My journey as a process facilitator started with my yearning, as a student of Psychology, to deal with issues of change in people, systems and societies. Working in the field of education , and having read Corey's then famous book on action research, led me in action research with teachers and headmasters. When Max Corey came to India, this was like realisation of a dream. He and I collaborated in some areas. I was familiar with the emerging field of group dynamics. Max organised a T-Group in his house in 1960 and I became a regular attendant of such meetings. I heard the name of NTL for the first time ( he was one of the early founder members of NTL). With TCM (now USAID) support I went to NTL , was taken as an intern, and made an Associate and later elected as a Fellow. During my six-month visit in 1961, I met most luminaries in the field.

Back in India I felt frustrated because of lack of scope of application of my facilitating skills in my work setting. I changed my field of work from education to health to agriculture. However, in one of the seminars by Erik Erikson I met Rolf and our collaboration started with my joining SIET Institute where Rolf was the Team Leader of Ford Foundation Consultants. We went ahead with full steam in holding L-Groups ( we preferred the term Learning to Training). In the meantime , a few other Indian colleagues went to NTL and our small group started ISABS. Doug McGregor had come to IIM , Calcutta followed by Warren Bennis and Howard Baumgartel. They helped in moving process competence further. Fred Messarick's visit also helped. So we several friends connected with NTL came to India.

The journey in process work was not smooth. There were problems in creating the culture of openness, authencity and autonomy. There were conflicts with the establishment (Govt. of India and the Ford Foundation). Rather than compromising, Rolf preferred to resign his leadership role. I did the same.

I combined my facilitating competence and interst with my academic inclination. This has helped me to reflect on process issues more systematically. Similarly, instead of taking a partisan stand, I tend to experiment with other modes of process work (e.g. instruments, behaviour simulation). I personally find these supplementing and enriching each other.

Earlier in the NTL and in SIET Institute as well as ISABS, there was enough emphasis on readings and conceptual discussions. I feel that is very important. Currently this has become weak.

I see process work as enriching my professional role as a trainer and a consultant as much as helping me as a person and in my personal world(friends, family). I have found several challenges which beckon me to new voyages: moving beyond intrapersonal processes to group processes and societal processes, searching the Indian heritage to learn the dynamics of process work in different settings, extensive use of process work in various aspects of the society , addressing urgent social issues (differences, marginalisation, harmony, collaboration, equity, empowering) through process work and so on. It is exciting to work with younger colleagues who are the torch bearers to usher us into the next century, which we hope will be brighter and more humance.

----UdaiPareek