Case Clinics
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PURPOSE + OUTCOME

At-a-Glance
Case Clinics guide a team or a group of peers through a process in which a case giver presents a case, and a group of 3-4 peers or team members move into a helper or consultant role based on the principles of the U-Process and process consultation.

Case Clinics allow participants to:

generate ways of framing the issue and

develop new approaches for responding to it.

Purpose
To help a colleague responding to an important and immediate leadership challenge better and more effectively.

Outcomes

Concrete and innovative ideas for how to respond to the pressing leadership challenge.

High level of trust and positive energy among the peer group.

A rapid collective U experience in about 70 minutes.

 

LOGISTICS

People & Place

Groups of 4-5 peers each.

Sufficient space so that groups can work without distractions.

Time
A minimum of 70 minutes is required.

Materials

Chairs for each group to sit in a circle or around a table.

Flipchart and marker.

 

PROCESS

Step 1
Preparation:

Have people think about a leadership situation

that is current, concrete, and important;

the case giver happens to be a key player in;

can be presented in 10 min, and

could make a big difference moving forward.

Step 2
Put group into teams of 4 or 5. Give each group a process hand-out with the instructions, and introduce the process.
Send the groups off with these instructions:

(0)	2 min.	Select case giver and timekeeper
(1)	10-15 min.	Intention Statement by case giver Situation/Problem/Opportunity/Project=What do you want to address? Your intention: What do you want to create? Your edge: what do you need to let go of and learn? Help: Where do you need input and help? Consultants ask clarifying questions if necessary
(2)	5-10 min.	2-3 min Stillness. Then mirroring by each consultant What images and feelings come up for me now? What questions are evoked in my mind?
(3)	30 min.	Generative Dialogue and solution brainstorming by all Case giver reflects on the images and emotions that the case evoked Consultants ask questions to deepen understanding Generative Dialogue: Co-create ideas for solutions.
(4)	10 min.	Concluding Remarks by consultants What is the key issue to be addressed [diagnosis]? What solution/action do I propose?
(5)	5 min.	Concluding remarks by case giver What new insight do the solutions offer to me? How could I use/combine these ideas going forward? Thank you!
(6)	3 min.	Journaling—Capturing the key learnings by all

 

PRINCIPLES

The case giver must own the case, meaning that she or he needs to be a key player in the situation at issue.

The participants in the case clinics are peers, so there is no hierarchical relationship among them.

One participant assumes into the role of the timekeeper and ensures that participants move through the outlined process.

SOURCES

C. Otto Scharmer, Theory U: Chapter 21
www.theoryu.com, www.presencing.com