Hi Tony!

I am delighted to hear that your project is moving right along. Here's some information (provided by my colleague Marc Porter, who wrote the section on "Common Ground" in my book) about various research threads you might pursue:

There is work on the “principle of nonsummativity” or synergy that demonstrates the power of teams over individuals. The same holds true for research done extensively in the 70s and 80s on quality circles. The general aphorism applies: “two heads are better than one.” More recently there is research on the density of a company’s (can be extrapolated to a community's) social network that reveals a great deal about its culture and productivity. In any organization, there are “isolates,” “gatekeepers,” and “bridges” as roles people play in a network. (Gladstone has other, but similar, categories in his book, "The Tipping Point.") The advent of the internet and social networking sites allows for real time assessment of how people are connecting to one another at work. In orgs where the connections are weak and there are a lot of isolates, especially if those isolates are in supervisory roles, bodes more poorly for productivity and strength of culture. Also, some of the very first, seminal research on group dynamics was conducted in English coal mines by Emery and Trist - you have a long history of work done in that arena.

Are you looking for a consultant who could produce statistical support regarding "Return on Investment" (ROI)?

I'm delighted to hear that you and Stephen are able to continue attending Schumacher courses - wonderful! I would love to come back over there sometime. I would love to hear some updates from others as well.

In the meantime - my best to you and everyone in our course group. I have such fond memories of you all!

Cynthia

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