Society for Organisational Learning in the UK

I am very pleased to announce that SoL's 3rd Global Forum -Bridging the Gulf: Learning Across Organizations, Sectors and Cultures - will be hosted by Gulf SoL and held in Muscat, Oman April 12th-17th. The formal meeting will begin with dinner on Sunday (13th), and conclude on Wednesday evening (16th). SoL interest groups will hold pre- and post-forum meetings. Workshops will also be offered. Registration is now open for the Forum. Early registration discounts will end on December 31st. I would also like to remind you to please submit proposals for concurrent sessions before November 9th. Consider how you can share your work at this historic event! You can find detailed guidelines at www.solonline.org/repository/file?item_id=12666157 and you submit your proposal on-line at http://www.softconf.com/start/sol08/submit.html. The Design Team will meet in Oman in early December, review program recommendations and finalize the agenda. You will receive another update prior to the deadline for early registrations. For many SoL members, it's a long trip to Oman. Why should you come? As with most SoL meetings, you are highly likely to make connections that will produce immediate value. As always, the meeting will feature inspiring examples of the latest innovations in organizational learning applications. In addition, this particular session is a great leadership development opportunity - no matter whether you are high potential or seasoned. And for those of us in the United States - we've had the benefit of the world coming to our door for years. It's our turn to fly half-way around the world. (It's not really quite that far!) The Design Team asks you to consider this: Our world is shrinking in size while it is growing in complexity, therefore our success depends on what we learn by working across our boundaries. To be truly global we must include many different viewpoints which may not be readily acceptable to our mental models. We see the corporation emerging as the most powerful and innovative social institution in our global society as it stretches beyond national borders. Bridging the Gulf: Learning Across Organizations, Sectors and Cultures is reaching beyond our boundaries, creating new connections, and strengthening the global community. We are coming together to share experiences, gain insight and understanding, while seeking new collaborations to make a difference. Because of these factors the forum will address three critical issues of our time; 1.      How can we promote inclusiveness and exchange in bridging growing cultural and social divides? 2.      What is the role of the corporation in building sustainable, local solutions to problems of globalization? 3.      How can we, as a SoL community, engage our collective intelligence to address today's challenging issues? I am delighted that the SoL community recognizes that these issues are not just the province of formal leaders. By exploring these questions together, we are likely to improve our capacity to be responsible global citizens and effective local managers. I hope you will seriously consider participating in the Global Forum, and that you will share this opportunity with others you feel would both benefit and contribute. Please let me know if you have comments or questions, or if I can be of help. With warm and welcoming wishes from the Gulf,
SherryPS Our goal is to make SoL events accessible to all our members. Scholarships are available to all SoL events by application. For more information, go to the event registration pages. C. Sherry Immediato, Managing Director
SoL (Society for Organizational Learning)
25 First Street, Suite 414
Cambridge, MA 02141 USA
e-mail: Immediato@solonline.org
Visit us at: http://www.solonline.org.