Mind-ful Consulting

The publication of this book coincides with a increasing recognition that the challenges facing society and organisations are not amenable to "quick fixes". The approaches to consultancy which underpin the cases presented here are particularly relevant in this new context. The contributors are graduates of AOC [The Tavistock Institute Masters Programme in Advanced Organisational Change and Consulting] and their associates; and the work they describe here is a testament to the quality of that programme and the learning that participants get from it.

Karen Izod has designed programmes with and for the Tavistock Institute and the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust, as well as as bespoke courses for specific organisations. She is visiting lecturer on a number of Doctoral and Master's Degree programmes including the MSc in Coaching and Behavioural Change, Henley Business School, and MSc in Inter-professional Health and Social Care at Christchurch Canterbury. She was also joint editor of 'Mind-ful Consulting' (Karnac Books, 2009). Karen is concerned with how relationships play out in organisations, particularly across diverse political and stakeholder interests, and with the professional judgement required to face risk and be accountable. She integrates creative media and experiential learning into her work as a means of researching the dynamics of organisational dilemmas. Sue Whittle has published in many academic and practitioner journals and books, including 'Mind-ful Consulting' and 'Changing Organizations from Within'. She has taught programs in Organization Development, Quality Management, and Research Methods at Masters level in a number of universities and served as external examiner at Manchester and Brighton Business Schools. From 2001 to 2009 she held a core faculty role on The Tavistock Institute's Advanced Organizational Consultation Masters programme and until 2011 also held a core faculty role on Birmingham University's MA in Leading Public Service Change and Organizational Development.