To Hear Stories Of Dissent

When i’m asked “how will we know if an organisation is Socially Dynamic“, my off the cuff answer is that it will be able to hear stories of dissent. Perhaps i should add, “and it will recognise that it can learn from them“. Too often, stories of dissent are driven out of earshot, hidden, or denied, or the organisations feels the need to respond to, or correct the story, whilst all it actually needs to do, is to hear it, and value it.

At the heart of the Dynamic Tension in the centre of the Socially Dynamic Organisation is the ability to recognise both pillars: the formal, and the social, and to place equal value in both. Formal organisations feel that they can own and control stories, Socially Dynamic ones recognise that they are privileged to hear them, even when they disagree with them.

to hear stories, requires coherent communities, strong storytelling, high trust, social capital, strong reputation, a willingness to learn: that’s why strong Social Leadership is a core trait of the Socially Dynamic Organisation.