Examples of how we work with complex questions
We do not start with the solution. We start by understanding the question behind the question.
By looking beneath the surface, a different picture of the challenge may emerge. This can change what needs to be done — from which decisions need to be made and which interventions are relevant, to how change can actually be put into practice. Whether the question concerns change, conflict, ethics, knowledge or technology, we begin in the same way: by understanding what is truly at stake.
Here are some examples of what this can look like in practice
01 · When change begins with pause
Starting point : An organisation faced a comprehensive reorganisation and planned interventions to strengthen employees’ initiative and agency in the face of an uncertain future.
The question : By listening carefully to employees’ experiences, it became clear that the change work needed to begin elsewhere. Before employees could look forward, what had been lost needed to be acknowledged and processed.
Our work : Through conversations about grief, loss and the feelings that the change had awakened, space was created to understand and process what had happened. The work therefore did not begin with creating more activity, but with pausing and taking employees’ experiences seriously.
Results: When grief was acknowledged and processed, space was created for something else: agency and capability to act. Employees could once again begin to orient themselves towards the future and together start to move forward.
Testimonial
You have achieved something very special with the team. By feeling seen and heard, they were finally able to move forward. Ramon, S, Head of Operations, care and support organisation with approximately 2,800 employees and around 3,700 service users
What we learned: Sometimes we need first to understand what change has done to people before we can understand what needs to happen next.
Organisation · Change · Employees · Deep Listening
02 · When conflict is not the whole problem
Starting point: When conflicts arise in a work group, what is visible – irritation, entrenched positions or poor collaboration – can be an expression of something that lies deeper. It may concern different views of the remit, unspoken dilemmas, lost trust, changes that have not been processed or experiences that have not been given voice.
The question: What is it really that has come between people – and what needs to become visible for the group to find a way forward?
Our work: We create structured conversations where employees have the opportunity to describe their experiences and perspectives and to listen to one another. Through dialogue, we explore what lies behind the conflict: which questions need to be articulated, what dilemmas exist, what has been lost and what resources and qualities exist within the group. In certain situations, the work concerns restoring understanding and trust. In others, it may involve processing a change or loss, making visible different views of the remit or creating clearer understanding of what actually stands between the parties.
Results: The work can create a shared understanding of what the conflict actually concerns and give the group the opportunity to move forward on a more considered foundation. This may mean that new ways of collaborating become possible, that different perspectives can be accommodated or that questions that were previously difficult to discuss can be addressed together. The conversations can also provide a clearer picture of the situation’s nature and what is needed going forward – for example, whether continued dialogue is the right path, or whether the matter needs to be handled differently, including with legal support.
Testimonial
Marjan is a thoughtful facilitator who contributes to the team’s work and cohesion in a diplomatic manner, and adds value through her broad knowledge and experience base. In dialogues and discussions, she contributes relevant reflections and offers support in a helpful way. Anders N, expert in sustainable economics
What we learned: Sometimes we need first to understand what the conflict is trying to tell us.02 · När konflikten inte är hela problemet
Organisation · Conflict · Dialogue · Workenvironment · Employees
03 · From knowledge to a coherent approach to practice
Starting point: An organisation needed to develop its palliative care and had access to both scientific knowledge and extensive experience-based knowledge. The challenge was to unite these forms of knowledge and translate them into a coherent approach to practice.
The question: How can palliative care be developed so that scientific knowledge meets people’s actual experiences – patients, relatives and professionals – and can be translated into practice?
Our work Through participatory qualitative research, the various professions within care, patients, relatives and employees were involved. Scientific research and current knowledge bases were combined with empirical evidence and human experience.
Results: The work resulted, amongst other things, in a new care profession, targeted competence development and structures for knowledge-sharing within the organisation. In this way, a coherent approach to practice was created where knowledge could move between research, experience and actual care delivery.
Testimonial
If only all governance documents and guidelines held the same high quality as yours. Prof. Dr. Petri E
What we learned Knowledge becomes most significant when different forms of knowledge can meet and be translated into a context where people actually need to use it.
Care · Research · Organisation · Implementation · Knowledge Sharing
04 · From idea to an organisation that can fulfil its vision
Starting point: A newly established organisation needed to move from idea and ambition to an organisation with a clear direction. There was a vision of what the organisation should be, but the vision needed to take a form that could guide both continued development and work on quality.
The question: How can a new organisation formulate its fundamental idea in a way that feels authentic to those building it and provides a stable foundation for how the organisation should develop over time?
Our work: We worked together with the organisation to clarify its fundamental idea, values, vision and mission. The work was not simply about formulating words, but about exploring what the organisation actually wanted to stand for and how this could be translated into principles for continued development.
Results: The work gave the newly established organisation a clearer identity and direction, as well as a foundation on which to build the organisation further. Vision and mission became the starting point for how the organisation could understand quality, make decisions and develop over time.
What we learned: In a newly established organisation, vision and values need not only to describe where one wants to go – they also need to help the organisation understand how to get there.
Organisation · Vision · Mission · Quality · Governance
05 · When knowledge must carry trust
Starting point: When society faces risks such as pandemics, climate change or other complex threats, decisions need to be built on knowledge that can be relied upon. At the same time, it can be difficult to determine what is sufficiently well-founded, how uncertainty should be managed and who bears responsibility when knowledge is translated into decisions.
The question: How can organisations and public institutions use expert knowledge in a way that is scientifically responsible, transparent and open to reconsideration when the state of knowledge changes?
Our work: We have worked on matters concerning scientific quality, integrity, expert knowledge and responsible governance – with a focus on how knowledge is produced, scrutinised and used in practice.
Results: The work has contributed to better conditions for well-founded decisions and to making visible how responsibility and uncertainty can be managed when knowledge needs to be translated into practice.
What we learned: Trust is not built on knowledge always being certain. It is also built on uncertainty being able to be acknowledged, scrutinised and managed responsibly.
Science · Expertise · Integrity · Governance-Politics
06 · When technology shapes how we perceive and act
Starting point :Technology is becoming an increasingly significant part of our lives and organisations. When new technology is developed and implemented, it therefore needs not only to function technically, but also to support people’s knowledge, capability and scope for action.
The question: How can one understand what technology does to people’s opportunities to act and to the organisation’s way of functioning – and discover this whilst development or implementation is still ongoing?
Our work: We have developed a research-based framework that makes it possible to examine how technology affects both people and organisations through the development and implementation process. The framework makes visible where the technology supports the organisation’s human and organisational values, and where it risks undermining them.
Results: The framework makes it possible to adjust the technology’s development or implementation when needed. In this way, the technology can be shaped not only according to what it is technically capable of doing, but also according to how it can support people’s action, knowledge and scope for action in the actual organisation.
What we learned: Technology is never merely a tool. It also shapes how people can understand, choose and act.
Technology · Humans · Agency · Development · Implementation
07 · When difficult decisions need collective ownership
Starting point In healthcare, situations arise where professionals need to make difficult decisions without there being an obvious right answer. Different values, experiences and perspectives can be in tension with one another.
The question: How can a group together arrive at a decision when several alternatives are possible and none of them is self-evident?
Our work: We have facilitated moral deliberations where those involved are given the opportunity to make visible what is at stake, test different perspectives and examine which values and arguments should carry most weight. The process creates a structured and safe form for thinking together when the question is difficult.
Results: Through deliberation, it becomes possible to move from a difficult and often entrenched situation to a decision that is considered and can be borne by the people affected by it – even when not everyone had the same starting point.
Testimonial
Marjan has an exceptional ability to build trust and connection with people from different backgrounds and belief systems. Her insights are clearly valued by those she meets, and she contributes in a safe and supportive way to our team, where she focuses on what matters most in a humble yet effective manner. Jaap S, District Doctor and expert in palliative care
What we learned: A difficult decision does not need to be a decision that everyone agrees on. It needs to be a decision that those affected can understand, agree upon and take responsibility for.
Care · Ethics · Deliberation · Shared Decision Making ·
08 · When communication needs to carry both knowledge and humanity
Starting point In organisations where the encounter between people is a central part of quality, communication can be decisive – particularly when people find themselves in vulnerability, uncertainty or facing difficult news.
The question How can professional communication create both understanding and trust, without the human dimension being lost?
Our work We have developed and delivered competence development in compassionate communication for organisations where the encounter between people is a central part of the work. The focus is on how professionals can listen, communicate and meet people with both knowledge and human presence.
Results Employees have been given the opportunity to develop their communicative ability and to better manage encounters characterised by uncertainty, vulnerability or difficult news.
What we learned: Good professional communication is not about choosing between knowledge and humanity. It needs to carry both.
Communication · Development of competences · Quality· Humanity
09 · Building capacity to address ethical questions
Starting point Ethical questions often arise in the midst of practical work, where different values, perspectives and interests can be in tension with one another. They are not always easy to recognise, and there is rarely a ready-made answer to follow.
The question How can an organisation develop the capacity to itself identify ethical questions and handle difficult situations in a considered and structured way?
Our work We have trained employees and leaders in moral deliberation. The focus is on developing the capacity to identify value conflicts, understand different perspectives and test arguments – rather than teaching ready-made answers.
Results Employees and leaders gain tools to recognise ethical questions and take difficult questions forward towards decisions that are considered and possible to bear together with those affected.
Testimonial
You have not only deep knowledge within the field, but also insights into everything else we discuss. Your knowledge base is impressive and extensive. Marlies N, District Doctor
What we learned Ethical competence is not about always knowing what is right from the start. It is about being able to pause, see what is at stake and together test the way forward.
Ethics · Learning · Organisation · Deliberation · Shared Decision Making