Our modern view of leadership is flawed. It centres around the hero narrative - one where faith is placed in a single person to solve organizational problems. Non-participatory in nature, our search for heroes is shifting attention away from policies towards personality and marginalizing the greater majority of an organization. When it comes to the leaders themselves, the pressures being put on them in a hero-obsessed culture are enormous. It manifests in high rates of depression & burnout. The truth is, great leadership actually takes on many shapes and sizes. In this presentation, Dave provides a new leadership lens that breaks the hero model by analyzing the shape power takes within an organization.
Key Takeaways:
• Howto round your power structure to boost teamwork, productivity, engagement, enrolment & more.
• The small, simple acts to transform a room & make it more participatory.
• Innovative organizational structuresto make life easier for those on leadership pedestals.
• How to encourage more people within an organization to take on leadership roles.
Seeds of Change: Innovating the Non-Profit Sector
The non-profit sector is primed for disruption. Our collective perception of this sector is littered with stereotypes that hamper the ability of these organizations to bring about meaningful change. From revenue structures, to a bi-directional brain drain of talent, to cumbersome laws & regulations, the not-for-profit system has a built-in resistance towards real change.In this presentation Dave Meslin provides non-profit organizations with a roadmap for innovation.He shows audiences how to bring about real change by re-imagining thesector & the ways their organization conductsits operations.This presentation will help organizations create a vibrant community of strong advocacy that is sustainable, independent & disruptive.
Key Takeaways:
• The proven strategies to use for your on-the-ground community organizing.
• How to break through the stereotypes facing the sector.
• New models for decentralizing philanthropy that will lead to sustainable long-term funding.
• How to attract disruptive entrepreneurial talent & how to cross-pollinate talent with the businesses sector.
Inclusion | The Mechanics of Exclusion & Levelling the Field
How can a system be designed in a way that not only makes people feel like they have a voice, but also one where they can exercise that voice? In this presentation, Dave Meslin takes a multi-level approach to analyze & solve the problem: looking at both the mechanics along with the broader structural details. Using a customized approach, Dave shows organizations how boosting their inclusion will lead to more depth in your team's collective knowledge & creativity.
Key takeaways:
• Strategies to identify internal micro-obstacles to engagement.
•“Bite-sizeddemocracy’ techniques to help increase participation.
• How to educate your members on how their system works.
Teardown | Reinventing Your Structure
From environmental activism to public space advocacy to the ongoing campaign for electoral reform, Dave Meslin has been on the street and in boardrooms drawing up policies that affect meaningful change. In this presentation based on his book‘Teardown. Rebuilding Democracy from the Ground Up,’ Dave shows organizations how they are capable of so much more. From voting & power structures to visual environments & communications, Dave will show audiences how to re-imagine structures to create innovative change.
Key takeaways:
• The techniques for more effective communication.
• How to develop the next generation of cross-sectional leaders
• The ways to reduce divisiveness and getting more people to care about your organization’s mission.
Building a Culture of Engagement
Apathy is all around us. Most people have become disengaged not only from politics, but also from our schools, workplaces and associations or organisations. Increasingly, those in leadership positions are asking themselves“Howdo we boost public participation?”,“Howdo we engage our students?” and“Howcan we inspire our membership to get involved?”. Dave Meslin encourages us to recognize apathy as a web of barriers that reinforce disengagement – and that we can work together to dismantle the obstacles. His seven-minute TED talk about apathy has more than 1.4 million views. This in-depth version of the talk for NSB clients, incorporates anecdotes, humour and examples of best-practices. He reminds the audience that we all have something to contribute and that the strongest cities, schools and associations are the ones that have learned how to tap into the collective creativity, passion and knowledge of their constituents.
More Than a Feeling: The Unlimited Potential of Community Organizing
With anecdotes from the non-profit sector, the electoral scene and the vibrant world of grassroots community organizing, Meslin paints an optimistic and inspiring picture of the possibilities that lie within all of us. With a sense of hope and urgency, audiences hear how we can build a new culture of political engagement in our communities. Dave Meslin offers concrete tips on how ordinary people can make an extraordinary impact on the world around them. This keynote speaker’spresentation can be tailored to be relevant to large well-funded non-profits, small grassroots student groups, or anything in-between.
FPTP, PR, MMP, STV, WTF? A Crash-Course in the Mechanics of Electoral Reform
CBC’s most popular video on Canada’s 2015 Election Night wasn’t Justin Trudeau’s victory speech, or Stephen Harper’s concession speech. It was Dave Meslin’s 90-second video clip, using colourful stacks of Lego bricks to explain how our voting system fails us each and every election.(Thevideo has over 2.5 million views on Facebook alone.) Canada holds the unfortunate distinction of being the only OECD country that uses“FirstPast the Post” as its exclusive voting system for all levels of government. Increasingly, citizens, activists and politicians themselves are calling for change and renewal. But what are the alternatives? Using clear language, humour and interactive exercises with the audience, Meslin explains the pros and cons of various alternative voting systems. This topic might be relevant to any audience who’s interested in politics, and also to any organisation that wants to look at their own internal voting systems(regionalchapters, school councils, etc) and think about how they could increase engagement by reforming their process.
Canada 150: Canada at 150: Time for a democratic makeover?
As our bodies age, we visit our doctors for regular check-ups just to make sure everything is working properly. As Canada turns 150, perhaps it’s time to take a look at our country’s vital signs as well: Is political participation increasing or decreasing? Do Canadians feel connected to their government? Do voters have faith in our system? Do our elected governments reflect the rich diversity of our population? What would a democratic makeover look like for Canada? Dave Meslin has been researching 100 Remedies for a Broken Democracy as a follow-up to his 2010 TED Talk,“Antidoteto Apathy”. The results of the project will be published in book format by Penguin Canada in 2017. Birthdays are a time to celebrate and also a time to reflect, adapt and to grow. Canada’s 150th is a perfect opportunity to revitalize our democracy and transform a culture of disengagement and cynicism into a culture of meaningful participation.
Keynote Presentations:
Reframing Leadership: The End of Heroes
Seeds of Change: Innovating the Non-Profit Sector
Inclusion | The Mechanics of Exclusion & Levelling the Field
Teardown | Reinventing Your Structure
Building a Culture of Engagement
More Than a Feeling: The Unlimited Potential of Community Organizing
FPTP, PR, MMP, STV, WTF? A Crash-Course in the Mechanics of Electoral Reform
Canada 150: Canada at 150: Time for a democratic makeover?