REPLY Society Strategy Development (SD7205)

[SDMAIL Kim Warren]

Posted by  "Kim Warren" <Kim at strategydynamics.com>

I have just received a worrying personal email that gives cause to build
on Bob's comments below. 

It comes from one of the many young, expert, committed and highly
enthusiastic members of our community, and says in summary that much of
the recent dialogue about the Society and the people who work hard to
run its activities have been destructive, personally hurtful and grossly
inaccurate. He worries that many of the great young people in the field
will be made to feel depressed and demoralised by this negativity,
poisoning the very well of energy and intellect on which the future
depends. If I can quote one line from this message ... "If this kind of
stuff can be hurtful to me, who already earned a PhD and found a job in
SD ..., imagine what it does to people who are considering a career in
System Dynamics, sponsoring a conference or paying for a project?"

I would hope by now that everyone with feelings of resentment to throw
around has now got everything off their chests, so could I please ask
for any future contributions regarding the Society's strategy to be
exclusively constructive - and preferably specific and detailed. Believe
it or not, I am reading all this stream and picking out items I can see
that might be helpful. [If I'm wrong on this and there are still folk
out there with horror stories about how their great efforts to take the
field forward have been destroyed, perhaps you could direct them
straight to me, on the promise that I will treat them discreetly and
make what constructive use of them I can.] 

Please also bear in mind Bob's comment that the Society is run largely
by volunteers [though supported of course by Roberta and her
hard-working team], and that no-one and no group to my knowledge has a
'policy' of rejecting or obstructing initiatives that would help take
the field forward. There is no 'they' who 'ought' to be doing things -
there is only 'us', and things will only happen if 'we' get on and make
them, and that includes impatient professionals.  

Kim
Posted by  "Kim Warren" <Kim at strategydynamics.com>
posting date  Sun, 20 Jul 2008 11:25:19 +0100