Knowledge Cafés at the European Patent Office The Personal Growth Community

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 free dialogue on various personal development topics.

Introduction

The Personal Growth Community (PGC) is a group (and a concept) founded in 2011 by Jan Hellberg and Michail Papatheofrastou at the European Patent Office in the Hague. It has been further developed with some of their colleagues over recent years.

A PGC encourages free dialogue on a variety of topics. Many forms are possible, and for a successful PGC, there are only a few strict rules that should be followed, along with some strong recommendations. However, the Knowledge Café process has proven to be one of the best formats for the PGC.

Members of a PGC develop to be highly engaged and motivated participants of their communities. A PGC can open new ideas, insights, and developments for the individual participants of the organization or company of which the PGC is a part.

I like to say that PGCs spread the “I Can Bug” (an idea by Kiran Bir Sethi).

Timing and meeting forms

The PGC is usually run once per month for one hour, as the participants take part in their free time.

A session usually takes the form of a mini Gurteen Knowledge Café, with a 15 – 20 minutes presentation and a 20 – 40 minutes discussion, or if more time is available, the discussion may last longer – 45 – 75 minutes.

Four to five people should sit around small tables because in this setup, immediately after the presentation, a lively discussion starts.

Other forms of more active workshops are much appreciated but typically need a little more time, between 1 – 2 hours.

Pecha Kucha sessions are also beneficial for inexperienced presenters. In such meetings, several participants could present in the Pecha Kucha format (6:40 minutes per person) about a passion or a topic they are interested in.

After each Pecha Kucha, a short round of questions can be added.

Communication

A newsletter is possible, but it is not a crucial element for a PGC.

A database where all the material and information about the sessions are stored is good to have.

However, the requirements are low e. g. a simple classification of topics is needed to keep an overview. If slides are used, they can be shared by email after the session. Handouts are not provided as they can be a distraction from the conversation.

Topics

There should be some rough categories of topics defined, such as “Body & Mind” (e.g., mindfulness practice or typologies such as the enneagram), “People” (e.g., communication).

Other possible topics could be around learning, art, and philosophy, depending on the group members’ needs and interests and the type of organization in which the group is embodied.

There could also be sessions around specific topics concerning the organization.

Members

How one becomes a member of the PGC should be decided before the group is formed. It is recommended, though, that anyone within the organization can join.

Onboarding

The onboarding process might include a small exercise or request, leading to more loyalty and active participation.

Onboarding is a good tool to start the personal growth of any member right from the very start. A small article or introduction written by a new member should be possible for anyone interested in self-development.

A great exercise is a “Zander’s letter” after Rosamund and Benjamin Zander. The “member to be” has to write a vision of the person they have become in 1, 2, or 3 years due to their participation in the PGC.

PGC Board

A PGC needs a chair and, if possible, a small board that can share the work of organising and running the sessions. The board needs to decide the topics together with the members of the PGC. Voting is a good idea if there are too many suggested topics.

Presenters

In the groups I run, the presenters are, for most of the sessions, members of the group. It’s best to arrange regular sessions each month. In which case, eight sessions should be given by members; two sessions, by external trainers and coaches, and another two meetings could be reserved for managers or colleagues with particular tasks in the organisation such as experts.

To help create a high-trust environment and improve the community members’ engagement, it is recommended that for the majority of the events that the presenters are managers or senior managers from within the organization.

The most energising events can be when an inspiring  VP or CEO is invited and can be listened to in a safe environment. In such sessions, questions can be posed and answered that one might usually not get the opportunity to ask.

A “safe place” to speak your mind

The Chatham HouseRule, after the UK Royal Institute of International Affairs, is one of the elements that should be adopted as it creates a safe place where authentic dialogue becomes possible. The Chatham House Rule is as follows:

“When a meeting, or part thereof, is held under the Chatham House Rule, participants are free to use the information received, but neither the identity nor the affiliation of the speaker(s), nor that of any other participant, may be revealed.“

Conclusion

I’ve had a lot of inspiration from many sources over the years, first and foremost, the team we are running our PGC at my workplace with. I’m incredibly grateful for the experience and continuous source of energy and new thoughts, and I hope many others may achieve the same and profit in the same way as we do from our colleagues and friends.

A PGC is about its members; therefore, it is an excellent idea to let it grow slowly and personally onboard the members by the PGC Board. However, the word about the PGC should be spread by all members alike. New members should be told what it’s all about and be invited to a few sessions to make up their mind; after that, a small exercise could be used as a first step to “grow” before onboarding them, like the “Zander letter” mentioned above.

I wish everyone who uses this or a similar approach a huge success in spreading Kiran Bir Sethi’s “I Can Bug.”

Jan Hellberg
Patent Examiner at the European Patent Office

Posts that link to this post

•  How to Run a Personal Growth Community Design and run your own Personal Growth Community
•  Request for Knowledge Café Stories Knowledge Café Stories

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