The term ‘groupthink’ has slightly derogatory associations.
It is a term of art used by social psychologists to help them explain a
situation where members of a group are so wary of rocking the boat, or over
confident of their collective abilities, that the resulting decision-making is
poor.
In SCL terms though, group thinking is a boon. That is
because our Groups have long been the creative hubs for the SCL. Whether
regional or special interest, they inspire events that no one else would have
thought of and bring people together, underpinning the wider strategy of the
Society.
For example, at the end of last month the Privacy and Data
Protection Group held a sell-out event on the GDPR (surprise!), while the week
before the IT Disputes Group packed out Inner Temple Hall with a look at
exclusion, termination and IP clauses in the context of contractual disputes.
I’ve spoken at SCL Group events in the past, but it is
always good to remember that the Groups exist and ought to be your first port
of call on the SCL website for your particular area of interest. Last
month I Chaired our annual Group Chairs’ meeting and it gave us all a chance to
set priorities for the year, co-ordinate and collaborate where possible and
share experiences of what works on the ground.
Yet the meeting did also remind me that, unless the Groups
evolve with the help of willing leaders, they will inevitably wither. The
thirst for new blood and fresh ideas is unquenchable so this is a call to
encourage every SCL member to be a part of an active Group and perhaps even
join the Committee to help push things forward.
We are also looking to evolve the Groups in other ways:
organising events has been their traditional raison d’etre but that does not always
have to be the case. Webinars, white papers, consultation responses, roundtable
meetings and contributing to the content on scl.org are all ways to share
insight and knowledge with both Group members and the wider community. SCL HQ
would be keen to support any such initiatives as an active Group, whatever
those activities are, is one that is likely to thrive.
So how do you get involved? Easy, just take a look at the Groups
page on the site, see which ones fit your aspirations and contact hello@scl.org for
more details.
