Endorsements:

"Cynthia King's Creating Partnerships - Unleashing Collaborative Power in the Workplace is a must read for senior managers and organizational change agents. Cynthia's framework for a new model of leadership within organizations contains an in depth analysis of management theory coupled with proposed strategic interventions that can create profound and positive organizational change."
- William Batty, Executive Director, Family Service Agency of Santa Barbara

“Cynthia King has a book that penetrates to the very core of nature's basic design of social synergy as applied to the workplace. It is a profound offering to all of us as to the elements necessary for learning creative partnerships in the workplace, and beyond, as we aim toward a Partnership World.”
- Barbara Marx Hubbard, President, Foundation for Conscious Evolution, and author of Conscious Evolution: Awakening the Power of Our Social Potential

“There’s nothing more important than rethinking power for both personal and planetary well-being. Cynthia King shows us the way!”
- Frances Moore Lappé, co-author of You Have the Power: Choosing Courage in a Culture of Fear and The Quickening of America

“Globalization, technology, environmental and cultural challenges have seriously eroded the value of the traditional organizational model and its ‘hero leader.’ A shift from the hierarchical model is a cultural imperative, and this book points to a mandate and techniques for power sharing and collaboration at the level of organizational communities. Bravo.”
- Bob Vitamante, Corporate CFO

"Dr. King's work provides extraordinary clarity to both the rigorous work of creating and the power of authentic partnerships. Whether people are looking to renew and revitalize their organizations or are creating new ones, Creating Partnerships: Unleashing Collaborative Power in the Workplace will give a strong foundation for the journey and allow organizations to finally redeem the true potential and value found in people working together collaboratively. Dr. King has captured the spirit and extraordinary value embedded in collaborative partnerships, and she provides practical, concise, and relevant steps in her chapter on "Weaving New Patterns and Changing the Story.”
- Tom Henry, Director, Summit Charter Academy

Cynthia King goes far beyond just describing a leadership model of collaborative partnering--she gives practical steps for (1)why the "power-over" model delimits the opportunities of the 21st Century workplace and (2)for how to successfully transition to a partnership business environment where boundaries are constantly blurred--between management and employees as well as between corporation/supplier/customer. Cynthia's book is a savvy contextual challenge to unleashing the creative power of the individual as well as the corporation. As such it engages the reader in the evolving dialog of enterprise and community--a dialog that will ultimately describe our work-life environment. It is a must read for anyone seeking to improve the economic, social and psychological aspects of the workplace--or any aspect of our culture.
- Deborah L. Talbot, “Social Entrepreneur” Book Reviews:

Organizational consultant Cynthia King presents Creating Partnerships: Unleashing Collaborative Power in the Workplace, a guide to crafting enduring partnerships that rise above the all-too-common turf battles, office politics, and micromanagement that plague organizations. Chapters discuss the benefits and potential of a solid partnership, how to handle the paradox of power in the partnership organization, how to build the partnership community, and much more. What distinguishes Creating Partnerships is its emphasis on peacemaking and egalitarian power-sharing, rather than more traditional structures that echo the ruler/ruled dichotomy of the feudal era. A truly groundbreaking organizational guide. "The transition beyond the patriarchal system of power-over and into power-with partnerships will not occur easily. Those who have vested interests in maintaining the status quo have too much to lose in allowing changes to take place. Nevertheless, there is a growing company of individuals who are committed to weaving the fabric of a new culture."
- Midwest Book Review

Move from frustrating office politics to productive collaboration! Interpersonal conflicts, rigid hierarchies, turf battles, and micromanagement hamper the effectiveness of many organizations. This book offers field-tested, successful strategies for shifting organizational operating systems and creating strong, enduring, and productive partnership organizations that unleash collaborative power. Partnering leadership facilitates moving from “power over” others to “power with” your team, and the Common Ground model is highly effective for transforming conflicts. Practical examples of successful partnership organizations are examined, and key actions for successfully managing partnership transitions are presented.

Cynthia King has been an organizational consultant for over 25 years. She excels in guiding groups who are ready to transform their working relationships. She helps build leadership capacity throughout their organization. She helps create a climate that supports effective teamwork and authentic, productive partnerships that support the strategic goals of the organization.
- Mary Barrett, The Nashville News

Press Release - Wisdom Way Press

After the Ropes Course: Getting Serious About 
Partnership and Collaboration at Work 

“There’s nothing more important than rethinking power for both personal and planetary well-being. Cynthia King shows us the way!”
- Frances Moore Lappe

The thing that many people find is one of the most frustrating and difficult aspects of going to work is office politics. In this game, no one truly wins, and the organization ultimately loses. Enduring the daily power struggles and turf battles can consume enormous amounts of energy, sidetrack projects, and bind up the enthusiasm, creativity, and power sources critical to organizational success.

Global markets and rapid technological advances require agility and innovation. Yet in an era when 75% of organizational change efforts fail, it is becoming ever more important to find new models for getting work done. A valuable book by Cynthia King titled Creating Partnerships: Unleashing Collaborative Power in the Workplace answers that need. In it, King describes how there have been many attempts to address the problems that arise when people attempt to work in “teams” without changing the underlying operating system.

Many teambuilding approaches range from conflict management and communication-based retreats to highly interactive games that require cooperation for group success. Yet realistically, although the group may have an enjoyable “mountain-top experience” while learning about group dynamics or navigating the ropes course, the real challenge arises when everyone returns to the office and tries to sustain their newly minted agreements and behaviors.

This book defines partnership as something much more than legal or contractual relationships. It presents the Partnership Model, which is based on a very different concept and use of power than the traditional combination of top-down control, turf protection, and win-lose competition. Likewise, its model for Partnering Leadership outlines a welcome replacement for micro-management and strong-arm tactics designed to squelch bickering and maintain tight command of the workplace.

Creating Partnerships provides many examples of successful partnership organizations, drawing from corporate, educational, nonprofit, and government settings that show why and how the Partnership Model works. The examples show how creativity, innovation, energy, and productivity are unleashed, after having been held back by rigid structures and autocratic policies. Dr. King also introduces Marc Porter’s Common Ground Model. Porter’s model reframes how to move successfully through difficult conflict and in the process grow respect and civility. In the final chapter, the critical process of making the transition from partisanship to partnership is explored and illustrated with mythic stories, and ten key action steps required for transforming the organizational operating system are explained.

This book is a long overdue guide for shifting from traditional top-down organizations to a new way of sharing power and building commitment. Based on her experiences consulting with a wide array of organizations over 25 years, King has captured the essence of successful, lasting partnerships. The story of a federal agency that has successfully made and sustained the shift from partisanship to partnership is told in the voices of those who experienced and guided the transition. King offers a map of the partnership territory that addresses the “where to start and what to do” questions. She contends that no amount of game playing will turn the tide of a dysfunctional organizational culture - that in fact, it takes a lot of work and a lot of involvement from people inside the organization. In other words, partnership is an inside job.

Published in Fall 2005, Creating Partnerships is available for $19.95 (plus applicable sales tax to California addresses and $4 shipping for the first copy) - direct from the publisher, Wisdom Way Press (www.creating-partnerships.com) and from Amazon.com.  Contact the publisher for quantity discounts or faculty desk copies.