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• Coaching Community of Practice – Happy Yes: Making Clearer Commitments, Setting Stronger Boundaries, and Working with Greater Intention

  • When
    29 Sep 2026
  •  
    7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
  • Location
    Zoom

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  Happy Yes: Making Clearer Commitments, Setting Stronger Boundaries, and Working with Greater Intention

  In business, it is easy to say “yes” before fully considering the time, energy, resources, priorities, or expectations attached to that commitment. Over time, too many agreements can lead to missed deadlines, frustration, resentment, burnout, and diminished trust.

  The Happy Yes approach creates a simple decision-making standard: If a commitment is not a Happy Yes, it should become a No or a renegotiated agreement.

  This does not mean professionals should only do work they enjoy. Every role includes responsibilities that may be challenging, uncomfortable, or demanding. A Happy Yes means that you are making a commitment you understand, accept, and are prepared to honor.

  By the end of this 90-minute session, participants will be able to:

  • Define what a Happy Yes means in a professional environment.
  • Recognize the difference between an intentional commitment and an automatic yes.
  • Identify how unclear commitments affect productivity, trust, and workplace culture.
  • Practice responding to requests with greater clarity and confidence.
  • Renegotiate commitments when circumstances or priorities change.
  • Create a personal “My Happy Yes” commitment to apply after the session.

  About the Presenter: Sarah Happel

  Sarah Happel is the CEO and founder of Spectrum Leadership Solutions, a boutique consulting firm specializing in leadership development and helping leaders create cultures of respect, prosperity, and alignment. She is also a co-founder and Faculty Fellow in George Mason University’s Coaching Certification for Organizational Well-being and has helped certify more than 200 executives over the past decade. Her work focuses on building resilient leaders and organizations through greater self-awareness, stronger communication, and the ability to navigate complexity.

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

   

  
  

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• DC Area OD Practitioners CoP — The Diagnosis Before the Intervention: Six Conditions That Predict 80% of Team Effectiveness

  • When
    01 Oct 2026
  •  
    7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
  • Location
    Zoom

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  The Diagnosis Before the Intervention: Six Conditions That Predict 80% of Team Effectiveness

  Your client asks for a team building offsite. Six months later, the same team is stuck — and you are wondering what you missed.

  Decades of Harvard research by Richard Hackman and Ruth Wageman point to an uncomfortable answer: roughly 80% of a team's effectiveness is determined before the team ever meets, by six conditions that can be deliberately designed. Communication problems, low trust, and conflict are usually symptoms. The leverage sits upstream.

  In this session we will work the six conditions as a diagnostic instrument, not a concept. You will bring a real client team, diagnose it live with colleagues, and find where the actual constraint is hiding. We will also look at why coaching a team on its dynamics so often fails to move its results — and what to do instead.

  The material is drawn from Neal's work with aircraft carrier and submarine maintenance teams at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, where a team design failure is measured in days of schedule, not survey scores.

  What you'll take away:

  • A one-page diagnostic grid covering all six conditions, ready to use with clients.
  • Language for reframing a client's presenting problem into a design question.
  • A clearer read on why some of your past team interventions did not hold

  Presenter — Neal Henderson

  Neal Henderson is a Systemic Team and Organizational Coach and the Owner and Head Coach of Front Row Performance Coaching (FRPC). A professional coach since 2014, he works at the intersection of team design, cultural change, and operational performance, drawing on the 6 Team Conditions, Shingo Lean, and relationship systems approaches.

  His recent work supported the US Navy's aircraft carrier and submarine maintenance community at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton, including projects on the USS Theodore Roosevelt and USS Nimitz. He is currently focused on helping community organizations get better at serving their clients.

  Neal holds an MS in Organization Development and Knowledge Management from George Mason University, is an ICF Master Certified Coach (MCC) with the Advanced Certification in Team Coaching (ACTC).

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• Partnership Series with MNODN Chapter - Clarity First: Making Sense of the Ask Before Acting

  • When
    01 Oct 2026
  •  
    7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
  • Location
    Zoom

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  Clarity First: Making Sense of the Ask Before Acting **This program is organized by our partners in the Minnesota ODN Chapter! Join our partners, alongside the Triangle, Pacific Northwest, and Oregon OD Networks for an opportunity for learning and cross-regional connections. Organization Development professionals are often invited in to help when a leader already has a solution in mind. Yet the initial request for help (the ask) is rarely complete and often reflects only part of the real organizational challenge. Acting too quickly can lead to well‑intended work that ultimately solves the wrong problem. This interactive session puts clarity first, at the moment the request is made. Participants will focus on the initial conversation: clarifying the request, understanding what sits behind it, and framing a working problem that creates early alignment. Using targeted questions and reframing techniques, the session builds the skill of purposeful entry and contracting, practical tools OD practitioners can use immediately. The result: stronger early conversations, better‑framed work, and a clearer path toward deeper discovery when needed. Together, participants will: Explain why presenting problems are often incomplete or solution-biased, and how early misframing undermines the work that follows. Use lightweight clarification approaches to surface what matters most, without jumping prematurely to diagnosis or design. Apply reframing techniques that help leaders see their request through a broader organizational and systems lens. Ask strategic questions that slow solution-jumping and shift early conversations toward shared problem understanding. Strengthen their practice as OD professionals who bring clarity, alignment, and disciplined thinking at the point of entry. Presenter: Summer Miller   Summer Miller, Ed.D., is a speaker, advisor, and educator specializing in people centered change, leadership development, and organizational development. She uses brain-based strategies and human-centered design to help leaders navigate change and growth without leaving people behind. Summer teaches courses in organizational development and change consulting at the University of Minnesota, holds a doctorate in her field, and has guided organizations across industries through moments of complexity, uncertainty, and transition. Her speaking style blends research-based insight with real-world application, helping leaders not only understand change, but lead it more effectively.

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• CBODN Networking Night - Pre-Conference Social Event

  • When
    23 Oct 2026
  •  
    6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
  • Location
    UPSIDE on Moore (1700 N Moore St level m2, Arlington, VA 22209)

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  Back by Popular Demand: CBODN Networking Night!
  

  After a fantastic turnout last year, we're excited to bring back our Networking Night to kick off the Leadership Conference weekend.  

  Join us at UPSIDE on Moore in Arlington, VA for an evening of connection, conversation, and community as we kick off the Conference weekend. Reconnect with colleagues, meet new faces, expand your network, and get energized for the day ahead.

  Bring your friends, partners, and colleagues—the more, the merrier. We hope to see you there!

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  Don't miss Saturday's line-up of learning, collaboration, and inspiration. Join us for CBODN CONNECT 2026: Igniting Change Together on October 24th from 9am-5pm!

  And, bundle the conference and networking social for even greater savings (to do so, register for the conference and simply select the Networking Night Social add-on during checkout to take advantage of the discounted rate.)

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• CONNECT 2026 - CBODN Annual Conference

  • When
    24 Oct 2026
  •  
    9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
  • Location
    George Mason University—The Fuse Conference Center (Arlington Campus)

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  You won’t want to miss this synergistic, thought-provoking, engaging, and fun day offering plenty of opportunities for learning, collaboration, and inspiration.
  

  CBODN CONNECT 2026: Igniting Change Together celebrates the power of connection as a catalyst for organizational progress. As organizations continue to evolve, so does the work of organization development. Join fellow practitioners, leaders, and change agents for thought-provoking conversations, practical learning, and meaningful connections that will help you navigate what's next.
  
  Connect with People

  • Network with 100+ OD professionals, consultants, coaches, and leaders
  • Build relationships with peers who understand the challenges and opportunities of OD work
  • Engage in a shared experience with a vibrant learning community

  Connect with Ideas

  • Gain insights from an inspiring keynote speaker
  • Choose from a dozen-plus breakout sessions on timely OD topics
  • Explore emerging trends, tools, and practices shaping the future of organizations

  Connect with Action

  • Leave with practical strategies and resources you can apply immediately
  • Discover new approaches to leading change and driving organizational effectiveness
  • Reignite your energy, purpose, and impact

  Plus

  • Networking Breakfast
  • Networking Lunch
  • Meaningful conversations and connections throughout the day

  Secure your spot today and join us as we ignite change together!

  --

  Don't miss our Pre-Conference Networking Night! Kick off the conference weekend with an unforgettable evening of connection and conversation at a nearby venue. Join us Friday, October 23, 2026 from 6:00 – 9:00 PM at UPSIDE on Moore (1700 N Moore St level m2, Arlington, VA 22209).

  WANT THE BEST VALUE?

  Bundle the conference and networking social for even greater savings. When registering for the conference, simply select the Networking Night Social add-on during checkout to take advantage of the discounted rate.

  --

  If you are interested in attending and the cost of the conference is a barrier, please email admin@cbodn.org. We want to ensure you are able to attend.

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• DC Area OD Practitioners CoP — Reading the System Through the Three Brains: A Diagnostic Lens for OD Consultants

  • When
    05 Nov 2026
  •  
    7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
  • Location
    Zoom

  Register

  Reading the System Through the Three Brains: A Diagnostic Lens for OD Consultants

  Most of us know the head/heart/gut framework as a tool for personal decision-making — but it's just as useful, and less commonly applied, as a diagnostic lens for reading client systems. In this session, I'll show how teams and organizations get "stuck" in one brain: over-analyzing without buy-in (head-locked), managing morale while avoiding hard data (heart-locked), or reacting without reflection (gut-locked) — and how naming that stuck state points directly to the kind of intervention that will actually land. We'll walk through what each pattern looks like in real engagement dynamics, and I'll share a short diagnostic question set you can use in your very next client conversation to identify which brain is dominating and design toward integration. I'll ground the framework in a live case example drawn from my somatic/embodied facilitation work, so this isn't just conceptual — it's something you can put to use immediately.

  What you'll take away:

  • A practical diagnostic tool for identifying which "brain" a client system is stuck in, and how to design interventions accordingly.

  Presenter — Marc Stoecker

  Marc is an ICF-accredited coach (ACC), certified Co-Active coach, and Positive Intelligence® practitioner with over 20 years of experience in learning and development and adult education. He is the founder of Prism of Purpose Coaching & Training, where he designs and facilitates soft-skill and technical-skill experiences that help individuals and teams build resilience, clarity, and purpose during times of change.

  Marc’s work blends evidence-based coaching, experiential learning, and embodied practices to create spaces where people can think clearly, reconnect with their worth, and take meaningful action. He supports professionals across corporate, nonprofit, government, and association settings throughout the United States.

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