BUILDING BRIDGES LEADERSHIP
Equipping You to Create Authentic Community in Your Workplace
Weekly Articles
What is Poison Ivy Privilege?
Poison Ivy Privilege is a framework to consider the aspects of your identity for which you receive privilege rather than marginalization, and how you can use that privilege to enact systemic changes using the analogy of pulling poison ivy. Prologue: I was wrong. Years ago, I wrote an article about poison ivy and privilege, in…
“Make One Point, Not Ten”
Did you know there’s a difference between writing a ‘memoir’ and writing your ‘memoirs’? A memoir is a cohesive whole, with a story arc not unlike that of a novel, and often encompasses a smaller portion of the author’s life; memoirs usually refers to a more sprawling tome, covering several distinct sections of life. As…
How to Give Feedback without Triggering the Fight or Flight Response
If you’re a parent, bring to mind the characteristics you see in your children that come from you – physical/character traits, or phrases they’ve learned up from hearing you say them over the course of years. Needless to say, your child is their own person; they are not you, but they are an expression of…
What We Do
Online Offsites and Board Retreats for community building, communication, diversity, inclusion, & belonging
“Ian was able to facilitate an amazing day of learning for me and my staff of 65. We left feeling like we better understood each other, and were aligned around common goals and a common purpose. Definitely the best offsite facilitation we have had!”
– Mike Salguero, CEO, ButcherBox
Consulting to support group dynamics and organizational goals. Do you know that your teams could be more effective and cohesive, but aren’t sure how to get there?
“Ian led a team building session at our church’s annual Board retreat. In two hours, he led us through two deceptively simple activities. Through these activities, and Ian’s gentle, skillful debriefing with us, we grew in trust and affection for one another. A few interesting tensions and strengths in our team were also revealed, in an atmosphere that encouraged new understanding and connection around these. We’re grateful for Ian’s facilitation!”
– Steve Watson, Senior Pastor, Reservoir Church
Online Trainings and Workshops exploring organizational norms and challenges when cultures meet. Do you ever experience challenges working with other organizations, or even with other departments within your own organization?
“The Lego-building exercise helped us to learn a lot about ourselves and each other in a short amount of time. I could see aspects of what I’ve come to know as each person’s approach to working on problems; I also have a new insight into my own approach.”
– Amanda Bosh, Senior Lecturer, MIT
Online/in-person group dynamics – Leading equitable teams in a hybrid world. Does your team consist of both in-office and remote team members? Does it feel unbalanced and challenging to include everyone equally?
“During my tenure as President of the Harvard Extension Student Association, Ian provided me great wisdom and insight on how to increase engagement in my in-person/online hybrid meetings.”
– Joshua Boyd, former President, Harvard Extension Student Association
Meaningful play for a staff culture of authentic communication and inclusion, through a wide variety of playful activities, to help groups explore underlying behaviors that affect workplace situations on a daily basis
“I felt immediately motivated to trust, support, and rely on the other people in my group. I felt the heart of this exercise expanding outward and creating concentric circles within the room. I can now envision concentric circles expanding across every aspect of our school and even across Waldorf schools.”
– Jen Minotti, Board Member, Waldorf School of Lexington
Online Facilitator Training to transform your employees’ ability to lead meetings into productive and inclusive experiences which honor all voices
“I was truly blown away by how much I learned about myself through some of the activities Ian facilitated. Ian did a great job of pushing our company to take what we learned and apply it to our everyday work as well. He also was really informal and laid back which meshed well with our company culture.”
– Building Bridges program participant
Storytelling Workshops – Individual, group, and organizational storytelling are key in building meaningful engagement in organizational goals.
“[Ian] made sure everyone was included and heard. It made for a very insightful and eye-opening day!”
– Building Bridges program participant
Building Bridges Leadership 