How to hold a grassroots symposium? Cadres of the General Office of the Provincial Party Committee are recruited

Holding forums at the grassroots level to find out the real situation of the work at the grassroots level is a common method for the "three services" work.

In practice, due to various worries and concerns, villagers, residents, representatives of social organizations and other grassroots participants often dare not speak freely.

How to have a more comprehensive understanding of the situation when going deep into the grassroots, the following discussion skills can be used for reference.

01

Create a good atmosphere

The presiding speech broke the topic. The moderator of the meeting can first explain the convening of the symposium, be open and honest, and inform the participants of the purpose of the symposium and the intention to use the results of the symposium.

For example, the moderator can say that the purpose of the symposium is to find out the real situation and help solve a practical problem. After the results of the symposium are submitted to the relevant leaders for review, if they are approved by the leaders, they will promote the solution of problems faster and more effectively.

Close the distance and break the ice. In the work of the masses, it is most important to avoid being from above, and we should have the attitude of learning from the grassroots, ask more about the personal feelings of the masses at the grassroots level, create a relaxed atmosphere in the midst of family life, and shorten the psychological distance. We should maintain a humble posture and use more polite language, so that the grassroots people feel respected and cared for, and are willing to open their hearts and tell their true feelings.

We can respond with empathy from time to time, affirm the difficulties of grassroots cadres, and understand the anxieties, sorrows, and hopes of the grassroots masses.

For example, in a discussion, when the "corridor manager" talks about being a volunteer and not getting paid, this dedication can be praised; When the "person in charge of the mediation station" talked about himself as a retired factory director, he could affirm his experience in doing mass work as a retired veteran cadre.

02

Find out with precision

Guide the elucidation to overcome difficulties. After the start of the discussion, the participants generally report the relevant situation. In the meantime, further questions can be asked about the content of the report, and the interlocutor can be asked to further explain or explain a piece of work, which is often not what has been prepared in advance. Use specific questions to guide the participants to further elaborate, turning the difficult into easy, not only to hear the deeper real content, but also to focus on the main content we want to know at all times.

For example, when the interlocutor talks about a particular feeling, we can ask if we can give an example to talk about. In this way, it is conducive to having an in-depth understanding of the work at the grassroots level.

Circular questioning breaks down barriers. The masses at the grassroots level generally have a cautious attitude toward the discussion and ask questions, preferring not to say anything wrong or to say less. In order to encourage the participants to say more and be more complete, we need to grasp the psychological changes of the grassroots masses, and we can adopt the method of "agreeing + asking questions", first agreeing with some views, and then asking questions, so that it is easier to get a positive response from the participants, and it is logical to hear the truth.

On this basis, in order to expand the depth of the research, the method of circular questions can be adopted.

For example, when conducting a discussion, you can first ask the village (community) cadres about their practices, then ask the villagers (residents) about their feelings, then ask the village (community) cadres about their difficulties, then ask the villagers (residents) about their suggestions, continue to ask the village (community) cadres about their work plans, and then ask the villagers (residents) about their expectations, so that you can learn many details that echo and corroborate each other and grasp the real situation.

03

Take control of the situation

Follow the train of thought to break through the void. Before the discussion, we generally set an outline or framework based on the purpose of the discussion, and the discussion object often has some differences or even conflicts with our thinking when the report materials written in advance are often different from our thinking. If the discussion still mechanically asks questions according to the original line of thought, it is easy for the discussion subject to be speechless, resulting in a cold scene, or even being at a loss and unable to get off the stage.

In fact, it is very common to have different ideas, and with good follow-up questions and exchanges, we can still return to the topic we want to understand. During the discussion, we should adopt a workaround, adjust the thinking in time, and ask questions along the logical framework of the discussion object, so that the effect is better.

For example, when discussing the "Fengqiao experience" in the new era, the preset outline is "the insufficient performance and internal reasons of source governance, the insufficient performance and internal reasons of grassroots intelligent governance, and the cases and reasons that cannot be solved on the spot", but in fact, the framework of the discussion subject's report may be "the achievements of grassroots governance, the practical characteristics of the 'Fengqiao experience', and the focus of the next step". At this time, we should respect and understand the person who is talking, and after their report is completed, we should have an in-depth exchange on the key issues we want to understand.

Interrupt the break at the right time. In grassroots discussions, it is often true layer by layer, layer by layer truth, step by step false, step by step false, step by step false, it is very important to grasp the opportunity and control the trend of conversation in a timely manner.

Some of the panelists did not speak as requested by the moderator, and still did not respond positively to the questions raised during the exchange session, and only read the manuscript they had prepared in advance. At this time, the inquiry strategy should be adjusted in time, and the interruption should be interrupted, and the trend of the discussion should be reversed by politely interjecting, asking accurate questions, and guiding answers.

It should be noted that the focus of the discussion is to obtain information, and understanding the situation is the first purpose, and there is no need to make unnecessary arguments or rebuttals.

For example, when a cadre reported at a forum, he first talked about the mechanism and practice of party building leadership, and then prepared to talk about the results achieved, and the purpose of the discussion was to understand the problems existing in the grassroots party building of the integrated community. At this time, it is necessary to adjust the strategy in time, and remind the other party to briefly introduce the content of the written materials, focusing on the difficulties that need to be solved by the superior.

04

Work hard from beginning to end

Classification and layering break the game. If the cadres and the masses hold discussions together, the masses at the grassroots level may have some concerns when they speak, and it will be difficult to achieve the effect of speaking their minds freely. The scientific classification and stratification of the discussion groups is helpful to better grasp the real situation. Generally, a forum for grassroots cadres can be held in the conference room of the organ, and an on-site symposium limited to the participation of the masses can be held in a residential community. It can also be classified and stratified from other perspectives according to the needs of the topic of the discussion.

For example, in order to understand the situation of grassroots social governance in a certain place, you can do a discussion stratification of relevant groups of people before and after the governance of the place, and talk to local aborigines and new resident representatives respectively; It is also possible to do a hierarchical discussion of different governance priorities, and discuss the relevant groups such as "governance mechanism" and "digital governance" separately; Private entrepreneurs or freelancers can also be asked to talk about their feelings about the local governance environment.

Verify and check to solve doubts. During the discussion, there was a lot of content that could be further developed in the future, which can be confirmed through on-site visits, telephone checks, and online public opinion collection, so as to further understand the real situation. In particular, if you do not write down some numbers and examples in time, or do not hear clearly due to accent or other reasons, you need to confirm and verify them by phone or other means. Do not be self-righteous, or do not understand and check for fear of trouble, which will often distort the meaning of the object of the discussion, or speak without penetration, and fail to achieve the purpose of the discussion.

For example, during a certain forum, some grassroots cadres mentioned that the rate of administrative defeat was 8 percent, but based on experience, this figure may be wrong. I found out that it was actually 3% after phone checking, and the slip of the tongue when telling almost led to a work error.

Author: Zhang Zhaoli, General Office of Zhejiang Provincial Party Committee

Editor: Wang Muyin

Review: Ji Haitao

For more exciting content, please pay attention to the WeChat public account "Decision Magazine" (WeChat ID: juecezazhi).