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What is Ac*on Learning? • A process that involves a small
group working on real problems, taking ac*on, and learning while doing so
• A powerful management tool that creates dynamic opportuni*es for individuals, teams, leaders and organiza*ons to successfully learn and innovate
• Ac*ng your way to learning
Components of an Ac*on Learning Program • Project, challenge, task, or
problem • Group of 4-‐8 people with diverse
perspec*ves • Reflec*ve ques*oning and
listening • Development of systemic
strategies and implementa*on of agreed-‐to ac*ons
• Commitment to learning • Ac*on Learning coach
Benefits of Ac*on Learning • Develops leadership competencies
• Solves complex and important problems
• Builds high performing and cohesive teams
• Creates learning cultures and learning organiza*ons
Leadership Development • Every leadership competency can be
developed when working with a group over whom one has no control on a problem with no know solu*on
• Opportuni*es for self-‐reflec*on as well as suppor*ve specific feedback from team members
• Ac*on learning uniquely able to incorporate all four dimensions of leadership development – Important to individual – Opportunity to prac*ce – Feedback – Reflec*on
Breakthrough Problem Solving • Gaining fresh perspec*ves and
new ways of seeing issues • Systems Thinking which involves
the ability of seeing “wholes ” rather than parts, rela*onships rather than linear cause-‐effect paTerns, underlying structures rather than events and paTerns of changes rather than snapshots
• Macro and micro views • Generate “breakthrough”
insights, solu*ons, and effec*ve strategies
Builds Great Teams • Ac*on learning builds teams
with high performance, con*nuous improvement, and respecVul caring
• Sharing responsibility and accountability on real problems builds strong team unity and success
• Powerful norms assure high high levels of performance
Changes Organiza*onal Culture and Creates Learning Organiza*ons • Ac*on learning groups are
models of learning organiza*ons
• Organiza*ons are now able to adapt to change more quickly
• Every event is a learning opportunity
• Learning is connected to all business goals and becomes part of the corporate culture
Where and How I have Implemented Ac*on Learning around the World • Sony Music • MicrosoX • Na*onal Bank of Dominica • United Na*ons Environmental
Program • Fraser & Neave • Constella*on Energy • Morgans Hotel Group • Humana Health Systems • Krones
Sony Music • Quarterly one-‐week leadership
development programs (Fast Forward) for 21 leaders
• 3 corporate problems selected by top leadership and presented on Monday
• Challenge: Replacing income lost by consumers moving from purchasing LPs to downloading tunes
• Ac*on Learning Team: Sony High Poten*al leaders
• Breakthrough: Premiere Service Agreement
MicrosoX • Top 5% develop leadership via
ac*on learning • Single-‐problem ac*on learning
– SeaTle – Corporate problems such as Xbox and Bing
– Washington, DC – World Bank – Peru – Teacher educa*on
• Mul*ple-‐problem ac*on learning – 4-‐5 leaders who meet every 2
month to help each other on their problems
Na*onal Bank of Dominica • Challenge: Corporate culture of poor customer service
• Ac*on learning team of employees and customers
• Breakthrough: 50 ideas that changed the culture and business of the Bank
United Na*ons Environmental Programme
• Challenge: Design, fund and build a headquarters building for 1200 employees that would achieve energy neutrality and showcase innova*ve design and technology
• Ac*on learning team of 7 from within and outside UNEP
• Breakthrough: Building opened 12 months later by UN Secretary General
Fraser & Neave
• Challenge: Building a culture of innova*on
• Ac*on Learning team of internal HR
• Breakthrough: iTAL culture throughout organiza*on
Constella*on Energy • Challenge: Developing a work
schedule that met social and transporta*on needs of miners and the legal and economic needs of the company
• Ac*on learning team of miners, senior administrators, and pizza man
• Breakthrough: Within 6 hours, the development of a strategy that met all requirements
Morgans Hotel Group • Challenge: Retaining high
occupancy rate while hotel undergoing reconstruc*on
• Ac*on learning team of senior managers from several hotels
• Breakthrough: Several crea*ve strategies resul*ng in high occupancy during construc*on and even higher aXerwards
Humana Health Systems • Top 50 leaders in Human
used ac*on learning to solve top problems of organiza*on
• Six-‐month program • Leadership skill iden*fied
and prac*ced during and between sessions
• Internal ac*on learning coaches developed
Krones BoTling • Krones Leadership Academy
established to provide leadership development via ac*on learning to business partners
• Focus on raising line efficiency at boTling plants
• Problem Analysis • Project Improvement • Total Project Management • Leadership follow-‐up at sites
of distributors and suppliers
Ten Cri*cal Principles for Successful and Powerful Ac*on Learning 1. Urgency and Complexity of the Problem 2. Ques*ons and Reflec*on 3. Mindset, Value, and Antude of Ac*on Learning Members 4. Skilled Coaching/Facilita*on of the Ac*on Learning Team 5. Integra*on of Learning into The Ac*on Learning Projects 6. Establishment of Clear and Enforced Norms 7. Formula*on of Explicit Timelines and Expecta*ons for the Ac*on Learning
Team 8. Power and Responsibility Allocated to The Ac*on Learning Teams 9. Diversity of Membership within the Ac*on Learning Teams 10. Commitment and Support of Top Leadership to Ac*on Learning
1. Urgency and Complexity of the Problem • Select real-‐*me, urgent business
problems • Approach the problem with the
understanding that mul*ple strategies are possible
• Review and reframe the problem statement before searching to solu*ons
• Provide a clear *me frame for when the solu*ons/strategies will be presented and/or implemented
• Select problems that will generate learning opportuni*es for individuals, groups and the organiza*on
2. Ques*ons and Reflec*on • Focus on ques*ons rather than answers • Reflect on what is asked before asking the next ques*on • Frame ques*ons with a curious and breaking-‐new-‐ground antude • Ask lots of “what if” ques*ons” and play out scenarios with the problem
sponsor • Ask basic ques*ons to determine the real, root and/or systemic problem
before jumping to conclusions • Ask fresh ques*ons to develop fresh perspec*ves and challenge
assump*ons • Explore poten*al issues embedded in each ques*on asked • Understand the power of simple ques*ons • Use ques*ons and reflec*on to develop leadership and team
competencies
3. Mindset, Value, and Antude of Ac*on Learning Members • Be bold to share and test ideas • Be prac*cal minded • Do not view other par*cipants as
compe*tors • Listen to other par*cipants with respect • Keep an objec*ve, unbiased, and open
mind when discussing solu*ons • Increased self-‐management from the
outset • Develop a commitment to project
outcomes • Focus on systems thinking • Expect breakthrough ideas and strategic
ac*ons
4. Skilled Coaching/Facilita*on of the Ac*on Learning Team • Provide skilled coaching/facilita*on to assure learning as well as ac*on • Create a safe environment for par*cipants to ask ques*ons • Provide power to the coach so that the urgency of ac*on is balanced with
the importance of the learning • Help par*cipants “in the moment” to understand, learn and apply • Enable and encourage par*cipants to provide useful, posi*ve feedback to
each other rela*ve to leadership and team skills • Develop consensus on policies, guidelines, principles, and standards • Resolve conflict in a *mely manner and see it as an opportunity to
develop individual and team skills
5. Integra*on of Learning into the Ac*on Learning Projects • Ensure *me for learning as well as
problem-‐solving during all ac*on learning sessions
• Adopt a systema*c, holis*c approach to learning
• Encourage adap*ve and genera*ve learning in the face of challenges and emerging issues
• Build on exis*ng knowledge and capabili*es
• Reflect on and immediately apply the learnings during and aXer the ac*on learning sessions
• Develop a learning support network inside and outside the business
6. Establishment of Clear and Enforced Norms • Establish a few, but clear upfront norms and
expecta*ons • Con*nuously improve the norms • Help group members be aware of how the norms
improve performance and break through thinking • When working virtually, be sure to establish the
norms that will ensure the quality of these sessions by capitalizing on technology
• Develop norms to handle poten*al difficul*es such as absences, tardiness, mobile phone use, conflict, and par*cipa*on
• Consider the norm of “statements only in response to ques*ons” to enable stronger group cohesiveness, beTer listening, and more crea*vity
7. Formula*on of Explicit Timelines and Expecta*ons for the Ac*on Learning Team • Establish specific dates for selec*on
and implementa*on of strategies • Be clear whether the ac*on learning
team will be only presen*ng strategies or will also be implement the recommended ac*ons
• At the end of each session, iden*fy ac*ons to be taken by individuals and/or groups between ac*on learning sessions
• Develop detailed strategies with *meframes and expecta*ons
• Expect implementa*on of individual learnings
8. Power and Responsibility Allocated to the Ac*on Learning Teams • Provide adequate power and responsibility to the group so as to
achieve break through problem-‐solving • Expect a high level of effort and energy • Boundaries and other limita*ons should be clear at the outset • Provide access as necessary to the people who have the power,
passion and knowledge • Experiment and pilot-‐test different ac*ons and determine the best
ac*on to solve the problem • Assess opportuni*es for short-‐term and long-‐term strategies that
impact en*re organiza*on • Adopt a business-‐impact perspec*ve in developing poten*al
solu*ons
9. Diversity of Membership in Ac*on Learning Teams • Carefully plan for the membership of
ac*on learning teams • Seek wide diversity of members rela*ve to
backgrounds, disciplines, gender, and ethnicity
• Consider members from outside the organiza*on or outside the community in order to obtain freshness of perspec*ves and ideas
• Establish cross-‐func*onal and cross-‐hierarchy teams
• Create norms that encourage par*cipa*on by junior and outside members
• Recognize the advantages of diversity in achieving crea*ve, break through ideas
10. Commitment and Support of Top Leadership to Ac*on Learning • Engage the top management from the beginning and keep it engaged throughout • Keep leaders informed of the progress and success of the ac*on learning teams • Carefully plan and deliver the strategies developed to top leadership • Provide suppor*ve corporate culture and reflec*ve environment • Clarify doubts and determine boundaries with the problem sponsor • Encourage par*cipa*ve and team-‐oriented leadership in presen*ng strategies • Focus on strategic partnership with key stakeholders • Provide resources and support for implementa*on of strategies • Create panel discussions to facilitate rich exchanges between par*cipants and
stakeholders
Ac*on Learning – The Key to Powerful Successes for Your Organiza*on • Ac*on learning marvelously
incorporates all the essen*al elements for solving complex problems of the 21st century
• Improves the capability of the organiza*on, the competence of the group, and the ability of the individual