Escape from Paradise

MELA 4, DAY SEVEN: 13 MARCH 2013

Why are Bill, Massi and Samer so excited this morning?

(a) The printers have broken and all staff members have been excused from work today.

(b) They are looking forward to fish and rice again for lunch.

(c)  It has been decided to extend MELA 4 an extra week till March 24.

(d) The afternoon excursion means release from the Shangri-La office dungeon and a chance to see the sun for the first time in almost a fortnight.

Answer: (d). Escape from paradise!

Meanwhile the participants, divided into four teams, have hunkered down in the breakout rooms for "Red-Blue," a competitive multi-round negotiation exercise. Sanad offers his thoughts on the correct strategy to pursue.

Manal and Riyadh have other ideas.

Asha and Meade observe the team interactions to provide feedback later.

Guests Tom McCandlish and Said Al-Habsy join Susan on the sidelines.

Sultan, Ahmad and Zainab concoct a cunning stratagem. Heh heh heh.

Their teammates listen to the plan. Heh heh heh.

Adib and his group feel they have chosen the more sound and honorable course. They are outraged by their negotiating partners' final betrayal.

Winner of the MELA 2013 Prix Muscat 
for Breaking News Photojournalism

Captured on camera for all time: 

Confronted by their victims, the team that broke the agreement hide their faces in shame.

Post-exercise debriefs and recriminations.

Life is good!

Andrea's address is on your "Success Formula" and its pitfalls. One cannot always rely on the same personal qualities to be successful in all situations. Leaders need to be malleable, and match their capacities to the needs of the moment.

The Muscat Reunion is ramping up for tomorrow, as MELA members begin to arrive.

A celebrity spotting. MELA 1 member Hitham Kayali is in the house!

Nancy McCandlish and Carolanne Roberts are in the house!

We board a traditional wooden dhow at the marina.

Luckily, we have already practiced for all contingencies during the "Lost at Sea" exercise. But has anybody remembered to bring the shark repellent?

Michael and Sandra with Ahmad.

Splashes of color on the Gulf of Oman.

Ritu and Nada: Birds of a feather...

Mater invites Ritu's mother to dance.

Thank you, Amy, for organizing these lovely hours at sea.

Thank you, Johnny and Carolanne, for making this special afternoon possible!

After sailing on the dhow, we visit Muttrah souk, and pass on to Kargeen restaurant for dinner in the fairy-lit garden.

Welcome to Sam Yaghi, Nabil Alyousuf, and Johnny Roberts.

Somebody made some purchases in  the bazaar today...

Brice with his better half Jill Bay.

Firas Abu Wishah from MELA 1 is in the house!

Another vivacious day of learning, discovery and sharing among friends and peers has sadly come to an end. 

Duelling the Fear of Change

MELA 4, DAY SIX: 12 MARCH 2013

Said Alshanfari! Yes, you! Are you ready to change your strategic planning approaches in today's rapidly changing economy?

First, you must jettison the dead weight of your prejudices and ingrained habits.

Gunfight at the O.K. Corral.

Jim Crupi is sheriff in this town, and he is going to confront your fears of change and shoot them until they are dead.

For those apprehensive about strategic change, the challenge is to move from uninformed pessimism to informed optimism, resulting in hope and realism. So, where are Nada, Abeer and Reem, respectively, in this cycle?

Sultan and Youmna revisit the points of the session.

John King takes the floor to talk about developing and sharing your strategy.

Link goals to your values, and then apply your resources towards the activities needed to achieve those goals. Simple!

Not so simple. Shadi and Jaafar ponder the model.

Mahad ponders her resources. Facilitators Don and John ponder Maha.

As Salah knows, the more inquiries you make, the more resources you can gather to help achieve your goal. So buttonhole people, and ask. 

Abbas and Manal engage in a mutual, structured investigation of their personal strategies and resources.

Ahmed asks the tough questions.

This evening's Small Group Discussions:

Ibtisam Riyami (Director of People and Change, Petroleum Development Oman) has come to MELA to share her professional expertise in managing organizational change.

Ritu Upadhyay (Producer, Bloomberg Television, UAE) leads a lively session on the role of stories in leadership as a medium of effective communication.

Andrea Bednar (Executive Director, Performance Consulting, Sunergos) holds her audience on the topic "The Leading Edge: Staying There."

We Are Sailing

 MELA 4, DAY FIVE: 11 MARCH 2013

Another serene day in paradise, surveyed from the parapets of Shangri-La.

But in the MELA meeting room, we are all at sea. Storm-tossed. At sixes and sevens. Our very survival is at stake.

Lost on the high seas, thousands of kilometers from land, our intrepid groups must prioritize their limited resources to maximize their chances of safety and rescue. They will need to mobilize all their analytical and team skills, if they are ever to see their loved ones again.

Stock up on chocolate? Or rely on fishing kits? What are the merits of shark repellent? What exactly is shark repellent, anyway? Our wandering sailors debate these life-and-death issues.

     

     

Mater produces oil for a living in Saudi Arabia. Yet in this moment of supreme crisis, he rates oil of minimal importance and puts it towards the bottom of his list at No. 9! Food for thought.

People value most what they lack – and desert people know that drinkable water is paramount. Jaafar is from Qatar so naturally it is reflected in his rating that he highly appreciates the value of water.

And of a floating seat. 

Also, nylon rope.

And plastic sheeting.  

After five days of luxuriously rich meals at the Shangri-La Resort, Wassim is particularly excited about the canned food.

Far from the tribulations of peril at sea, Ahmed, Dan and Vickie indulge in the civilized pleasures of teatime.

A key to building high-performance teams is to restate and re-focus on the task, constantly. Are we clear about where we are aiming, and what is being measured?

Here, for example, the task is to check that everyone on the team has washed their hands before eating. 

Results are positive! Time for lunch.

The Small Group Discussions allow participants to interact deeply with knowledgeable business leaders and practitioners.

Brice Bay (Chairman and CEO, EnVeritas) and serial entrepreneur Dan Ciprari share their wisdom on starting and growing a business.

Mohamad Al Ayed (President and CEO, TRACCS) shares the secrets to growing a sustainable enterprise.

Anne Jafery (Chairwoman, Middle East Council of American Chambers of Commerce) speaks on "Knowing When to Cut and Run: When Passion Clouds Your Judgment."

However, no clouds mar the warm and beautiful evening of MELA Day Five. MELA's ship of souls sails on to new adventures and challenges tomorrow, under a wide Omani sky.