Inside Iriss

The map is not the territory

The last time I tried to climb a mountain I failed spectacularly. It was a warm August at the foot of the mountain, and a freezing January higher up. We were chased down from near the top by howling winds and hail. I knew I was beat. A discussion recently got me thinking about mountains again but in the context of the work we do. I was at an event about Human Learning Systems (an approach that always leaves me thinking ‘this makes so much sense, why isn’t this just how we do things?’).

Learning Week is over at Iriss now. We spent three days in person, eating pastries and chatting about how our year was, things we celebrate and learn, how we keep aligned to our new strategy, using our new evaluation process, showcasing our skills and impact and what the next year could look like for us. 

In a fast-paced environment, the instinct can be to act quickly, but without a shared understanding of where we have been, we could move in directions that are not fully aligned or as effective as they could be. In having a learning week, we are valuing and including reflective practice into our work, to help us be more strategic, more collaborative, and ultimately, more influential in the change we seek to create.

Back in 2009, I was a fresh faced researcher, working as an intern in the Office of the Chief Researcher in the Scottish Government. I was at an event listening to a talk by the then Chief Social Researcher, Diana Wilkinson. She was presenting on what influences policy makers to make the decisions that they do. There was a very sobering slide on how much politicians were influenced by evidence within their decision-making.

I’m a third of the way through the practice hours needed for accreditation with the International Coaching Federation after completing my coaching training. While there are still many hours to go, I was reflecting on what I’ve noticed so far from my coaching practice (whilst not compromising confidentiality and the ICF Code of Ethics!). 

Over the last 10 years we have been lucky to have an ongoing relationship with the Regional Municipality of Durham and Durham College in Canada. In that time we have worked alongside colleagues in the Innovation and Research for the Social Services Department in the Municipality and colleagues at the Social Impact Hub in the College.