Over three years, more than one hundred generous people made room for us and our work in their busy lives. We want to thank each and every person and hope that as they read Extraordinary Groups, they find a small bit of pride in our collective accomplishment.
Our gratitude goes first to the sixty people we interviewed about their extraordinary group experiences. By sharing their stories, they fed our discoveries and allowed us to speak from their experience. Others passed along our request for interviews and enthusiastically linked us with their friends, colleagues, and family members.
Our primary editors at Jossey-Bass, Genoveva Llosa and Byron Schneider, brought their insight, ability to see concepts and details at once, and belief in our topic. Bernadette Walter brought her marketing savvy and contagious enthusiasm; Mark Karmendy saw us through the production phase with clear guidance and timely responses to our questions. And from early on, as with our past books, Ray Bard of Bard Press listened, asked great questions, provided smart guidance, and told us to go for it!.
Linda Williams, Dorcas Nepple, and Sheila Kelly each read the manuscript at critical times. If they look closely, they will find their influence on our ideas. Claire Ricci, Dee Knapp, and Margaret Dunphy jumped in to assist with our data analysis. Frank Basler and Bud Orr not only edited the manuscript at least twice, they also discussed it with us at length and repeatedly. Bud also helped with our field study interviews.
The Port of Tacoma and the City of Tacoma, two of Kathleen's separate but geographically adjacent clients, provided encouragement and fertile real-world ground for testing our model. She especially thanks the Port's Culture Team and Mary Morrison at the City of Tacoma.
Three talented and tolerant sages—Robert Bashor in Seattle, Robert Fijlstra in Amsterdam, and Robert Henderson in Glasgow—supported, challenged, built upon our ideas over meals, e-mail, and Skype. Geoff is thankful for you three.
We've already mentioned our partners in life, Sheila Kelly and Bud Orr, because of their roles in helping us create this book. We mention them again because of all we have learned from them about extraordinary pairs over the years of our marriages. In our lives, there is no more important grouping than the one Geoff has with Sheila and Kathleen has with Bud.