Organisational movements

ONE THING that can make what we do richer by observing other disciplines and applying useful aspects of their research. And doing ONE THING deep in a team or whole organisation can learn from our understanding of what makes social movements successful.

In a recent interview, Dr Deva Woodly described different ways a social movement can operate - through activism, mobilisation and organising.

- Activism is when people demonstrate they are for or against a cause. It's a short term process - like protesting an issue.

- Mobilising is about showing up and doing something where people have the requisite skills and knowledge - like turning up to vote.

- Organising takes place over time and increases political efficacy. It includes meeting, engagement, education, analysis, collective identity and action. It is an inductive form of doing politics, meaning it builds from particular to general concerns - from the local to the national and transnational.

Organising takes a long time but has huge payoffs. People being to think about themselves as the kind of people who can take action. And this benefits other areas of their lives.

If we want to see a change in our teams and workplace cultures, we can take some lessons from an organising approach. It's like doing ONE THING deep. It takes time, but it increases the likelihood of success and creates a greater sense of confidence more broadly.