First Annual Conference
Friday and Saturday, 28th and 29th March, 2025.
Conference Director: Dr. Evelyn P. Gilmore
Conference Venue:
The Grand Hotel, Malahide, Dublin.
To Book Your Tickets
Visit www.psychodynamicsatwork.ie
Introduction to this Two-Day Event
Modern workplaces face complex organisational issues. The psychodynamic and systemic approach to working with organisations combines psychodynamic theory with systems thinking to improve overall organisational effectiveness. It is an innovative, deeper and wider approach to working with individual leaders, groups and organisations. The psychodynamic approach helps leaders, managers, coaches, consultants, psychologists and psychotherapists to gain clarity of vision, mission, strategy, values and goals, as well as providing an opportunity to more effectively manage the emotional aspects of organisational life.
This first annual conference of Psychodynamics at Work will be an exciting blend of experiential exercises as well as talks, discussions and interviews with experts in the field of psychodynamic and systemic consulting.
The experiential exercises will include an opportunity to draw organisation-in-the-mind images, make then more conscious, and explore and reflect on their meaning within a group and/or organisational context. Experiential exercises will also include an additional opportunity for you to bring a real-life issue or challenge that you currently have as a manager / leader in your group or organisation. You will also have an opportunity to take up the role of a consultant to another. Thinking space for how all the talks, discussions, experiential exercises and new awareness can be brought back into the workplace will also be a highly pertinent part of the learning.
Keynote Speaker and Conference Director: Dr. Evelyn P. Gilmore
Evelyn is a psychodynamic and systemic organisational consultant, a chartered psychologist, an accredited psychotherapist and a business and executive coach, coach trainer and coach supervisor. Evelyn has an honours degree in psychology from the University of Galway and a first-class honours masters in work and organisational psychology from Dublin City University. She has completed a professional doctorate with the Tavistock in “Consultation and the Organisation”.
Evelyn is founder and director of Psychodynamics at Work, and joint director of Coach Institute of Ireland. Evelyn has worked as an organisational development consultant for over 20 years, and her clients include individuals, groups and organisations from public, private and voluntary organisations. In addition, in her role as joint director of Coach Institute of Ireland, for almost 20 years, she has facilitated leaders and executives through a one-year development process to become an executive coach. Evelyn has lectured to masters students in the department of management in the University of Galway and has also been a visiting lecturer to doctorate students in the Tavistock. She has recently published an article entitled “Creating a holding environment in an organisational setting: A systems psychodynamics first person action research perspective” in the Organisational and Social Dynamics journal.
Evelyn will focus on “Creating a Holding Environment in an Organisational Setting and on helping Leaders to manage the Emotional Aspects of Organisational Life During Times of Change”
Evelyn will explain the psychoanalytic concept of holding. She will provide an opportunity for conference participants to understand how the emotional aspects of organisational life can create resistance and interfere with the overall effectiveness of organisational life. Most importantly, Evelyn, drawing from her own organisational consultancy experience, will further discuss how managers, leaders and consultants can understand and manage the emotional aspects of organisational life and how they can help individuals and teams to overcome those moments of anxiety, uncertainty and confusion that can interfere with the overall effectiveness in organisations.
Special Guest Speaker and Conference Consultant: Dr. Martin Lüdemann
Martin holds an MA in Organisational Analysis from the University of East London and is a graduate of the Psychology Diploma Programme (industrial and organizational psychology) of the University of Darmstadt, Germany. He recently finished the Professional Doctorate Program at Tavistock Consulting and the University of Essex. Martin has been working as a psychologist and supervisor for 30 years. He consults, supports and guides groups and individuals in organizations – mostly in the business sector, but also groups in the social sector. Martin began his professional life as a consultant at Lufthansa Consulting in Cologne and co-founded Dr. Sourisseaux, Lüdemann and Partners in 1996. He was a partner in the firm of consultant business psychologists in Darmstadt for 17 years before going into business on his own in 2013. In addition, he has also completed further training courses in group dynamics, systemic consulting, large-group techniques, supervision coaching, group analysis and group relations (Tavistock Consulting and Grubb Institute).
Martin will focus on “The Psychodynamics of Groups and how The Concept of Group-as-a-Whole can Support Leaders in engaging with groups in Organisations”.
The concept of Group-as-a-Whole is a psychoanalytic concept. It is an applied branch of group dynamics research and theory. So, what is this concept of Group-as-a-whole? A Group-as-a-whole is a living organism in itself. It is as distinct as the individuals comprising it. The Group-as-a-Whole has moods, reactions, spirit, atmosphere, and climate. When individuals form a group, the resulting union becomes an entity in its own right with developmental, structural, dynamic and relational properties that both reflect and transcend the individuals that make it up. In Martin’s talk and discussion, he will draw on his own doctorate research to illuminate the concept of group-as-a-whole. He will also draw on a consultancy case. Most importantly, Martin will show how the concept of the group-as-a-whole can be useful for today’s leaders and consultants, especially when confronted with tensions, various anxieties, unhappiness, discontent, and ineffectiveness. He will show how the understanding and use of this concept can help facilitate the developmental process at both the group and individual level in order to have more effective organisational outcomes.
Ben Neal, Executive Coach and Organisational Consultant: Special Guest Speaker
Ben Neal is a full time Executive Coach and Organizational Consultant, with over fifteen years of experience. Ben moved into the field of consulting and coaching in 2010 after a career in the National Health Service (NHS) in the United Kingdom.
Since then, he has worked extensively across private and public sectors, with clients ranging from C-Suite executives in investment banks, to senior leaders in the NHS and City Councils. He is in high demand as an educator.
He has been a visiting lecturer on the MA in Consulting and Leading in Organizations at the Tavistock Centre since 2012 and takes the Advanced Practice seminar on the Doctorate in Leadership and Consultancy. He is a practice supervisor for Tavistock Consultancy Services Executive Coaching program and was previously the Co-Director of the program.
Ben has a strong interest in group dynamics and has designed and led numerous workshops in the field. He was previously the Director of the Tavistock Centers ‘Working with Others’ Group Relations Conference and is currently the Director of the Tavistock Centre’s five day ‘Mini Leicester’ Group Relations Conference, which takes place every Winter.
Ben will be in conversation with us at the Conference and will focus on Systems Psychodynamic Coaching / Role Consultation.
Ben will be exploring, in conversation with us at the Conference, ways in which systems-psychodynamic coaching uses the concept of Role as vehicle for deep exploration, raising self-awareness, and ultimately, positive change.
Together we will consider some of the following aspects of understanding and working with Role in coaching:
- Over and under Identification with roles.
- Role saturation.
- The hidden effects of unconscious roles.
- Role analysis / how to work with role.
- Connecting the person to the system through role.
- Understanding role as a powerful vehicle for change.
David O’Brien, Conference Consultant
David O’Brien is a Group Psychoanalytic Psychotherapist, and an Organisational Development and Role Consultant.
He trained with the Institute of Group Analysis, London, and was a training group analyst at the School of Psychotherapy, St Vincent’s University Hospital, Elm Park.
He was a Visiting Fellow at the Tavistock Institute, London, and was a graduate of the Advanced Organisation Consultancy programme run by Tavistock Institute of Group Relations. He later joined the Advanced Organisation Consultancy programme as a staff member.
He was co-founder of GAP, Group Analytic Practice, Dublin. He has been a team member of Group Relations electives at INSEAD in both Singapore and France. Currently he practises as a Role Consultant in Dublin.
To Book Your Tickets
Visit www.psychodynamicsatwork.ie
Dates, Times, Venue and Cost
- Friday, 28th March, 2025. 9am – 5pm
- Saturday, 29th March, 2025. 9am – 4:30pm
The Psychodynamics at Work First Annual Conference will be held in The Grand Hotel, Malahide, Dublin. The total cost of the Conference is €690 plus 23% VAT of €158.70. This amounts to a total of €848.70 per person.
Reservation Details
The number of participants is limited. If you are interested in reserving a place at the Psychodynamics at Work First Annual Conference, you can log onto www.psychodynamicsatwork.ie where you can reserve your place and buy your tickets.
Alternatively, you can send a query through the Psychodynamics at Work website or contact the Conference Director, Dr. Evelyn P. Gilmore, on 087 794 4048. You can also email Evelyn directly on evelyngilmore15@nullgmail.com
