put this board member. I went to her and told her—I couldn’t have been more honest with her—I said, “Look, here’s the thing. You’re one of those follow-the-rules-at-allcosts kind of people. And by god, when somebody is over the line and breaking the rules, you don’t have any worry at all about just coming right out and telling them so and that’s what I need. I’m trying to build this other committee that is good, and I need somebody with your temperament and stabilities doing that. I want to pull you off of this committee and I’m going to put you in this other committee.” And she didn’t want to do it, and I said, “I know you don’t want to do it, but I want you to trust me. I want you to just do this, just try it, and

Innerworks if it’s just awful for you, we’ll reconsider next year.” And of course, she loved it. She’s been at it for three years now and she’s good. I saw something in her that she didn’t see in herself, but once I gave her an opportunity to find it, she found it and she found her voice and she has excelled and she’s been awesome. You know, we’ve got to be willing to do that. IW: That brings me to my next point, are you familiar with emotional intelligence, and if you are, how do you use it in your role as CTA President and in finding future leaders? DV: We are a member-driven organization. You don’t apply to be on state council. You’ve got to somehow get some kind of a sense about it and get here and get elected. I like to think back to the school building. You can walk into some teachers' rooms, and you see them teaching, and you say, "Whoa, I wish I could do that." They are so good, it’s almost scary, and you just can’t imagine how they can do it. Some of those people just have this gift and they don’t know it. It’s the same thing in leadership. Some of the people that are going to be the leaders in this organization—say ten years from now— they’re not even building reps in their local. They don’t even know it. But they have that innate intuitive ability to lead. So folks like us, we have to tell them. We have to help them understand that they’ve got something. CTA does this crazy thing with me at conferences where if you register early, you get put in a raffle to have lunch with me. I said that was an awful idea, but the conference center disagreed. I’m thinking back to before I was on the board, and the last place I wanted to be, ever, was sitting with the president. I wanted to sit with my pals. I said, “People aren’t going to want to sit with me; they want to sit with their friends.” They said, “No, you’re different. Trust us. This is going to work.” Well, at the last Good Teaching Conference, I’m at this table, and there’s this woman, maybe in her fifth or sixth year, and she is just going off on something. Let’s just say for argument sake it was standardized testing. She was just saying all kinds of stuff and what she was actually saying, what was coming out of her is all the stuff that I have been saying over the last month-and-a-half in some of these back rooms in Sacramento, and all I could think about was "She has no idea how smart she is and how articulate she is." When she finally stopped to take a breath, I said, “So what are you doing in your local association?” And she said, “What do you mean?” And I asked her if she did anything in her local. She said, “I

April 2014 teach third grade.” I said, “Look, I want your name and your phone number and your address. I want all of your contact information.” And I gave her something to write it down on. I filed it away because that is somebody who doesn’t know what she has. She doesn’t know the gift she has and the other thing is she was quick on her feet. So one day when I’m talking to the governor and he says, " I want to hear from a teacher," and I bring her to Sacramento, and I bring her in front of him, and then all of the sudden she wakes up. Putting people in positions where they can find that gift in themselves is a very big deal. IW: One common problem solving process is called collaborative inquiry. Does CTA use this, and if so, can you give me some examples of how? DV: Yes, here is an example. One of our members emailed me last week with an issue and said, "I’ve got to get you to do this," and I said I would take a look at it. The first thing I do when I look at something is think about who is connected to this. I also wonder how many different levels in the organization I can put it in front of and get some feedback. We call it doing our due diligence. I want to get input from a number of people, and then I want to have enough information to actually look at it, but I don’t want to be looking at the information by myself. So I get something from you and I get something from that department and I get something from legal and I get something from political, so now I’ve got all the data, and if I’m the only guy looking at it, we are still in trouble. So maybe it’s Eric (CTA vice president) and I who are looking at it, and maybe Joe (CTA Executive Director). There’s going to be some kind of an opportunity for a consensus around where we are going to go with this issue, and once we get there, I can get back to this person, and what I like to do is get that done relatively quickly. It can’t be something that happens in a month. I saw the person who emailed me on the escalator when I was running from general session today. I had to be on a conference call at 1:00 and we didn’t finish general session until 1:20, so he’s calling me and he wants me to stop, and I tell him, "You have to follow me, you have to walk with me," and he came, and he was giving me all the stuff, and I said, “By the time we leave Sunday, I’ll have your answer.” That’s because since I got his email last week, now I’ve got four or five people giving me their best thinking about what we are going to do.

Leadership Laugh Lines

Cartoon ÂŠ Randy Glasbergen, used with special permission from www.glasbergen.com

Emotional Intelligence 2.0 Book Review by Jennifer Marzocca

“This book can drastically change the way you think about success.” Bradberry & Greaves tion about EQ and providing an easy-tounderstand explanation about the common emotions people experience when interacting with others, readers should feel as though they can relate and actually learn from the content. What makes this book such a valuable tool for leaders is the care the authors took in explaining the four skills needed to improve EQ. In addition, they provided an assessment tool to gauge the reader’s current level of EQ and followed up with strategies for readers to utilize for further improvement in the areas they may need to work on. It doesn’t matter what you currently know

This is the sort of resource that is beneficial to

about emotional intelligence (EQ) or in what

revisit as needed, especially the chart that dis-

capacity you are employed. Emotional Intelli-

cusses the five core emotions along-with relative

gence 2.0 is a must read for anyone who inter-

intensity of feelings.

acts with people in any capacity on a daily basis. In today’s society, regardless of the gener-

Within the field of Organizational Development, improving one’s emotional intelligence not only improves the individual relationships, but can im-

ation, there is a definite gap between how

prove productivity, thus adding to the organiza-

people manage their emotions and know

tion’s success. Any organization that seeks to im-

which emotions they are feeling in any given

prove their productivity

moment: 36% of more than 500,000 people

will benefit from making

tested were able to accurately identify their

this tool available to its

emotions as they happen (Bradberry &

leadership.

Greaves, 2009). The authors’ approach to the content was

References Bradberry, T., & Greaves, J. (2009). Emotional Intelligence

found to be effective and entertaining. By

2.0. San Diego, Calif.: Talent Smart.

walking the reader through a brief introduc-

Innerworks

April 2014

Environmental Scanning, Do or Die! By Beatrice Gray In today’s competitive market, managers and executives spend time and money searching for the next big innovative opportunity that will set them apart from the rest. On the other side of the coin, they are also searching for the potential threats to their success that may be lurking around the corner. Management Study Guide (MSG) experts define this process as Environmental scanning, “possession and utilization of information about occasions, patterns, trends, and relationships within an organization’s internal and external environments” (2014). Environmental scanning is an important process that can help an organization identify competitors’ moves and actions. Environmental scanning can provide key information that will improve the organization’s financial and innovative performance and early awareness of changing conditions. This forecasting and analysis will create a trustworthy prediction using quantitative and qualitative information for finding opportunities leading to success and threats that could doom an organization to failure.

rison as simple as “scanning for planning” (1992). There are two types of scanning, internal and external; these factors drive the data when collecting, analyzing, and strategizing.

the national environment, broader socio-economic events (macro environment) to create a sustainable competitive advantage with the new knowledge. Gaining the new knowledge will require strateInternal scanning focuses on gic planning. the organization’s existing and potential clientele, customers, Strategic planning uses foremployees or stakeholders. This mal and informal methods of includes their vision, mission, scanning. An organization will strengths and weaknesses. This need to decide the level of cominformation can help an organizamitment it will choose, continution determine the self-awareness ous, periodic, or regular scanning and management of emotions before they can determine if their methods will be formal or informal. This will then determine the type of scanning you will use. Formal and informal scanning involve planned (surveys, interviews) or unplanned (observations, trends) efforts in colbetween management, employlecting data, analyzing it, then ees, and stakeholders. Emotional creating an action plan that will intelligence is a key factor in the ensure organizational success in success of an organization as is the future. “New knowledge is the brand awareness, organizational key resource for creating a susstructure, and the organization’s tainable competitive adnatural resources (task environvantage” (McEwen, 2008). This ment). new knowledge brings with it responsibility. External scanning looks at

your present state of social, economic, technological, competitive and regulatory factors and preThe theory behind Environmen- dicts the future by viewing and tal scanning is described by Mor- searching the current industry, 13

One thing to consider, new learning will change the mindset of the individual, and the organization. Dissemination of the new information is most successful

when involving others in the scanning and interpretation of the data. McEwen (2008) describes two types of learning; “Single loop” and “Double loop.” Organizational adjustments will depend on whether the expected or necessary changes in behavior are minor (single loop) or radical (double loop). It is through old knowledge (tacit- intuition, explicit-formal data and cultural-assumptions and beliefs) that creates new knowledge. However, training is necessary for best results, “There is no organizational learning without individual learning” (Grant and Spender, 1996). The methodology for collecting, analyzing and strategizing requires training in the scanning and structure of scanning. The best results require Environmental scanning is, “A disciplined and constant pro- various stakethe Involvement of holders to gain differ- cess of quantitative and qualitative information collecting, ent viewpoints profiling and analysis. It can occur at any point in the strate- This feedback and perspectives. will increase the suc- gic workforce planning process and provides a structured cess in the process by providing built view of the internal and external environment of the organi-in accountabilzation. It is a decision framework that provides a pivotal ity systems. Finally, organizational view of the future” (HCI, 2010). success will demand that the team determine and agree on the level of commitment of the environmental scanning in order to sustain long-term organizational success. References: McEwen, T. (2008, January 1). Environmental scanning and organizational learning in entrepreneurial ventures. Retrieved from https://brandman.blackboard.com/bbcswebdav/pid-6060590-dt-content-rid-6395361_2/courses/OL-201422-EDOL707-BN1/Environmental%20Scanning%20and%20Organizational%20learning%20%28McEwen%29%281%29.pdf Minnesota Management & Budget. (2014, March 6). What is an environmental scan? [Web discussion]. Retrieved from http://www.mmb.state.mn.us/stage3. Morrison, J. L. (1992). Environmental scanning. Retrieved from https://brandman.blackboard.com/bbcswebdav/pid-6060590 -dt-content-rid-6395359_2/courses/OL-201422-EDOL-707-BN1/Morrison%20Environmental%20Scanning.txt MSG. (2014, March 6). Environmental scanning-Internal & external analysis of environment [Web log comment]. Retrieved from http://www.managementstudyguide.com/environmental-scanning.htm.

Beatrice Gray is an Elementary School Administrator who leads an innovative team of teacher- leaders seeking to stay ahead of the curve using the process of environmental scanning. Her school has innovative programs that include an award winning Dual Language Program, District recognized Response to Intervention model , District recognized Teacher Collaboration model, and a nationally recognized Positive Behavior Intervention Support (PBIS) model. Beatrice is currently a doctoral student in Organizational Leadership at Brandman University. She is happily married and enjoys spending her free time with her husband and two beautiful daughters.

(877) 494-7052 www.brandman.edu/Start-Now 14

Emotional Intelligence Wordsearch T R I P P L E E F F E C T U V Z N S M O Y C O N V E R S A T I O N P C D

A L A U G H N K A M P I C O N S T R U C T I V E J O L X V A L U E S L U

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B O C M B D G G U D X R M E X Z U Z T A A S K T J K J L S M B H D X D H

action plan appraisal body language breathe buttons communication competence constructive conversation culture curious decisions direct

Y P L O T L W A J C E R B D T F L P L P R Z T R Y H Y L J Z O R Y H S O

U E J L M W E D K A C N D H N Q T K V V L O T E P P Z C M O O D L W E Z

O N A N E P X M T Z D E E L W K U A R W N G V I M R Z B O H H S A X L V

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S R C I K C V B A N X V E R S N R E D P R Z E B U I Q H M H V I A S A R

L A F B K C Q L X U C I I E K E G I D H E R F S L C I O Y M H M G T R R

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T T N V S S I I E U M T C R O F C J F Q T W X O O D O P Z V S A S N E P

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E I I L T U E Z X A W I U M Y U R I S H I L P N N H B H T T Z T T J S E

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F S Z Y N U C H L T B W B G I A I S D E M Q J N P X F Q R N J C Z D P S

S P V J P S T G P X D P E R K S C C O T S C M O M R W L M E R V T N O H

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Y V I S U A L I Z E N N I X P T X G A X F T A R U N A S Y E D O W W J U

K N D X T T D V R N C S W M V W K X O T Z T B P Y R D I I F N E F E Y Z

W U H Z C Q D D W E G N Y N V D Y E I A I T H F U J N U S F M T R E Y Q

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R M G N Q S P X W I B M S U E D P P H Y S I C A L L Y E Z K M L R J J S

self awareness self management situation social social awareness strategies stress succeeding triggers trust values visualize

The Wisdom of O.D.

By Denise LaRue

The Digital Classroom

How to Apply Technology in the Classroom Are you interested in learning how to apply the technology in your classroom? Come spend the day discovering a digital classroom can help students become successful learners. Students can learn how to create products and interact through their own personal websites. You will leave with a list of digital websites for immediate implementation in your classroom.

June 2, 2014 8:00 am â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 3:00 pm Location: Corona Norco Teachers Association Office Building Professional Development

Presenters: Heidi Simmons & Ambra Dodds

Innerworks

Action Research:

April 2014

A Collaborative Theory to Solving Educational Issues By Lorena Medina

Are you in a position to make decisions or to take action in your organization? Do you see issues in education that need solutions, but you don’t know how? Would you like to find solutions through an empowering experience? If so, then Action Research is for you.

evaluated, the cycle begins again (Anderson, 2012, p.98). In this model, both theory and action are closely blended.

What Does It Look Like In Education?

Educational action research can be engaged by a teacher, an administrator, or a group of colleagues What is Action Research? that share a common issue. It has become very popular Action research sounds like your stereotypical rein the education field over the years. The focus is search with number crunching and interpretive remainly on the development of curriculum, professional sults, but in fact it is not. It was first introduced by a development, and applying learning in a social context social psychologist and educator Kurt Lewis in the (O’Brian, 1998). 1940’s. He used this term to capture the idea that Practitioners have adopted the general action repractitioners could solve problems by translating data into practical, actionable knowledge. Educators gather search process and added a couple of steps to allow data relevant to their organizational needs, intervene teachers and administrators to look at their organizational issues and create a changes within. The educain their processes, and evaluate their results tional action research cycle includes seven steps (Anderson, 2012, p.20, 95). (Figure 2.2). Action research is a collaborative process for working

Figure 1.1 General Action Research Process together with members in your organization through a series of purposeful and thoughtful activities while dialoguing in an effort to identifying the issue and making decisions that will lead to a desirable outcome. Action research is “learning by doing” (O’Brian, 2001).

Figure 2.2 Educational Action Research Led by a teacher or an administrator, the first step is a series of reflections in selecting a focus/ issue and creating research questions to address the issue. This is a discovery stage that identifies the educational issue to be examined as well as member’s values, beliefs, and theoretical perspectives.

They generally follow a cycle (Figure 1.1) “where an initial problem prompts diagnosis, planning action, takThe second step is assessment and framing of the ing action, and evaluating results. Once the results are18 issue. Teachers and administrators collaborate to

identify the current issue and formu- reasons. Teachers are solving issues late research questions meaningful to in their own environment while helpguiding the inquiry. ing their students succeed and transforming knowledge into something Third step is planning and design- meaningful. Reflecting on the issues ing. Together the group collabothat impede teaching allows teachers rates in triangulating qualitative and as well as administrators to grow toquantitative data on the issue. gether and gain confidence in their Trends and patterns are identified. job. TeachPossible solutions are identified and ers get to explored that align with the needs of work with the classroom or school. This inforother colmation can be obtained from the stuleagues on dents and teachers on that site. This issues that step is ongoing, even as practitioners affect not move on to the next steps. All memonly one but bers are engaged and dialogue about many stuthe best practices as they develop a dents. This collaboration allows them detailed plan to put into practice. to dialogue with others on teaching styles and teaching strategies. The Step four is Implementation. The contributions to questioning, planning, intervention or plan is carried out to and asking action are both inspirasolve the issue. Data of the outcomes tional and motivational in creating and process are obtained by all memchange within the organization. It bers, all along. allows teachers and administrators to open the lines of communication and Analysis is the fifth step. The have a voice while reflecting on their new results are evaluated for an own practices and learning from colemerging phenomena. Practitioners debrief and look for a connection be- leagues. tween the educational solutions and the advancement to resolving the issue.

After analyzing the relationship, practitioners can evaluate the process. Teachers and administrators talk about what worked, what was missed, what could have been included or changed. The final step in educational action research is dissemination. Teachers and/or administrators look at the outcomes. A decision is made on whether the intervention worked or not. If so, implementation continues. If the implementation of the plan was not successful, one returns to the planning and designing stage.

What Will I Get Out of It? Applying action research is worthwhile for educators for several

If this sounds like the changes you would like to see in your organization, take action.

Pesquisa Ação [Theory and Practice of Action Research]. João Pessoa, Brazil: Universidade Federal da Paraíba. (English version) Available: http://www.web.ca/ ~robrien/papers/arfinal.html (Accessed 20/1/2002) Sagar, R. (2000). What is action research? Guiding school improvement with action research. Retrieved from http:// www.ascd.org/publications/ books/100047/chapters/What-Is-Action -Research%C2%A2.aspx University of South Wales (2008). Education action research: An overarching methodology for articulating HERG research activity. Healthcare Education Research Group. Retrieved from http:// herg.research.southwales.ac.uk/process/

Lorena Medina has been teaching for the last 15 years. She taught every-

References Anderson, D. (2012). Organizational development: The process of leading organizational change (2nd Edition). California: SAGE Publications. Ferrance, E. (2000). Themes in education: Action research. Northeast and Islands Regional Educational Laboratory at Brown University. Retrieved from http:// www.brown.edu/academics/educationalliance/sites/ brown.edu.academics.education-alliance/ files/publications/act_research.pdf O'Brien, R. (2001). Um exame da abordagem metodológica da pesquisa ação [An Overview of the Methodological Approach of Action Research]. In Roberto 19 Richardson (Ed.), Teoria e Prática da

thing from 1st grade to 5th grade. She has a B.S. degree from Cal State Fullerton in Child and Adolescent Studies and a M.A. with emphasis in Curriculum and Instruction and Technology from Chapman University. She is currently a doctoral student of Organizational Leadership at Brandman University. She has been married for almost 14 years and has two boys, ages 9 and 12. She enjoys family trips, reading, drawing, and singing. Life is too short to let it slip by.

Transformational Leader/Emotional Intelligence Crossword Puzzle

Across 5. a person who takes responsibility for moving the team forward 8. your ability to understand other peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s moods, behavior and motives in order

to improve the quality of your relationships 9. involves controlling oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s emotions and impulses 10. uncompromising adherence to right moral and ethical conduct or principles; honesty 11. your ability to stay aware of your emotions and manage your behavior and tendencies 12. the ability to sense, understand, and react to others; emotions 13. state or instance of being accountable (something within someone's power) 14. the ability to read oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s emotions and recognize their impact while using gut feelings to guide discussion

Down 1. deserving of confidence or reliance on the strength of a person; reliable 2. taking serious attention to; devoting; protecting; having concern for 3. identification with the feelings, thoughts etc. of someone; sympathy

4. truthfulness, sincerity or frankness; freedom from deceit 6. the ability to recognize and understand emotions in yourself and others, and your ability to use this awareness to manage your behavior and relationships 7. the ability to inspire, influence, and develop others while managing conflict

( Solutions on page 33)

Collaborative Inquiry: Enquiring Minds Want to Know By Denise LaRue

Many Methods, What’s the Scoop? Collaborative Inquiry (C.I) has many variations. At the heart of them all is the realization that in order to prosper, organizations must continue to keep pace in a rapidly changing environment. It is evident the old “top down” methods of management are no longer sufficient. In order to grow a company it has

become essential to “grow it’s people.” Workers today are no longer content to have a paycheck as the only incentive to give a job their all. Today’s workforce wants more and today’s employers do, too! So, how can an organization navigate change? How can we attract and keep the most talented individuals? Motivate and in-

novate? Competing methods share several key features including: collaboration, contributions, critical questions and connectedness. How do we know which one we should devote our time and resources to? The Thin Book of Appreciative Inquiry by Sue Annis Hammond (1998) was written in response to just 22

such questions. Appreciative Inquiry is generative, continually being recreated by it’s users and is a thought process not a “fad of the month training,” according to Hammond. The first step is to stop looking at the organization as “something broken and in need of repair.” Hammond says focusing on problems only amplifies them. She suggests, if we focus on what we do right, we amplify the things that are good in our organization. As a public school employee, I was relieved to hear someone say focus on what you are doing right and do more of that. In light of continual public school bashing, that was a refreshing change of pace. There truly are pockets of excellence in most organizations, mine included. In fact our district motto is, “Excellence on Purpose.” It’s time to fill all of those

Innerworks

April 2014

pockets and infuse the entire system with “best practices.” Then we can all be excellent on purpose! Easier said than done. How do we do it? What about the naysayers? What would that look like in practice? We are trying to align our behavior to successfully implement the new Common Core State Standards, but we are still a way off from any collective impact. But at least with Appreciative Inquiry we are paving a pathway. Take a peek at the following example.

tioning about what works in our teams. To accomplish this, Appreciative Inquiry moves through four phases: (1) Discovery: Where we figure out “What is Working.” To replicate successes people have to recognize what their organization does right. (2) Dream: Envision “What Might Be.” We look at where we want to be, saying, “We can do that!” (3) Design: Dialoguing provocative question about “What should be” that are grounded in reality. (4) Destiny: People are more comfortable moving forward into the To move an organization future (unknown) if they forward it has to be a group carry forward the best parts of the past (the known).

effort, and the group has to choose a topic to focus on that is worth being magnified by our attention. The topic then guides our ques-

Collaboration is becoming the standard. Appreciative Inquiry is a proven technique to transform an organization. Hammond calls it a future that is a collage of the Bests. Reference

Why Collaborate?

Denise LaRue teaches elementary education and aspires to be a principal. Denise has a Master’s Degree in Educational Administration and says her biggest joy in life is her grandchildren. Denise lives in the wonderful little horse town of Norco, California with her husband of over 40 years, John, and four obnoxious dogs, Freeta A. Goodhome, Tecate, Freckles, and Jordan.

Hammond, S. A. (1998). The thin book of appreciative inquiry (2nd ed.) Thin Book Publishing Company 23

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An Interview with Organizational Psychologist Ernie Mendes, Ph.D. By Denise LaRue and Lorena Medina

We were first introduced to Dr. Mendes when he was a keynote speaker at Brandman University’s 2013 fall immersion. Later, he was hired as a professional development consultant to help our elementary school with the transition to Common Core, Positive Behavior Intervention Support and focus on Student Achievement in support of our district’s Local Control Accountability Plan. Dr. Mendes’ background in Emotional Intelligence, brain based research, and Organizational Development philosophy led us to seek him as an interviewee as a Transformational Leader. Q: Tell me about your background and current

brain systems to engage Kindergarten through Adult learners in the classroom and in training settings. I present nationally, regionally, and locally. For more information visit erniemendes.com Q: What do you value most about being a leader? The opportunity to make a difference. Q: The educational system is going through a number of changes or challenges, which do you feel are the most significant?

The educational system is always going through a number of challenges and changes. Right now Common Core I’m a professional development trainer, organizational Standards seems to be at the forefront for many districts. consultant and keynote speaker. I have been providing trainBesides the curriculum piece, the safe schools and student ing and development since 1988, working for teachers, classupport services area continues to provide mental health sified staff, principals, and superintendents. I’ve trained services and research on the impact of trauma on student managers, scientists, researchers, law enforcement, engisuccess. Initiatives in our education system are always tryneers, sales and marketing professionals, corporate trainers, ing to close the perceived gap between other countries corporate officers, business owners, and other leaders from achievement scores and the U.S. Some argue that the U.S. is companies such as: General Atomics, Genomatica, Synterstill the most creative country in the world and attracts those act, UCSD Rady School of Management, Georgia State Unifrom other countries who want to pursue thinking outside of versity Health Center, El Paso Educational Leadership Orthe box. Others argue that based on standardized tests, ganization, City Planning Departments, Internet Technology American schools are always lagging behind in math and Companies, and Engineering companies. My professional science. background includes a combined 23 years as a secondary and post– secondary educator and 11 years as a licensed psycho- Q: From your observations, to what degree do the peotherapist in private practice. ple in the organization understand and buy into the need for this change? I have a Ph.D. in Organizational Psychology. I was one of the first to do a doctoral study on Emotional Intelligence To varying degrees. Regarding Common Core, some say (EI). I studied The Relationship Between E.I. and Occupathey have already been teaching “this way,” so it is no major tional Burnout. My book Empty the Cup Before Y ou Fill It change for them. For others, they feel it is quite a change in Up provides practical activities to build effective relationhow they approach the classroom–going deeper in subject ships at work and in a classroom setting using EI theory and matter and facilitating learning rather than inputting learning. neuroscience. My book Engage 4 Learning uses four main position?

Q: If low degree, how have you helped them understand the case for this change and engaged them in ways that are energizing and inspiring, rather than threatening? Showing them practical ways to begin implementing these changes and to start with making connections to familiar practices. Q: What is in it for the people of an organization to want to make this change succeed? In education, it is always about people feeling like they are making a difference. Q: How do you motivate people?

Q: Describe one of your proudest moments in your position? When teachers and administrators report back how they are implementing and using the tools I’ve shared with them and the successes they’ve experience as a result. One Sunday night I received a voice mail from a year-two high school teacher who was heading back to class the next morning after having been off for a week. The school was reeling from a shooting that left several students dead and many others in shock. He shared how thankful he was for learning strategies in my workshops that he could use with his students to help them cope as they returned to school. Q: Tell me about some of the leaders who inspire (or inspired) you. What made them inspirational?

Acknowledge their efforts, successes, and positive assumptions. Jack Canfield co-author of Chicken Soup for the Soul and Eric Demonstrate empathy by communicating how challenging the work of developing young minds is and that non–educators don’t Jensen brain-based learning pioneer. They were doing what I was really understand that. Then give them practical, easy-to-implement doing but on a larger scale– globally. strategies to use immediately. Give them an experience of the strategy. And, provide the reasons and research for why these strategies Q: Why do like helping others? work. In the end, that’s all there is: using your skills and gift to assist Q: Do you have an enterprise-wide change strategy for accom- others to reach their dreams. It’s a vocation. plishing your outcomes– and your various initiatives– that peoQ: What do you get out of it? ple can understand and align behind? Satisfaction that I am living my purpose.

The more simplified and succinct, the better. It starts at the top. Leaders have to buy into the change itself and have the fidelity to making the changes work. They need to provide the support and resources to implement the change. Change initiative should begin with sharing information: telling, not selling, why the changes are being made (future trends, strong research, current model weaknesses, etc.). Second, personal concerns must be addressed. All change involves loss and loss involves feelings of grief. Particularly the emotion of fear, which is caused by uncertainty, can be challenging. People need a place to share their concerns. They need to be assured that they will have the resources and support to make the change. Then implementation of change is possible. In the implementation stage, people need to know where to turn if they have a problem. It is also useful to know that when change is being implemented, things may get temporarily worse before they get better. Q: Is there a management philosophy to which you adhere?

MTC Mendes Training & Consulting, Inc.

Several. “Do less and do it better,” “Validate before redirecting or correcting,” “Be, what you want them to be,” lead by example, and “Get the right people on the team.” Q: Describe a time when you felt the team performed well. How did emotional intelligence play a role?

Contact Ernie directly at 760/994-8880 email: emendes@erniemendes.com fax: 760/944-9468

Emotional Intelligence always plays a role in leading teams and within teams. Having self-awareness and other awareness are essential skills, competencies, or intelligences that facilitate team chemistry and cohesion. 27

MTC Mendes Training & Consulting, Inc.

Create more mental and emotional space for learning and working using Empty the cup strategies! Since 1988, Dr. Ernie Mendes has helped tens of thousands of teachers engage their students, increase achievement, and improve behavior. He has assisted leaders in building effective teams, and managing challenging personalities. Through his keynotes, trainings, books, and coaching, Ernie has helped individuals become more productive and satisfied with their work and their relationships. Leadership Topics • Emotional Intelligence & Peak Performance • Resilient Leadership During Times of Change • Brain States at Work—Using your Creative Thinking Power • High Performing Teams • Coaching for Development (Coaching Tools in the Organization) • Executive Coaching  KEYNOTE: Take this Job and . . . LOVE it! Tools to Thrive in Challenging times Copyright 2012 Mendes Training & Consulting, Inc. All rights reserved. phone: 760-994-8880 fax: 760-944-9468 used with special permission from the author emendes@erniemendes.com

The Future is in Your Hands By Beatrice Gray Recently, the Innerworks team scoured through countless magazine racks in their local grocery stores, libraries, bookstores, and doctor waiting rooms and perused the latest online issues on their digital readers in an effort to â&#x20AC;&#x153;readâ&#x20AC;? the future! This process, known as Environmental Scanning, serves to assist organizations find the hottest trends and patterns that consumers find of value and importance. Organizations must continually stay ahead of their competitors to maintain and gain consumerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s trust and long-term loyalty to their product or service. When closely analyzing information, any viable leader will find what could very well be the nuances and trends that will change his or her organization to meet the future needs. Reading through a variety of magazines provided our team the opportunity to hold the future literally in our hands! The following are trends that we as consumers, clients, and organizations find as priorities in the world today but that also give us a glimpse into the future.

Internal Consultants: The Untapped Resource By Ambra Dodds

â&#x20AC;&#x153;If your business is considering hiring consultants, consider starting from the inside.â&#x20AC;? Ambra Dodds

The Corona Norco Unified School District (CNUSD), along with thousands of other districts across the United States, is preparing for the implementation of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). All districts in California will officially make the change to the new standards in the 20142015 school year. CNUSD has been transitioning to the CCSS during the 20132014 school year. The transition has been anything but smooth. The district has been learning about the standards as they roll them out. During this time, there has been frustration from stakeholders at all levels, including teachers. The teachersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; frustration stems from them not feeling they are getting the training they need. Education Services, a department within CNUSD, was given the task of educating and training 2,400 teachers. The information and professional development 30

provided to teachers at the beginning of the school year received consistently negative feedback from teachers. In response to the negative feedback, the Education Services department decided to bring in consultants to help guide them through this transition. The consultants were recruited from within the 2,400 teachers who were being educated and trained in CCSS. After meeting with the teacher consultants, the department realized that they needed to increase motivation, improve communication, and engage teachers in order to achieve the goal of having all teachers ready for full implementation of CCSS in July of 2014. By utilizing internal consultants, the district has saved on the cost of bringing in an outside company. Internal consultants also save time and have more knowledge of organizational culture and practices. They have already

established relationships with their peers and have a greater stake in a successful outcome (Anderson, 2012, chapter 5, Table 5.2 ). External consultants would have needed time to get to know the internal structure of the district as well as what has been done so far. The teacher consultants have been working with Educational Services for three months. Within that short time, positive teacher feedback has increased from about 15% to about 85%. The consultants are still working with the district and that number is expected to increase further. During the past three months, the consultants have taken on a more involved role, including facilitating professional development sessions. The consultants report that this increased involvement has been a very positive experience. If your business is considering hiring consultants, consider starting from the inside. You most likely have qualified candidates who know your company and have the knowledge to save you time and money while making the needed recommendations to move your company forward. According to Rouen, 2012, many companies, such as Johnson & Johnson, IBM, and Motorola use internal consultants to help their businesses grow. The leading external consultant company, McKinsey & Company, published an article in McKinsey Quarterly about the importance of formal and informal networks within an organization. Although the article does not use the term "internal consultant," much of what they refer to can be related to internal consulting. Hire individuals who share your vision, have a good work ethic, and whom you believe will be a benefit to your or-

ganization. Tap into those resources. Internal consultants will share your desires to do what is best for your organization. If you believe your organization would benefit from consultant services, why wait? References Anderson, D. L. (2012). Organization development: The pro cess of leading organizational change [Kindle Edition]. Retrieved from Amazon.com Bryan, L., Matson, E., & Weiss, L. (2007). Harnessing the power of informal employee networks. McKinsey Quarterly. Retrieved from www.mckinsey.com Rouen, E. (2012). Inside job: Consultants donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t need to be outsiders. CNNMoney. Retrieved from manage ent.fortune.cnn. com/2012/01/inside

Ambra Dodds has been an elementary school teacher for 15 years. She is currently teaching in Corona, California. Ambra has held, and currently holds, many leadership positions within her district. She holds an Administrative Credential as well as a Masterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Degree in Education and is currently working toward a doctorate of education in Organizational Leadership. Ambra serves on the Corona Norco Teachers Association executive board as a CTA State Council Representative. When she isn't working, Ambra enjoys spending time with her husband and family.

Transformational Leader/Emotional Intelligence Crossword Puzzle

Solution Across 5. leader 8. social competence 9. self-management 10. integrity 11. personal competence 12. social awareness 13. responsibility 14. self-awareness Down 1. trustworthy 2. caring 3. empathy 4. honesty 6. social intelligence 7. relationship management 33

The High Road Stories about unethical leaders seem to cover

by Sandra Vilas

R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company was caught

the headlines. We know that unethical leadership covering up what they knew to be factual about can ruin a company. In the 21st century, ethics

the addictiveness of nicotine. Accepting unethical

plays a crucial role in determining success or fail- choices to increase the bottom line and justifying

ure. Society is becoming impatient with selfish

it as “not really illegal” creates a climate that ulti-

and irresponsible actions.

mately can cause permanent damage to a compa-

Hewlett Packard made a commitment to ethical ny. Organizations who focus on ethical values integrity under the leadership of Carly Fiorina.

will find success in the 21st century. The issue of

The former CEO of Hewlett-Packard said of her

responsibility is fundamental to understanding

six-year tenure, “Some of the most important

organizational ethics. Unfortunately, irresponsi-

choices I ever made were firing people who were- ble organizational behavior is all too common. n't conducting themselves with integrity” (Weil,

The underlying cause of questionable ethical be-

2007).

havior is often greed. The bad news for those who have demonstrated questionable ethical choices is that society is on the alert to unethical behavior. One definition of business ethics is “a set of principles that guides business practices to reflect a concern for society as a whole while pursuing profits” (Kilcullen & Kooistra, 1999). The need for values is more than a legal or moral responsibility; emphasis on ethics training needs to become a focus in all organizations. In today’s

highly competitive world, leaders ment process will be concerned

ganization whose research has

have many issues to consider.

with relationships and defining

identified four key factors in cre-

They must keep up with techno-

relational expectations. The goal ating a values-based culture.

logical changes, competitors'

of an ethical organizational cul-

These factors include:

products and services, the effects ture is the greater good of all. As 

Shared core values Accord-

of globalization, and opportuni-

a result, people are treated well

ing to Kidder (2001), there are

ties and threats within their own

consistently and an ethical cul-

five core values found in some

industry. Successful organiza-

form in every culture worldwide.

tions are frequently looking at

They are honesty, respect, re-

their strategies and goals with a

sponsibility, fairness, and com-

focus on their core values. It is

passion. A values-based culture

not an easy task to make room

will make these core values the

for an abstract priority when the

driving force in decision-making.

primary concern has historically

been the bottom line. However, to succeed in the 21st century,

ture emerges.



Common language Em-

Today’s organizations need to ployees need a language of ethics look beyond a view of ethics as

that allows them to communicate

organizations will have to decide necessary for safeguarding their

easily about issues that are sensi-

how to make ethics a priority.

tive and difficult to discuss. Ef-

Ethics must affect decisionmaking, and ultimately, organi-

reputation and avoiding bad me-

dia coverage, or as mere compli- fective ethics training programs ance with forced regulations. A

provide the common language

zational culture. To achieve this great opportunity awaits organi-

needed.

ideal, there must be an alignment zations who see the potential of



process that combines business

ethical values in shaping the fu-

top Ethics training is insignifi-

ethics with mission, vision, val-

ture.

cant without top-level executives

Commitment at the

ues, strategies, and goals. Ethi-

Rushworth M. Kidder is the

cal values are essentially social

founder and president of the In-

create an ethical culture, leaders

in nature; therefore, this align-

stitute for Global Ethics, an or-

need to reward those who con-

who are effective models. To

sistently make ethical choices and acknowledge

Values direct how a school is run. It is the guid-

those who choose to do what is right.

ing force of how decisions are made, with admin-

Moral courage Kidder (2001) descr ibes mor al

istration leading the charge. Last year, Armada im-

courage as “the quality of mind and spirit that ena-

plemented a Positive Behavior Intervention Support

bles one to face up to ethical dilemmas and moral

Plan (PBIS), which focuses on proper social skills.



wrongdoings firmly and confidently, without flinch- Every week, a new social skill is introduced and ing or retreating.”

taught with explicit direct instruction lessons de-

Ethics, lifestyle and culture must become so syn- signed to build character. It has been through the onymous that they cannot be separated. Together,

focus on teamwork and weekly PLC meetings that

they impact how people relate to one another in the

we as a staff feel united. Collaboration and trust

home, the workplace, and every part of society.

have been established and is reflected onto our stu-

Many organizations are mindful of the critical

dents. Our values have provided us with clear direc-

need for ethical behavior and realize there is still

tion. As we move forward with all the challenges

room for improvement. Organizations need to see

that lie ahead as we transition to the implementation

ethics as a social responsibility. Taking advantage

of Common Core State Standards, our values and

of others for personal gain is unacceptable. Ethics

ethics will play a pivotal role in determining how

will only find its proper place in organizations that

successful Armada will be in the future.

make it a priority by creating relational expectations that work for the good of everyone. Working in an elementary public school, we have established values as part of our mission statement: “Armada is committed to implementing an integrated curriculum of academic, physical, and social excellence that provides an orderly, safe and enthusiastic learning environment where children feel able to grow and develop.” 36

References Kidder, R.M. (2001). Ethics is not optional. Association Manage ment. Washington: Dec 2001. 53(13), 30-32. Kilcullen, M. & Kooistra, J. O. (1999). At least do no harm: Sources on the changing role of business ethics and corporate social responsibility. Reference Services Review, 27(2), 158- 178. Weil, N. (2007). 5 things I've learned: Thoughts on leadership, ethics and the 21st century from Carly Fiorina, HP's former CEO. CIO, 20(15)

Sandy Vilas is the Assistant Administrator of Instructional Improvement and Academic Coaching at Armada Elementary in the Moreno Valley Unified School District. Prior to this position, Sandy was an elementary school teacher for 8 years, teaching first and fourth grades. She has earned a Masters Degree in Multicultural Education and a Masters Degree in Educational Administration from National University. Sandy has been happily married for over twenty years and enjoys spending time with her husband and six children. Favorite quote, ““Do not follow where the path may lead. Go, instead, where there is no path and leave a trail.”— 37

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Heidi has been teaching elementary school for 12 years in Corona-Norco. She currently teaches sixth grade. Heidi is working on her doctorate in Organizational Leadership through Brandman University. In her free time, she loves to travel the world and spend time with her family and friends.

Who Said What? By: Lorena Medina

Match these leaders to their quote. 1.

“You must be the change you wish to see in the world.”

“I was not a messiah, but an ordinary man who had become a leader because of extraordinary circumstances.”

“When you see someone putting on his Big Boots, you can be pretty sure that an Adventure is going to happen.”

“What I do you cannot do; but what you do, I cannot do. The needs are great, and none of us, including me, ever do great things. But we can all do small things, with great love, and together we can do something wonderful.”

“Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.”

“Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.”

“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”

“There are risks and costs to a program of action. But they are far less than the long-range risks and costs of comfortable inaction.”

“My Mama always said you've got to put the past behind you before you can move on.”

10.

"All our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them."

Forrest Gump

Mark Twain

John F. Kennedy

Walt Disney

Mother Teresa

Mahatma Gandhi

Nelson Mandela

Winnie -the Pooh

Harriet Tubman

Martin Luther King Jr

Decision Making

By Lynn Hovde

In "The Road Not Taken," Robert Frost has a decision-making style. To assess an talks about standing at a crossroads, and organization's decision-making style, manhaving to decide which road to take. Peragers or facilitators should consider: what sonal and organizational life consists of information is requested before a decision choices, and decision-makers, like Frost, is made, who is consulted, who can offer look down one opinions, who road "to where it makes the final bends in the undecision, and dergrowth" (line how that deciâ&#x20AC;&#x153;Two roads diverged in a 5). For an organision is communization, this cated. Decision wood and I took the one less means that decimaking is comtraveled by. And that has sion-makers need promised when to be able to look those in an ormade all the difference.â&#x20AC;? as far as possible ganization are into the future, pressured to Robert Frost and need to be take action able to construct quickly without scenarios, anticitaking the time pate problems, to gather suffiand develop solucient data needtions in advance of those problems possied to make a competent decision. Some bly occurring. collaboration needs to occur to ensure that the data that is collected is authentic and Donald Anderson discusses "decisionaccurate. making power" in his book Organizational Development (2012, p. 281). DecisionAnderson states that decisions in an ormakers create multiple scenarios based on ganization are best if they are "downward, what could happen. Then they gather data upward, and horizontal" (2012, p. 25). There to narrow down the possibilities. Once the are four kinds of decision-making systems: possibilities have been narrowed in scope, exploitative authoritative, benevolent authey develop plans to address future needs. thoritative, consultative, and participant group. In the exploitative authoritative sysAnderson talks about how decisiontem, decisions are made in a top-down makers need to embrace uncertainty. In fashion. In a benevolent authoritative sysother words, a lot of work can go into pretem, most decisions are made in a topparing for the future, but a decision-maker down fashion, but a limited amount of can only see so far and definitely not beteamwork is present at the middle levels of yond where the road "bends in the underthe organization. In a consultative system, growth" (Frost, line 5). Decisions are made, there is some teamwork and suggestions but organizations need to be adaptable to made at the middle and lower levels, but what comes their way. the decisions are still made at the top. In a participative system, decision making ocDecision making is a process variable curs at all levels of the organization. within an organization. Each organization 40

Innerworks Anderson (2012) believes that the most productive kind is the participant group. Organizations can construct this type of decision-making system through quality circles. Each department within an organization becomes a quality circle that reports suggestions and concerns to the upper management. This style gives voice to employees who know best about what goes on in their organization; thus, there is a connect between their needs

April 2014 and the organization's needs. This allows the organization to function better, and gives employees a voice, so that they feel more invested in the company and are more apt to feel valued and want to participate fully. References

Anderson, D. (2012). Organizational Development. Los Angeles: Sage Publications, Inc.

Lynn Hovde holds an M.A. in English, an M.S. in Teaching, and is a doctoral student at Brandman University. She has been teaching English at the college level since 1990. She teaches online, face-to-face, and hybrid classes. Along with teaching English and loving to write, she teachers swimming and runs her own swim school in the summers. She has been a competitive swimmer most of her life, and has written two books on swimming: Coaching the Age-group Swimmer and Simply Synchro. She is currently working on the third and final book in the swimming series.

Used with permission from support@learnzillion.com

Don’t B.L.U.F. Me Jennifer Marzocca

April 2014

Exploring the causes and consequences of problems within an organization is a complex process that can seem trivial and not worth the time, money or effort. This article examines a five-step process that allows some flexibility, depending on the information needed and the amount of time available, until a decision must be reached.

Gathering data takes time At times it might feel as though you are on a treasure hunt, and while you might be anxious for a quick decision for your client, avoid the pull to meet their unrealistic and hasty deadline. It will not benefit the organization by giving them the bottom line up front. In order to really discover why and how an organization might not be functioning the way it could, an effective change agent will dig into the various Data gathering is a five-step process.

relationships that exist in the organization and this could take some time, but it will shed light on the overall health of the organization. Just the process of gathering data can spark some change and possibly create cohesion among the members in the organization. Noolan (2006) recommends a five step process to gather information: 



What approach will work? Consider the problem and start there (what kind of information are you looking for and why?). Let everyone know. Keep in mind who – what – where – when – why while you collect your data.



Get ready to collect. Prepare

 

your surveys and interviews ahead of time. Get a list of interviewees, schedule your interviews and prepare your list of questions. Gather your information. Analyze and present your findings. You won’t want to share everything with everyone, just your client. Let them be the ones to deliver the results to their organization as they see fit.

You will want to be selective about the methods you utilize to gather your information. There are a variety of methods to choose from such as interviews, focus groups, surveys or questionnaires, observations, and other unobtrusive methods. Interviews work great when you want to collect information regarding personal stories or perspectives of the individuals involved with the problem or organization.

data you are collecting, you could lose sight of the purpose for the collection! Surveys or questionnaires are the most commonly used tools for gathering information. This method is good for seeking input from a large group of people. More often than before, surveys are conducted online, offering the respondent somewhat flexibility for when they respond.

There are a variety of methods to choose from. Ensure there is some form of deadline to complete the survey or questionnaire so that you receive adequate responses. Observations focus on actual behavior versus reports or second-hand information about the behavior.

Ensure you enter the interview ready to listen and bring a recording device (get This method is helpful when the reapproval first) so you can refer back to searcher needs to gain a better underthe interview as often as necessary. standing about what people are actually Focus groups, usually comprised doing within the organization. of a small number of people from within Keep in mind that those who may be the organization, allow the researcher to concerned their behavior is in question gather personal perspective – with the could alter their behavior based on the added benefit of conversation among co42 presences of the observer. workers. Be cautious of the amount of

Innerworks Unobtrusive measures focus on gathering information and likely do not cause the information to be altered as interviews and observations can. Some examples of unobtrusive measures that can be useful include historical data, official documents, databases, and the physical environment. Remember, the goal for data gathering is to expand the client’s view of the problem so they can solve the right problem for the

DATA Collection long-term. References Anderson, D. L. (2012). Organization development: the process of leading organizational change (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage Publications

April 2014

A Balancing Act ··· Investment Does the organization have the time and money? Access Will the leaders in the organization allow access to the necessary information? Relevance Are you using the right method for the problem? Accuracy Is there any bias (consultant or client)? Flexibility Do the chosen methods for data gathering allow you the space to collect the information you need?

“Never make a Permanent decision based on temporary feelings.” Unknown

Anderson, L. S., & Anderson, D. (2010). The change leader's roadmap how to navigate your organization's transformation (2nd ed.). San Francisco, CA: Pfeiffer

TITLE TEXT Home Jennifer Marzocca (360) 555-1212

Jennifer served her country for 20 years in the US Navy as an intelligence analyst and currently works in the Law & Justice Center, as the vault manager, on Whidbey Island in Washington. Outside of work, Jennifer is an active participant on the Coupeville Boys & Girls Club advisory board and the vice-president of H.E.R.S., a 501c3 non-profit that serves female veterans. When she isn’t working or busy with the non-profits, you can find her outside photographing the beauty of the Pacific Northwest and playing sports with her three children. 43

SID This is a good place to briefly, but effectively, describe your product or services. This is a good place to briefly, but effectively, describe your product or services.

Innerworks

April 2014

Flipped Classrooms – Fix or Fad By Sandra Vilas

individualized instruction, labs,

numbers of students or schools

and projects to encourage and al-

have insufficient technological

any schools

low time for deeper learning. The resources and whether it really

and districts

teacher now has time to help stu-

works better than current instruc-

have elected to try the newest

dents as they use what they have

tional models. Proponents of

thing in education; flipped learn-

learned online. When students

flipped classrooms believe that it

ing. With flipped learning, tech-

are assigned traditional home-

is not about having the latest iPad

nology is used outside of school.

work, they often do not receive

or Smartphone. At relatively little

This creates time for additional,

meaningful feedback on their

expense or trouble, teachers can

more personalized instruction.

work while they are doing it; they burn DVD’s, send materials home

Rather than having direct instruc- may not have the opportunity to

on USB drives, or allow extra

tion or lectures at the front of a

relearn concepts they struggled to time and access to materials dur-

classroom, teachers put their lec-

master. Teachers now are present ing the day for students who need

tures to videos, slide shows, or

to answer questions and monitor

audio lessons. These can then be

how students are doing, and the

watched at home or anywhere

feedback cycle has greater poten- Maryland first implemented

it. A high school administrator in

else via the Internet or other tools, tial to promote essential student

flipped learning three years ago

such as DVD’s and thumb drives. learning.

with one government class com-

With lectures outside of the

Many who question whether

posed mostly of students with a

classroom, teachers can use time

the approach is practical or equi-

history of chronic underachieve-

during the school day for more

table in places where significant

ment. This idea was very easy to

begin in his class. In the evenings, proach may only work in upper-

alone is not likely to produce the

students watched videos or partici- income, suburban schools. If low- improvement in student learning pated in online group discussions.

income students lack access to

our country needs, but that does

Instructional time would be more

computers at home or to reliable

not mean this idea is not relevant.

devoted to one-on-one instruction

Internet access, flipping may not

The flipped classroom might still

and projects.

be an option. If students cannot

have an important indirect impact

benefit from online instruction at

on the American education system,

One semester later, the flipped

government class had better grades home, then they need to receive

as one kind of digital learning.

than a traditional counterpart did.

instruction in the classroom or risk The use of digital learning will

The administrator expanded the

falling behind. Some fear that in

flipped model to 140 incoming

relying on parents to provide tech- munities. Some students will at-

high school freshmen. Again, he

nology and support, the flipped-

tend full-time virtual schools, with

found success. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The failure rate

classroom model may exacerbate

the classroom experience occurring

dropped by 33% in English lan-

existing resource inequalities.

online; most will attend brick-and-

guage arts, 31% in math, 22% in

Schools can make computer labs

mortar schools that use some ver-

vary in different contexts and com-

science, and 19% in social studies. available after school, and parental sion of digital learning. Standardized test scores went up,

assistance is less critical when

as did attendance. Disciplinary

watching an online video than

problems declined 66%â&#x20AC;? (Beitenhaus, May 2013). Some educators have suggested that the flipped-classroom ap-

References

Beitenhaus, C. (May 2013). Flipped classroom, forward when solving homework problems. thinking. School Planning and Management, 66. Even if low-income students Hogan, K. (May 2013). Flip not flop. Technology & Learning, 10-11. classroom, this change in structure prove to benefit from the flipped

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