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The Large Group Facilitator's Manual Authors: Kerry Napuk and
Eddie Palmer Kerry Napuk and Eddie Palmer are two consultants with backgrounds that span raising venture capital for business startups, strategic planning for SMEs, "visioning" with senior management teams, social work, training and organisational consulting. Both reached the conclusion that successful organisational change required more than a team of top managers united around their vision of the company's future. Change projects failed because these managers were rarely able to "sell" their vision to their colleagues; without "buy‑in", staff were unlikely to commit themselves. Unwilling to be drawn into doing managers' jobs for their client organisations, and wanting to involve all stakeholders in a change process, Napuk and Palmer turned to large group interventions. Why? Because such events are "dynamic, creative and energetic" and deal with the future in an open and transparent way. With the whole system in one room, everyone can take part. Participation leads to commitment and ownership, which in turn lead to more robust outcomes. The process stands in stark contrast to more traditional events that are the medium for conveying top‑down messages. I like this new loose‑leaf manual for a variety of reasons. First, I identify with the democratic values of large group interventions. Second, such interventions support a view of the change process that I believe to be accurate and effective. Third, the authors deal with the subject matter in an easily accessible and digestible way. Part one of the manual describes what large group processes look like, their impact, how and why they work and the role of the facilitator. it includes history of the development of large group interventions, and puts into context the many overlapping strands and events. Part two describes the processes themselves. The most widely known are "open space" and "future search", but this section also refers to the many variants that encompass different designs and time spans. Indeed, the authors describe some of their own processes, including one that they devised at very short notice to meet particular needs. They also mention some techniques that can be useful within an event. The result is an accessible mix of background information coupled with straightforward advice and guidance on how to run events. Not only do the authors offer detailed structures for each variant process, they also provide some scripts. While I wouldn't recommend anyone following the scripts word for word, I do appreciate the clarity they provide. I also predict that readers will experience an extra benefit. After browsing through the manual, they will quickly develop the confidence to devise their own interventions to suit their specific circumstances. Anyone contemplating a large group intervention might wonder why they should pay £195 for this manual when they could buy, for example, one of Harrison Owen's books on his open space process. I would suggest that both would be useful. The book would provide more contextual information and illustrative anecdotes, while the manual provides the practical, step‑by‑step guide to an event from invitation to wrap up. I judge it to be a useful addition to the literature. Jo McHale, Hamelin Occupational
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