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Five Days with Caitlin Walker at Caux Palace
Develop collective intelligence and self-organisation in groups
Monday 16 to Friday 20 November 2026 · Caux Palace, above Montreux, Switzerland
How can a group draw fully on the intelligence of all its members?
Over five days, explore Clean Language and Systemic Modelling with Caitlin Walker, the developer of Systemic Modelling. This experiential training programme will help you develop the way you listen, ask questions and work with groups, in the enchanting setting of Caux Palace.
Five days of training and four nights’ accommodation with full board:
- CHF 2,690 per person in a shared room occupied by two people;
- CHF 2,870 per person in a room for single occupancy.
Delivered in English with French interpretation.
Maximum 25 participants.
Create a group in which individual intelligence is amplified
Bringing capable people together does not always create a group that works well collectively. Misunderstandings, assumptions and defensive reactions can limit contributions and even lead people to undermine one another’s thinking.
The aim of this training is to help you develop the skills to support a group in functioning as a self-organising system: a collective that can learn from its interactions, adapt and discover new possibilities.
You will explore how to create the conditions for people to build on one another’s thinking and amplify the group’s collective intelligence, rather than remaining a collection of isolated contributions.
This capacity develops through the quality of people’s attention, their curiosity about differences and the opportunity for everyone to contribute to a shared understanding.
Learn through direct experience
Throughout the programme, the group itself becomes a setting for learning.
You will experiment with the tools, observe what happens in interactions and discover your own ways of participating in a group. You will then practise facilitating these processes and receive feedback to refine your approach.
You will develop your ability to:
- ask questions that help people explore their experiences in their own words;
- elicit the metaphors and representations through which people make sense of their experiences;
- recognise patterns and relationships within a group;
- welcome different perspectives and work with disagreements;
- facilitate conversations in which everyone can contribute and be heard;
- support a group’s capacity to learn, adapt and collaborate.
You will leave with practical tools and experiences to draw on in your coaching, management or facilitation work.
Who is this training for?
This programme is particularly relevant for:
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team coaches and facilitators, working in business or sport;
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managers and leaders who want to develop collaboration and autonomy within their teams;
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HR and organisational development professionals;
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people taking on new responsibilities or seeking to contribute more effectively to a group.
French-speaking and English-speaking participants from Switzerland and around the world are welcome.
The full programme: five days, two complementary stages
16–17 November — Clean for Teams
Discover the approach by experiencing it from within a team.
The first two days invite you to experience Clean approaches as a team member.
Through practical exercises, you will explore how you participate in groups, what you need and how you respond to others. You will discover how other people experience the same situations and notice what changes when everyone listens with greater curiosity.
This first stage provides the foundation for the rest of the programme.qui change lorsque chacun écoute avec davantage de curiosité.
18–20 November — Systemic Modelling
Deepen your practice and develop your ability to work with groups.
The following three days build on your initial experience to develop your facilitation skills.
You will practise exploring group dynamics, recognising patterns of interaction and facilitating conversations that enrich the group’s understanding.
Practice, experimentation and feedback on your work are central to these three days.
La pratique, l’expérimentation et les retours sur votre travail occupent une place centrale dans ces trois journées.
Learn directly from Caitlin Walker
Caitlin Walker developed Systemic Modelling by building on David Grove’s work with Clean Language.
Clean Language uses carefully crafted questions to help people explore their words, experiences and metaphors, while minimising the assumptions and interpretations introduced by the facilitator.
Caitlin extended these principles to groups, teams and organisations. Her work explores how people can better understand their interactions, recognise their differences and develop their capacity to collaborate.
She is also the author of From Contempt to Curiosity, which explores the conditions that enable groups to move from contempt towards curiosity and cooperation.
The training will be delivered in English, with French interpretation provided by Nicolas Dujacquier.
Caitlin’s TEDx talk, “Clean Questions and Metaphor Models: A Language on Inquiry,” tells the story of how she discovered David Grove’s work and began exploring how Clean Questions could help people understand themselves and one another differently.
Caitlin is the author of From Contempt to Curiosity: Creating the Conditions for Groups to Collaborate Using Clean Language and Systemic Modelling. The book traces the development of her work, from her first encounter with David Grove through to the development of Clean Modelling for groups, and describes the principles and models underpinning Systemic Modelling.
Caux Palace: space to reflect and connect
Staying on site allows conversations and connections to continue over meals and during informal moments. It gives you time to share reflections and let new insights develop.
The Palace’s history, rooted in dialogue and encounter, echoes the spirit of this training: cultivating curiosity, understanding one another and exploring new ways of working together.
Choose your programme
The full programme — five residential days
Monday 16 to Friday 20 November 2026
The package includes:
- all five days of training: Clean for Teams and Systemic Modelling;
- four nights’ accommodation with breakfast;
- full board throughout your stay.
| Accommodation | Price per person |
| Shared room occupied by two people | CHF 2,690 |
| Room for single occupancy | CHF 2,870 |
You can also attend either part separately
Part One — Clean for Teams
Monday 16 and Tuesday 17 November 2026
The price includes two days of training, one night’s accommodation with breakfast, and day packages for both days.
| Included per person | Shared room for two | Room for single occupancy |
| Training — two days | CHF 1,000 | CHF 1,000 |
| One night with breakfast | CHF 80 | CHF 125 |
| Two day packages | CHF 140 | CHF 140 |
| Total per person | CHF 1,220 | CHF 1,265 |
Part Two — Systemic Modelling
Wednesday 18 to Friday 20 November 2026
Prerequisite: prior participation in Clean for Teams.
The price includes three days of training, two nights’ accommodation with breakfast, and day packages for all three days.
| Included per person | Shared room for two | Room for single occupancy |
| Training — three days | CHF 1,500 | CHF 1,500 |
| Two nights with breakfast | CHF 160 | CHF 250 |
| Three day packages | CHF 210 | CHF 210 |
| Total per person | CHF 1,870 | CHF 1,960 |
Join us at Caux
16–20 November 2026 — from CHF 2,690 per person, including training and accommodation with full board.