It Just Ain’t What it Used to Be: The Impact of Remote and Hybrid Working on the Practice of Organization Consulting
Held on 10/04/22
Working remotely required us to alter how we consult. Becoming adept with the technology was one thing. But the bigger challenge may have been altering how we “use ourselves” as instruments in an all-remote consulting process.
When we are no longer physically present with each other, we miss data, subtle but important non-verbal cues like body posture, tonal inflections, how group members arrange themselves relative to each other and more. Lacking these inputs, our sensory, cognitive, and emotional processing – what some call our use-of-self – was diminished. And yet, we carried on.
We explored this challenge and the changes consultants have made in how they “use themselves”; the adaptations, techniques, and tools members of our community have employed to continue their practices; how these adaptations might affect our practice and profession going forward.