ed 5630 speaker #5 Bette Grey

Speaker #5 Thursday July 17
On Thursday July 16, 2009, Dr Bette Grey video conferenced with us . Once again, it was excellent for our presenters to apply the wonderful capabilities of the Supernet.
Bette brought the provincial perspective to our discussion on IT leadership. She has been at the provincial level for 7 years, 5 years at Stakeholder Technology Branch. She identified the major government documents involved with the implementation of technology in Alberta such as the Learning and Technology Policy Framework, in 2004.
Bette discussed three streams from Kingman’s Anarchy Model of Policy. This was from a book by Nicholas Henry called Public Administration and Public Affairs .This was a model I had never heard of before. According to this model, one stream is the Problem stream. This is defining the problem and framing the issue. It is critical that leaders be able to frame and define the problem in a way people can understand, using appropriate language.
The second stream is the Policy stream. This stream matches the problem with a solution. The solution comes as a policy option. Policy options need to be rational, researched and well articulated.
The 2 streams intersect with the 3 rd stream called the Political stream. The third stream can be more unpredictable than the Problem and Policy stream. For IT leaders the political spectrum is at the school level (principal and staff), Division (superintendent, senior leadership and trustees) and provincially (Alberta Education Officials, Education Minister, Ministers, MLA)
There are opportunities of windows opening and closing when the political stream converges and diverges with the other 2 streams. These are when a policy entrepreneur who has connected a problem with an articulate policy solution, and has the audience of political decision makers. This affords the solution to become reality. Windows open when there are changes in personnel or change in the situational context. IT leaders can identify problems and have Policy solutions ready based on research, ready for the window of opportunity to the solution a reality. I thought this process was fascinating intersection of problems , solutions and politics . IT leaders should understand how their role intersects and interplays within these three streams.
Dr Grey made a very interesting comment, saying she was not a techie, but was an English teacher. Her skills are in the C, communication of the ICT. Such a comment underlies that different skills, from different people on a team come into play, especially in leadership. She concluded the VC with her number one criteria for leadership was to change culture. It is my impression that changing culture means changing people. People will be resistant to change if they are forced or coerced. Leaders need solutions based on research, collaboration skills e to generate a critical mass of people moving in direction for authentic ,lasting change to occur.