an online book by David Gurteen
Something fundamental changes when people begin to ask questions together.
The questions create more of a learning conversation than the normal stale debate about problems.
Credit: Mike Szymanczyk, Former Chairman & CEO, The Altira Group
In this chapter, I look at several stories and examples of how various organizations have used or adapted the Knowledge Café and other Conversational Methods.
If you are looking for specific detailed ways to adapt the Knowledge Café for different purposes, go to the Knowledge Café Applications chapter.
Blog Posts About the Gurteen Knowledge Café The Power of Talking with Enemies Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter In this chapter, I look at a number of stories of how the Knowledge Café and other Conversational Methods have been used or adapted by various organizations. Posts that link to this post Knowledge Café Applications … Continue reading Introduction: Conversational Stories Stories about conversation
Introduction: Conversational Stories Changing Minds Through Conversation Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter Özlem Cekic received hate-filled messages due to her background as a Muslim immigrant. By engaging in honest dialogue with her critics, she demonstrated how open conversation can transform hostility into empathy and build meaningful connections. Özlem Cekic, a former Danish Member … Continue reading The Power of Talking with Enemies Özlem Cekic’s story of transforming hostility through conversation
The Power of Talking with Enemies Knowledge Cafés at NASA Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter Derek Black grew up in a white nationalist household and seemed likely to follow that path. However, when he went to college, he formed friendships with people from different backgrounds. These relationships led him to question his beliefs, … Continue reading Changing Minds Through Conversation The role of conversation in Derek Black’s transformation
Changing Minds Through Conversation The Virtual Random Café Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter You can adapt the Knowledge Café process in a variety of ways and put the Café to a multiplicity of different purposes. This series of Knowledge Cafés ran by NASA was used to identify risk issues and how to mitigate … Continue reading Knowledge Cafés at NASA Identifying risk issues, and meaningful mitigation approaches
Knowledge Cafés at NASA Knowledge Cafés at ING Bank, Netherlands Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter This story about the Virtual Random Café was written by Obhi Chatterjee – Head of Sector – Learning Technologies in the European Commission in Belgium. The Virtual Random Café is a simple way to make space for the … Continue reading The Virtual Random Café Informal conversations and networking … from home
The Virtual Random Café Knowledge Cafés at Johnson & Johnson Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter In 2011, I came across an article in Forbes magazine Is the Traditional Corporate University Dead? by Karl Moore and Phil Lenir. In the article, I learned that the then ING Business School in the Netherlands had adapted … Continue reading Knowledge Cafés at ING Bank, Netherlands Connect, connect, connect
Knowledge Cafés at ING Bank, Netherlands Knowledge Cafés at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter Knowledge Cafés are best suited to groups of 12 to 30 people, but occasionally there is a need to cater for more. This story describes a Knowledge Café for 100 people. In November 2015, … Continue reading Knowledge Cafés at Johnson & Johnson Running four Knowledge Cafés concurrently
Knowledge Cafés at Johnson & Johnson Knowledge Cafés at PSMA Australia Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter The Knowledge Café is often at its best when it is used to convene conversations to give people “a say” in topics and issues that are relevant to them. I received an email in January 2017 from … Continue reading Knowledge Cafés at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Give people a voice
Knowledge Cafés at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Groucho Club Sales Café Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter This is a story written by Alison Jones, a Knowledge Manager at PSMA Australia, in which she explains how she adapted the Knowledge Café process to run a Knowledge Management forum. In 2019, I joined PSMA … Continue reading Knowledge Cafés at PSMA Australia Using the Knowledge Café process to run a Knowledge Management Forum
Knowledge Cafés at PSMA Australia IBM SE Asia Sales Cafés Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter I ran a Sales Café a few years ago for a small, UK based, technology consultancy to introduce a new social software product to their customers. The consultancy booked a room for the evening at the Groucho Club … Continue reading Groucho Club Sales Café Ditch the pitch
Groucho Club Sales Café A Knowledge Café at Viva Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter I ran a series of Sales Cafés a few years ago in SE Asia, for IBM as part of the launch of a new social software product where we used the Knowledge Café method as part of the sales … Continue reading IBM SE Asia Sales Cafés Ditch the pitch
IBM SE Asia Sales Cafés Passion at the Gurteen Knowledge Café Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter The Knowledge Café can be a powerful way to bring people together from different organizations, even competitors, to discuss their shared interests and concerns, such as in this story. I ran a Knowledge Café in 2012 for … Continue reading A Knowledge Café at Viva What are the future possibilities for the Kuwaiti Mobile Telecoms Industry?
A Knowledge Café at Viva Conversation in Hong Kong Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter I have been running regular Knowledge Cafés in the evenings in London since September 2002. These events are entirely free and are open to the public. I run them about 6 times a year and usually get between 30 … Continue reading Passion at the Gurteen Knowledge Café Blog post by Mathew Rees
Passion at the Gurteen Knowledge Café Gurteen Knowledge Café: Entrenched and Entrained Thinking Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter In 2011, I participated in the Hong Kong Knowledge Management Society’s annual conference at the Langham Place Hotel in Mongkok, Hong Kong. Interestingly, they asked me to help them turn the conference into a Knowledge … Continue reading Conversation in Hong Kong A Knowledge Café with eight speakers
Conversation in Hong Kong A Conversation Dinner in Turin Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter On 16th March 2017, I ran a Knowledge Café in London for NetIKX (The Network for Information and Knowledge Exchange) – an independent community interested in information and knowledge management. The purpose of the Café was to explore the problems of entrenched … Continue reading Gurteen Knowledge Café: Entrenched and Entrained Thinking A blog post by Conrad Taylor
Gurteen Knowledge Café: Entrenched and Entrained Thinking The Huawei Break the Book Community Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter Any dinner can be transformed easily into a conversation dinner. All you need is a conversation menu. In November 2011, I spent two enjoyable days in Turin with the European Training Foundation (ETF). I was … Continue reading A Conversation Dinner in Turin Knowledge menu à la carte
A Conversation Dinner in Turin Knowledge Cafés at the European Patent Office Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter The Huawei Break the Book Community is a Reading Group Café – a simple but powerful example of peer learning that has much in keeping with the principles of the Knowledge Café. In November 2015, I gave a talk … Continue reading The Huawei Break the Book Community A powerful example of peer learning
The Huawei Break the Book Community Knowledge Café in Zurich, Switzerland Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter This story about a Personal Growth Community (PGC) was written by Jan Hellberg – a Patent Examiner at the European Patent Office in the Hague. A PGC is an adaptation of the Knowledge Café process to encourage … Continue reading Knowledge Cafés at the European Patent Office The Personal Growth Community
Knowledge Cafés at the European Patent Office Knowledge Cafés at National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter In 2006, I ran a knowledge-sharing workshop for an international organization in Zurich. As part of the workshop, I ran a Knowledge Café. The experience transformed my understanding of the power … Continue reading Knowledge Café in Zurich, Switzerland The Knowledge Café has empowered our staff to speak up and take the initiative
Knowledge Café in Zurich, Switzerland A Knowledge Café in English, French and Russian Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter This story is an excellent example of how organizations have readily adapted the Knowledge Café for use in a corporate environment. An interview with Valarie Walters of the National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago … Continue reading Knowledge Cafés at National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago Turning traditional talks into Cafés
Knowledge Cafés at National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago Knowledge Cafés at Equinor ** Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter In November 2011, I spent an enjoyable two days in Turin with the European Training Foundation (ETF) where I ran a Knowledge Café in three languages, English, French, and Russian. It wasn’t as … Continue reading A Knowledge Café in English, French and Russian Knowledge Cafe’s can be run in multiple languages
A Knowledge Café in English, French and Russian Sugar Rush at the Knowledge Café Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter Statoil (now rebranded Equinor) in Norway was an earlier adopter of Knowledge Cafés in 2007. At the time they applied them in several different ways. Continue reading Knowledge Cafés at Equinor **
Knowledge Cafés at Equinor ** Randomised Coffee Trials at Red Cross Red Crescent Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter This is an article written by Joanna Goodman about a Knowledge Café, I ran in August 2009 that was hosted by the chocolate manufacturer Cadbury at their headquarters in Bournville, England. Tweet This POST NAVIGATION … Continue reading Sugar Rush at the Knowledge Café How conversation is bringing KM back to the people
Sugar Rush at the Knowledge Café Intimate Conversations Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter Randomised Coffee Trials (RCTS) are a way of connecting people in an organization at random to give them time to meet to have a coffee and talk about whatever they wish. They are a simple, low-cost means of enabling people to … Continue reading Randomised Coffee Trials at Red Cross Red Crescent Virtual coffee meetings across the globe
Randomised Coffee Trials at Red Cross Red Crescent Hong Kong MTR Coffee Evenings and Liaison Trains Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter Some years ago, I attended one of Theodore Zeldin’s Conversation Dinners in Oxford. It was a fascinating experience. We sat in pairs, our partner had already been selected, and as well as … Continue reading Intimate Conversations Conversations with strangers
Intimate Conversations Equinor Management Training Cafés Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter Customer satisfaction surveys often rely on brief, limited questions that don’t capture the whole picture. This method can lead to overlooked feedback and biased responses. The Hong Kong MTR has a more engaging approach: it sets up coffee booths and special carriages … Continue reading Hong Kong MTR Coffee Evenings and Liaison Trains An improvement over traditional customer surveys
Hong Kong MTR Coffee Evenings and Liaison Trains Al Jazeera Cafe Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter Background At one time, the Norwegian oil company Statoil (now Equinor) innovatively employed the Knowledge Café in their management training. I find this application quite impactful and have outlined the process below. They illustrated the use of … Continue reading Equinor Management Training Cafés You learn when you converse
Equinor Management Training Cafés Huawei Transforms a Global Conference with a Knowledge Market Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter The Al Jazeera Cafe was an interesting journalistic experiment run by Al Jazeera in 2012. The Cafe brought people together around a table, from all backgrounds, all walks of life, in different corners of the world, … Continue reading Al Jazeera Cafe An interesting experiment not to deabate but engage in a global conversation
Al Jazeera Cafe Knowledge Café at Regent’s University February 2024 Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter Many conferences are a series of PowerPoint talks interspersed by the occasional panel discussion. The audience gets a little time to ask questions, but they get absolutely no time to reflect or interact with each other besides in … Continue reading Huawei Transforms a Global Conference with a Knowledge Market How to make a conference more participatory
Huawei Transforms a Global Conference with a Knowledge Market Ericsson Story ** Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter Wednesday 7th February 2024 at 6 pm to 9 pm Regents University London The last face-to-face London knowledge café facilitated by David Gurteen was based on the question ‘What knowledge, skills, and capabilities should be prioritized … Continue reading Knowledge Café at Regent’s University February 2024 What Are the Strongest Motives for Creative Endeavour in Your Life?
Knowledge Café at Regent’s University February 2024 Jakarta Dutch Cultural Centre 2007 ** Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter In my former role as a Business Process Analyst and Knowledge Management Driver at Ericsson Australia, I was invited to attend a Knowledge Café Masterclass by David Gurteen in the early part of 2009. I … Continue reading Ericsson Story **
Ericsson Story ** Blog Posts About the Gurteen Knowledge Café Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter In 2007 I made my first visit to Jakarta, Indonesia, where I ran a 2-day Knowledge Sharing workshop for a client that included a Knowledge Café and as I often do, when abroad, I ran an open Gurteen … Continue reading Jakarta Dutch Cultural Centre 2007 **
Jakarta Dutch Cultural Centre 2007 ** Introduction: Conversational Stories Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter Here are a few articles and blog posts and from around the web about the Gurteen Knowledge Café. Why conversation is the best way to share knowledge This is a blog post by David Wilcox about a special Knowledge … Continue reading Blog Posts About the Gurteen Knowledge Café A selection of Knowledge Café blog posts, articles and papers
