Can you suggest formats for conversational meetings?

Here are some newer meeting styles:

• Ask Me Meetings: Basic Q&A.
• CEO Viewpoint Sessions: Allows groups 
  of employees to to voice concerns, raise 
  questions and share ideas with the CEO.
• Greenhouse Meetings: Tackle difficult 
  problems and come up with innovative solutions 
  that managers are responsible for implementing
• Marathon Meetings: Keeping participants 
  at the meeting until a decision is reached.
• Problem-finding Meetings: The only agenda 
  is to identify issues and problems, not solve them.
• Results Review Meetings: Conclusions are 
  drawn and plans made from review of data.
• Sound off Meetings: Participants vent their 
  feelings, with the guidelines: no name calling, 
  participation by all, listening to others and 
  acceptance of others' feelings.
• Whine and Cheese Party: A Sound Off with 
  a festive flair.  Additional guideline is that 
  after the party, no more whining.
• Vertical Meetings: Held with no chairs.
• 10-10: A format made famous by Logansport 
  Memorial Hospital.  A vertical meeting held 
  for 10 minutes every Tuesday at 10 o'clock to
  update all managers.
• Walking Meetings:  Meetings on the hoof.  
  People are more creative standing and moving.
• Workout Meetings: Made popular by Jack Welch, 
  these sessions evaluate organizational practices 
  and aim to eliminate unnecessary work.
• Brag Sessions: A forum for handing out public 
  kudos and accolades.
• Grapevine Sessions: Regular, open meetings
  where items from the rumor mill are discussed.

How do I include people and draw them out?  
I can only imagine silence when I call a group 
together.

In "The Art of Convening," a TeleTraining series, 
Craig and Patricia Neal do several valuable exercises, 
with the extra challenge of working via phone.

Participants imagine being in a circle formation,
where peerage is automatic.  People are welcomed 
to the circle, with a greeting, poem or thought.  The 
conveners' intent is to create a "container" for conversation.

One opener they use is called "Stringing the Beads."  
In essence, each person speaks when they are 
moved to, their name and thoughts related to a question
--adding their "bead" to the necklace.  The meeting 
is book-ended, in that you close in the same manner.  

A list of Openers/Warm-ups can be found 
at the Key Associates website, www.mkkey.com 
under Publications-Free Facilitated exercises.

What is important is to invite the participation
at a human and personal level.  And maybe a 
little silence is not a bad thing.

**************************************
EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES
**************************************
Learn more about the Heartland Institute's series
tele-series, "The Art of Convening"
http://www.thoughtleadergathering.com

Key Associates teaches The New Look of Leadership
and the Art of Facilitation, and offers Future Search Conferences
http://www.mkkey.com/Key%20Associates/courses.htm

Methodologies for large group interventions
http://www.vista.uk.com/whatwedo/largegroups/index.php

A worldwide portal devoted to the fullest sharing 
of academic resources and practical tools on 
Appreciative Inquiry
http://ai.cwru.edu/

**************************************
OTHER USEFUL WEBSITES 
**************************************
Read more about large group interventions
http://www.geocities.com/dian_marie_hosking/LGIBasic.htm

On-line open space community
http://openspaceworld.org 

A worldwide network to develop leadership 
capacity in communities:
http://www.berkana.org/index.html

The interactive planning process, Future Search
http://www.futuresearch.net

**************************************
ARTICLES/PUBLICATIONS                              
************************************** 
Books are linked to Amazon.com descriptions.

Block, Peter.  The Answer to How is Yes:  
Acting on What Matters.

Bunker, B. B. & Alban, B. T.  Large Group
Interventions : Engaging the Whole System
for Rapid Change.

Lappe, F. M. & Perkins, J.  You Have the Power:
Choosing Courage in a Culture of Fear.

Hammond, S. A. & Royal, C.  Lessons From
the Field: Applying Appreciative Inquiry.

Owen, Harrison.  Open Space Technology:
A User's Guide.

Senge, Peter et al.  Presence: Human Purpose 
and the Field of the Future.

Weisbord, Marvin & Janoff, Sandra.  Future Search.

Wheatley, Margaret.  Turning to Another: 
Simple Conversations to Restore Hope to the Future.

A comprehensive bibliography of Leadership books.
http://www.solonline.org/organizational_overview/Booklist/