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Cameron Norman

Cameron Norman
Cameron Norman is the the Principal of CENSE Research and Design in Toronto, Ontario. He works with health and human services organizations and networks to learn about what they do and design and re-design their offerings to better support their goals and aspirations.

Recent Posts

Living History: A Developmental Evaluation Tool

Posted by Cameron Norman on November 9, 2020

Developmental Evaluation (DE) can provide vital information to inform the evolution of a program or service by connecting what is done to what is happening with what our program is designed to do and our resources using data, design, and sensemaking. That’s a tall order, but then DE is a particularly powerful approach to supporting innovation and program development. But how do we capture and document all the things that actually go into the life of a program? That’s where the Living History method comes in.

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Are you setting smart goals or building better systems?

Posted by Cameron Norman on August 10, 2017

If you’re working toward some sort of collective goals — as an organization, network or even as an individual — you’ve most likely been asked to use SMART goal setting to frame your task. While SMART is a popular tool for management consultants and scholars, does it make sense when you’re looking to make inroads on complex, unique or highly volatile problems or is the answer in the systems we create to advance goals in the first place?  

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Let's Make International Women's Day Every Day

Posted by Cameron Norman on March 8, 2017

Today is International Women's Day when the attention of one half of the world's population is brought to the entire world, suggesting that maybe this day is best honoured the other 364 days as well. Time to consider how this might look. 

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Traveling and the Art of Disruption

Posted by Cameron Norman on September 23, 2016

It's that back to school time and, even if you're not going back yourself or have children or significant others that are, there is a palpable feeling of energy that comes with the start of school that's hard to miss.

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Curiosity and Community

Posted by Cameron Norman on August 5, 2016

Summertime (or weekends) are wonderful times to slow down and take life a little easier and catch up on the news and learn a little more about what is going on in the world. This summer it has been hard not to get discouraged with what's filled many of the front pages and home pages of our favourite news sources. 

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Culture and Heritage and the Complexity of Identity

Posted by Cameron Norman on July 29, 2016

International sporting events like the World Cup and the Olympics provide intriguing examples of the complexity and situated-nature of culture and heritage as people from all walks of life reveal, (re) create, adopt and adapt to some form of unique and shared identity, even if temporarily. This situated-ness is what illustrates one of the most substantial challenges for organizations and governments alike as they wrestle with complexity in their mission.

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