Our approach

Collaborative processes works with the following principles and understandings:

  1. Collaboration is a perspective, not a set of tools or skills. As such, a person or organization does not merely ‘learn’ or adopt it; rather it is adopted as an organizing perspective.
  2. Collaborative Processes’ role is to encourage the behaviors and attitudes that foster collaboration.
  3. Collaboration requires: (a) an appropriate context, (b) a will to collaborate, and (c) competence in basic collaboration skills.
  4. Although many situations are complex and challenging, the key is in the attitude (and therefore the behaviors) of the participants. If you want it to work – it will.

Influential thought leaders. In addition to the colleagues with whom we have worked, our thought leaders, mentors or influential authors/speaking include the following persons – who have shaped our thinking about collaboration and addressing conflict:

  • Professor Clyde Martz as a leader in law, advocacy, negotiation and conflict resolution.
  • Gary Friedman, Jack Himmelstein and Bob Mnookin on mediation.
  • Johan Galtung, author of many books and articles on conflict.
  • Professor Alan Fowler on organizational development and systems thinking in consultation.
  • Edgar Schein on the role of consultant.
  • Professor Carl Larson and David Chrislip on collaborative leadership.
  • Professor Stan Christensen on discussion leadership.
  • Professor Howard Raiffa on negotiation and decision analysis, as updated and amended by Daniel Kahneman.
  • Professor John Paul Lederach on conflict transformation.
  • On what it means to be human, Thomas Keating, Richard Rohr, Jurgen Moltmann, John O’Donahue, David Whyte, Thich Nhat Hanh, Bill Plotkin and Sogyal Rinpoche.