This image is the cover for the book Power of Collective Wisdom

Power of Collective Wisdom

“An exceptional work challenging leaders to question their assumptions about how to achieve organizational excellence . . . a new narrative for leading.” —Carol Pearson, author of The Hero Within

If we are to disentangle the extraordinary challenges that we face today in organizations, communities, and nations we must transcend our divisions and develop solutions together. But what enables us to collectively make wise choices and sound judgments instead of splintering apart?

When human beings gather together, a depth of awareness and insight, a transcendent knowing, becomes available. Based on nine years of research The Power of Collective Wisdom shows how we can tap into the extraordinary cocreative potential that exists in every group. Collective wisdom is elusive and unpredictable—it can’t be willed into being, but the authors describe six commitments people can adopt that will increase the likelihood of its appearing. Stories and historical examples throughout serve to illuminate and illustrate how collective wisdom has emerged in a range of settings and through the lives and traditions of varied cultures. Equally important, the authors describe how to recognize the pitfalls of polarization or false agreement, either of which can lead to collective folly—a phenomenon with which recent history has made us all too familiar. And they offer a set of practices to help readers maintain the key lessons of the book.

The Power of Collective Wisdom is a foundational book for an emerging field of study and practice relevant to everyone seeking more effective and satisfying ways of working with others.

“This book takes knowledge about groups and elevates it to a field and a movement.” —Peter Block, author of Community and Stewardship

Alan Briskin, Sheryl Erikson, John Ott, Tom Callanan, Peter Senge

Alan Briskin is author of the award-winning book The Stirring of Soul in the Workplace and coauthor of Daily Miracles and Bringing Your Soul to Work: An Everyday Practice. Alan is a pioneer in the field of organizational learning and cofounder of the Collective Wisdom Initiative. Sheryl Erickson has been principal investigator for the Collective Wisdom Initiative, seeking to articulate a field of study and practice now identified as that of collective wisdom. She was liaison for executive leadership development with Procter & Gamble (through Innovation Associates' Leadership and Mastery program), then convener and advocate for what would become a field of practice identified as organizational learning. John Ott has designed and led successful collective change efforts for almost thirty years. He has worked with cities, counties, and large human services systems, and designed and led the initial community change processes at the heart of Smart Start, a statewide initiative in North Carolina. John holds a JD from Stanford University and helped launch Hart Leadership Program at Duke University. Tom Callanan is a senior advisor and former program officer at the Fetzer Institute, where he helped to cofound the Collective Wisdom Initiative. During his time at the Fetzer Institute, he helped to establish a number of internationally recognized initiatives, including We Speak as One: Twelve Nobel Laureates Share Their Vision for Peace; The Seasons Fund for Social Transformation; The Conflict Transformation Collaborative; and The Global Youth Leadership Collaborative. He is a writer, group process facilitator, mountaineer, and former Outward Bound instructor.

Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc.