Acknowledgments

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Although writing is often an individual process, there are many people who overtly and covertly helped make this book possible. I am especially appreciative of my colleagues, mentors, clients, and workshop participants who have contributed to the ideas, theories, and experiences that led to the creation of this book.

First, and foremost, I’d like to thank my colleague and friend, Judith H. Katz. This book would not have been possible without her. From the beginning, Judith was involved in our joint exploration of the world of covert processes. She co-created the Covert Processes Model, the framework we developed to organize our thoughts and actions about covert processes, and she was a full collaborator in developing ideas, approaches, and interventions. Judith has been a wonderfully supportive colleague throughout our many years together as designers and facilitators of the “Dealing with Covert Processes Workshop,” and throughout the writing of this book. Judith, an overt and public thank you!

I also wish to acknowledge and thank my wife, Allison Binder Marshak. Allison introduced me to transpersonal psychology and Psychosynthesis. She also suggested to Judith and me that, in addition to what was on-the-table and under-the-table, we needed to consider what was hidden above-the-clouds. This idea transformed the way we conceived of covert processes and was quickly incorporated into the final framework. Allison has been very supportive in getting this book written and has been a source of constant encouragement to me.

Many colleagues and mentors have supported my writing or contributed significantly to my thinking about organizations, organizational change, and hidden dynamics. These include Morely Segal, Bob Boynton, and Don Zauderer, who guided my graduate studies and exposed me to the complexities and politics of organizations in theory; Len Covello and Ernie Corley, who were my bosses during my years xvi in public service and taught me about the complexities and politics of organizations in practice; and Don Klein, Edie Seashore, Darya Funches, Charlie Seashore, and Brenda B. Jones, who have been mentors or colleagues for many years and have always been supportive of my endeavors. I also wish to thank Cyndi Harris, who recently joined me in co-facilitating the “Dealing with Covert Processes Workshop” after Judith moved on. Without Cyndi’s support, energy, and enthusiasm this whole project may have come to an end several years ago.

In a special acknowledgement, I’d like to thank overtly the many unnamed people who helped make this book possible by privately supporting me, working behind the scenes, contributing early anonymous reviews of the manuscript, and so much more. I’d also like to thank all those who participated in workshops facilitated by Judith, Cyndi, and me. We learned so much from your willingness to explore covert processes with us, and your responses and reactions helped to validate or modify our thinking.

Finally, the people at Berrett-Koehler Publishers deserve a heartfelt thank you for their attentive support and professionalism throughout the publishing process. From my initial phone call to Johanna Vondeling through the last days of proofing and thinking about marketing, everyone at Berrett-Koehler was responsive and attentive to my needs and ambitions for the book.