Experiments in the Art of Organisational Flourishing

Alex Steele & Mark McKergow Benny-Van-Acker & Chryster Aerts

Introduction

At SOLWorld 2025, Alex Steele and a group of professional jazz musicians invited participants into a 90-minute workshop like no other; part performance, part improvisation, and wholly transformational.

Through the rhythms and relationships of live jazz, the session offered a vivid, visceral experience of what it means to be in good company.

Participants didn’t just watch, they stepped inside the system. Some were invited to interact with, influence, and even disrupt the musicians, gaining powerful insights into trust, flow, empathy, and resilience in action.

This wasn’t simply about music. It was about leadership, collaboration, and what happens when we loosen control, listen deeply, and co-create in real time. As the musicians improvised, so did the participants, reflecting together on best practices in Solution Focused coaching and organisational development.

The result? A joyful, thought-provoking journey into the heart of creative teamwork.

So pull up a chair, press play, and discover what collaboration and flourishing can sound and feel like.

Sharing your impressions

Alex Steele would like to thank everyone for sharing your energy and love during the jazz experience at SOLWorld 2025. “It was a great joy to design and deliver the session, and to play some great jazz with the musicians, Mark McKergow, Chryster Aerts, and Benny Van Acker.”

After the jazz session, he had many beautiful conversations with members of the audience and thought: “Wow! Wouldn’t it have been great if I could have captured the thoughts, feelings and experiences of the SOLWorld participants?”. So he has a request for everyone.

Would you be happy to send Alex an email (alexsteele@improwise.co.uk) with your spontaneous thoughts and reflections after watching this jazz experience?

He would love to hear your reflections on:

• What did you love the most about the jazz session?
• Which ideas resonated the most with you? And why?
• Are there specific ideas that you might try to put into practice – in your life, or in your professional work? How might you do this?
• What else?