Keith McCandless

I help people in organizations innovate and take on complex challenges by working with groups to unleash creativity, discover opportunities, and build on momentum.

I am a founding partner of the Social Invention Group since 2000. My eclectic skills are grounded in organization development, complexity science, social innovation, business strategy, and graphic facilitation—all with an improvisational twist. I call myself a “structured improvisationalist.”

It was kismet that I met Henri Lipmanowicz while serving on the Scientific Advisory Board of the Plexus Institute. We shared a hunch that complexity science had practical applications and could be accessible to everyone. My keen interest in transformational learning and planning methods clicked with Henri’s business acumen as we fielded early prototypes.

Gleefully, we cut across academic disciplines, tapped spiritual practices, roamed the planet, and deepened scientific insights along the way. Over twelve years, our hunch transmogrified into a powerful repertoire for people making change and our book, “The Surprising Power of Liberating Structures: Simple Rules to Unleash A Culture of Innovation.”

What delights me most is the range of challenges, big and small, where this work can have a positive influence. Professional, functional, and interpersonal boundaries seem to dissolve when using Liberating Structures. I love creating the conditions for social inventiveness to flourish and to help people to take on their most entangled challenges with newfound confidence.

Keith's bio sketch: From 1992-2000, Keith led executive learning initiatives for the Health Forum (HF) in San Francisco, where he was responsible for working with field-based learning collaboratives focused on market strategy, systems thinking, quality management, creativity, rapid prototyping, and transformational leadership. He managed education and research efforts.

Prior to the Health Forum, Keith founded and served as the executive director of the Foundation for Health Care Quality in Seattle. The foundation brought together business & health leaders in a unique partnership to improve quality and value in healthcare.

Born in Cincinnati Ohio, he holds a Masters in Management of Human Services from Brandeis University in Boston and a BA from Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington. Keith lives in Seattle with his wife Annie and Deacon the whippet with talent to amuse.