Formats and Structures

Here's an extensive look at some of the "soft-structure" that DE uses to provide some safety and stability while preserving our flexibility to adapt and evolve. DE's format and structure are designed to be low-maintenance and predictable. As a start, you can use the format adopted by the Founding Chapter.

Quarter Format

Each quarter starts with a Table Setting session, led by the Group Admins. This is to set-up the quarter's theme, scope out key definitions and vocabulary, and finally establish agreed upon areas to focus on. Hopefully, this provides some focus to the quarter while leaving room for the Chapter to explore breadth across the sessions. Good questions to ask here include "What do I want to learn?" and "What do we need as a Chapter?"

Every 2 weeks, the group rotates Open Topic & Book meetings, led by the Topic Leader who prepares questions in advance. We recommend playing around with the selection of Open Topics and Books, looking at different levels of engagement (e.g. Personal vs Political) and different cultural adaptations for example. We also recommend shortlisting the Books earlier in the quarter so that members have time to find their copies and plan their reading schedules.

Within each session, Topic Leaders get free reign on how they want to run the hour, but we recommend reserving 10 minutes at the beginning and ending of each session to do "Check-Ins" and "Take-Aways" respectively. Check-Ins allow members to build relationships and practice authenticity with each other by sharing how their past week has been, while Takeaways allow members to close-out the session by articulating what has been salient for them at the end of the session.

Finally, we end each session with a Reset and Reflection. This is the time to recap key learnings across the quarter but also to discuss ways to improve how the Chapter runs itself. This applies to everything from Recruitment to Session Design to even the intent of the Chapter itself. Formats like Table Setting and Check-Ins were birthed at a Reset and Reflection.

You can use a template like the one in the link here to help with the Quarter Format.

Chapter Roles

DE operates on a holacracy-inspired model where leadership is distributed and responsibility is given, rotated and held accountable to by group consensus. We seek to empower a community of learners that shape their own experience.

Source: Mountain Goat Software

The chapter is built bottoms-up, led by the participations rather than a central leader who commands and controls everything. Thus, the experience is determined by you - your input, your direction, and your ability to work with the input of others shapes the evolution of your group.

There are three main roles that members can look forward to playing, although they are not constricted to one person each session. These roles are the Chapter Admin, Topic Leader and Participant.

Topic Leader (1 person per session):

• For Book Sessions - ensure the book is selected at least 1 month in advance. Book can be selected through voting or strong recommendation from the book leader.

• For Open Topics - collect a broad and comprehensive set of relevant resources that participants can review before the meeting to achieve a foundational knowledge. Here's an example of an Open Topic guide.

Across both formats, structure the conversation using probing questions according to main topic sub-themes and tensions. The leader has the option to make it a discussion, a debate or any useful form. If preparation is required, ensure participants have time to prepare and communicate this appropriately.

Ensure views representing a variety of views are covered within the conversation, holding onto the founding values of DE. Encourage participation from all members, especially noting those who are quiet or can provide unique perspectives.

Group Admin (2 people assigned per quarter):

• Ensure all members can attend the meeting at least 1 week (ideally 2 weeks) in advance. If not, reschedule ASAP to suitable time and date

• Check-in with members who miss sessions out of care - ensure that the Chapter continues to be welcoming and meaningful for everyone by flagging issues that may be raised.

• Assist Topic Leaders with administration of topic & book selections at least 2 weeks in advance of meetings.

• Ensure Books are declared 2-4 weeks before the session; Open Topics should be declared at least 1 week before the session with accompanying resources.

• Ensure calendar is up-to-date with days & times that are suitable for the Topic Leader + majority of group.

Participant:

• Ensure all DE meetings are reflected in their schedules and planned around. If there is a conflict, the participant should inform the Group Admin and the Topic Leader at least 5 days in advance to allow rescheduling.

• Adhere and critically engage with the founding principles of DE. Participants can propose to improve, modify or remove any part of the founding document at any time.

• Critically participate in all discussions.

• Contribute to the recruitment process as specified in the recruitment document

• Provide input into the participant accountability process as specified by the accountability document

All in all, the DE structure is meant to provide the basic scaffolding for effective community building and deep engagement without overwhelming members. Feel free to pick and choose what works for you but we also encourage starting by adopting the format above and iterating from there! Let us know if you come across any insights in your practice!