This presentation will briefly trace the origins and development of what has come to be known as the ‘Preston Model’, how and why it emerged and what might make it distinct from other ‘urban regeneration’ schemes. Although the Model includes the development of actual co-operative businesses, it is a pan socio-economic approach to community, business and society that is based on participation and desire for contribution and change above a narrow pursuit of creating wealth for its own sake. It is as much about co-operation as co-operatives. The presentation will discuss the various strands of the model and the political, social and ideological roots that uphold it, as well as the networked contributions from a range of stakeholders across the city, especially so-called ‘anchor institutions’. We will also be examining the interlocking roles of the local council and the university and future plans, including a co-operative community bank and a Co-operative University. The Preston Model is not a utopia and neither is it a finished ‘model’. Rather, it is work in progress, and the presentation seeks to consider the difficulties as well as the successes. Above all, it is a Model of intangibles such as affect, hope, enthusiasm, participation, pride and determination. Along with those qualities also come failure, disappointment, sorrow and frustration. The Preston Model shows what can be done in a move towards a new socio-economic paradigm that moves towards a post-growth society, the joy and the fear.

Dr Julian Manley is Social Innovation Manager at the Centre for SME Development, University of Central Lancashire in Preston. He was founding member and Chair of the Preston Co-operative Development Network from 2017-2020. He is a member of the Labour Party’s Community Wealth Building Unit, and a member of the Interim Academic Board of the Co-operative University. 

Register for this webinar today! 

Practitioners know that standard management techniques don’t work very well in co-operatives, especially in flat hierarchy, high participation co-ops.  And when that standard tool doesn’t do what we were led to believe it would do, how often do we blame ourselves and even the co-operative model itself?

But perhaps orthodox management theory, including much that underlies co-operative management, is fundamentally inappropriate for our use. 

In this webinar we will discuss the ideology of systems theory which lies at the heart of most orthodox management thinking (an ideology which may be more about control and reinforcing hierarchy than the best option for co-operative governance and business management). 

Bob will be introducing a little known, but very exciting, alternative way of thinking about organisations, based on the communication and relationship processes of the humans involved, from the work of Ralph D Stacey and his colleagues at the University of Hertfordshire Business School, UK. 

Participants will consider if management thinking based on human communicating and relating processes -Complex Responsive Processes of Relating- could be a more effective way of managing co-operatives.

About the speaker: Bob Cannell has spent his working life helping manage and support worker owned co-operatives in the UK. He was the personnel officer for Suma (www.suma.coop) during the twenty years when the worker co-op grew to be one of the largest businesses in its locality and a wealth generating machine for its workers and their communities. As a co-operative development worker, Bob has advised many UK worker co-ops, co-authoring the Co-ops UK Code of Governance for Worker Co-operatives, and was the UK representative for the International Co-operative Alliance worker co-op sector organisation - CICOPA, and vice-chair of the European region, CECOP.  He is an ecology graduate and political economy post-grad, which he credits for his analytical and independent approach to management and organisational thinking.

Register for this webinar now!

COVID-19 Update: Join us for the online Symposium!

At Buy Social Canada's core our goal is to help shape healthy communities.

Now, more than ever we are seeing the importance of shaping thriving and resilient local economies. Things will change after the dust has settled from this crisis and the importance of social value procurement can not be understated. Join us to learn from industry experts and the Social Procurement Champion Award winners.

Currently the best action we can take to help our community is to adapt our in-person Symposium to a digital event as we practice social distancing and isolation to limit the rate of infection of COVID-19.

With gratitude for the technology that makes this possible we look forward to connecting with you at the Buy Social Canada Digital Symposium.

View the program and register

March 25, 2020

9:00 am to 12:00 pm
United Way of Winnipeg Learning Centre
1st floor, 580 Main St.
CCEDNet Mbrs: $25 | Non-Members: $75

Not a member? Join CCEDNet

This is the second in a cluster of workshops inspired by the collaboration focus of the 2019 Gathering, themed, Movement Weaving: Building Collaborative Capacity. To learn more about the spirit and intent of that event, visit the Gathering page. 

Each one is a stand-alone workshop that tackles a different aspect and practice of collaboration. For more information on Manitoba Learns workshops, click here.

The most challenging issues and problems in our community have diverse stakeholders with diverse perspectives. Creating a collaborative common agenda is a multi-stage process that requires skilled and ideally endorsed facilitation at both the macro and micro layers. 

Processes that begin with sharing perspectives require a safe space, platform for collaboration and willingness to follow a skillfully-led process. 

Assisting stakeholders to shift from their often strongly-held positions to surfacing their underlying interests: wants and needs, hopes and desires, fears and concerns. Revealing common interests will help reduce distance between community members and builds both the agenda for action as well as the "connective tissue" or relational atmosphere for collaborative action. 

Learning Objectives: 

• Learn a process of interest-based sharing and how to identify common interests 
• Learn to start the process of generating an action plan that reflects diverse views and can include a role for everyone 

Register now for From Shared Perspectives to Creating A Common Agenda 

FACILITATOR

Sue Hemphill is the Principal Consultant of Healthy Hive. She has been consulting for organizational and community development and facilitating groups in diverse settings with diverse populations for over 25 years, including as a professional mediator. Sue’s consulting practice client-collaborators are in C.D. / CED, arts and culture, justice, education, health and newcomer settlement. Sue loves to cross-pollinate sharing ideas, practices and tools across and between sectors and communities.