The Great 8

Is yours a learning organization?

Donal Hartman, Jr., J.D., LL.M

Program Director, College of Graduate & Continuing Studies Norwich University, Northfield, Vermont Member, APWA Leadership and Management Committee

The APWA Leadership and Management Committee has introduced a new series of articles entitled “The Great 8” which focus on leadership traits and qualities. This is the eighth series of articles contributed by the committee over the past several years. The Leadership and Management Committee, working with a subcommittee composed of public works leaders with decades of experience, has identified a number of qualities required for success as a leader of a public works organization. The series will explore the following traits over the next eight months:

1. Vision 2. Charisma 3. Symbolism 4. Empowerment 5. Intellectual Stimulation 6. Integrity 7. Knowledge Management 8. Power of Relationships

One of the most important questions for the public works leader is whether the organization is a learning organization. The answer to this question says a lot about the organization, and even more about the leader. It is a critically important inquiry as it reflects on a number of issues—innovation, willingness to learn new ways of doing business, commitment to lifelong learning, sharing knowledge, the vision for the organization, and whether the leader is moving the organization forward.

What is a learning organization? The Harvard Business Review offers this definition: “A learning organization is an organization skilled at creating, acquiring, and transferring knowledge, and modifying its behavior to reflect new knowledge and insights.”* Best practices today tell us we must be a learning organization.

Studies have shown a learning organization is more informed, adaptable, flexible, more inclined to see things in different ways, and willing to change and innovate. It will be more resilient, more confident of its capacity to meet challenges. Just as importantly, the organization which views education as an important value will be more democratic with a higher commitment from everyone to advance the interests of the organization.

From an external perspective the learning organization maneuvers itself into position to create opportunities by challenging the status quo. Look at the experience of Nokia; it was a pioneer in the development and use of cell phones, but got stuck on its vision for the cell phone. It didn’t see its greater potential for photos, e-mails, and so forth. It took Apple and others to exploit the cell phone’s potential as a mini-computer. A learning organization recognizes stability is not the same as being static. Stability means viability, growth, and constant learning. Stability is best achieved from sharing knowledge and welcoming ideas.

Just as important as meeting the demands of external challenges is creating positive dynamics within the organization. Recently I asked a group of graduates if they: (1) were in an organization where information was hoarded, not shared; and (2) were regularly solicited for their views and advice. The answers were not favorable: Information was collected and hoarded by leadership; and information was not shared. Why? Leadership perceived knowledge and information as a source of power. Leadership saw input from the ranks and junior management as threatening. The natural result was lower-level managers felt marginalized and unimportant.

What does a learning organization look like?

Learning organizations are skilled at five main activities: (1) systematic problem solving; (2) experimentation with new approaches; (3) learning from the organization’s experiences and past history; (4) learning from the experiences and best practices of others; and (5) communications, particularly the transfer of knowledge quickly and efficiently throughout the organization. Each is accompanied by a distinctive mind-set—the keys of our thinking patterns.**

Systematic problem solving asks us to engage in the scientific approach in finding solutions. In other words, we rely on observation, creating a hypothesis, testing the hypothesis, and continued evaluation over time. The unscientific approach relies on historical anecdotes, chance, guesswork or trial and error followed after considerable time and expense

with little studied evaluation. The intellectual difference is the scientific method requires the thinking to guide the process versus the process guiding the thinking. In a sense, the scientific approach leads to discovery; the unscientific approach leads to doing things the old way.

Experimentation is an outgrowth of a desire to improve, to find a new way to accomplish a current task or process, or way to improve the process itself. It comes from a spirit of inquiry, a sense of intellectual curiosity.

Learning from personal experience can be useful, but it also can be restrictive. History tells us the stirrup was not invented for thousands of years after man learned to ride a horse. I can just imagine the father telling the son two thousand years ago you stay on the horse’s back by gripping the horse’s mane and pressing with your legs—don’t even think of doing it any other way! Fortunately for mankind, someone tried something different.

If you wonder why European settlers to the New World brought a complex system of laws, trade and commerce when those who welcomed them still lived in the Stone Age, recall the trade routes between Europe and the Far East, and the Crusades. Knowledge which was transferred by communication was made possible by contact. In the absence of communication little knowledge passes from culture to culture or from generation to generation. We also know that as we improve communications we change the way we think and how we interpret our environment.

Developing a learning organization: do’s and don’ts

Training programs cannot create a learning organization—at best they train people in specific skills. A culture of learning and teaching is a prerequisite to the learning organization. External trainers can impart some knowledge and skills, but their efforts need to be assimilated by the organization in ways that shape day-to-day learning.

It boils down to organizational values. Organizational learning is for everyone, not just for the trainers. Too many organizations look at learning as another job function rather than viewing learning as a value and part of the culture of the organization. Knowledge and learning must be integrated into processes to provide the kind of cultural change necessary to move the organization forward. If learning, innovation and a commitment to improvement and information sharing are valued, over time the culture will evolve. The value of learning also provides a useful framework for integrating new processes. One good example is the American auto industry’s first attempts at continuous quality improvement.

These programs initially met with little success. Why? Leadership did not value continuous quality improvement. Japanese auto manufacturers valued quality and made it integral to design and production, unlike American automobile companies which diverted cars with defects to a separate area where repairs would be made before the product was shipped. Only when quality control was integrated did Detroit improve the quality of its vehicles.

Leaders must be willing to face reality and heed signals. This requires openness and courage—another set of values that must be integral to an organization. Leaders often see change in the “old” ways of doing business as a comfort, a static state not subject to change. That is why change is threatening. But progress is inevitable; if the organization doesn’t evolve, it will lose its best employees and change will be forced on it by external factors. Learning is self-challenging as it calls for an admission that we don’t know everything. But that admission is actually the first step to having an open mind.

Organizations should also celebrate generation and championing of ideas. Ideas provide the excitement and energy needed for learning and teaching. Celebrating new ideas underscores the value of learning, and drives the concept of learning into the culture of the organization. Too often our leaders crow about their accomplishments; the key is to celebrate what others add to the knowledge base of the organization.

What is the role of leadership?

A learning organization starts with the leaders. The leader shapes culture, the foundation of any organization. The leader models learning and sets the tone for the importance of learning. Here are some steps leaders should consider:

• Set aside time for reflection and encourage others to as well (constant action is not always constant growth)

• Be willing to experiment with new concepts and ideas (stay young)

• Always engage in intelligence gathering (collect ideas)

• Adapt a disciplined approach to analysis and interpretation (take learning seriously)

• Systematically share ideas and learning (don’t “pothole” information)

• Schedule sessions for discussion with stakeholders, customers, or

leaders of other organizations (prime the pump)

• Change processes and programs based on what you learn (live what you learn).

Strong leadership is critical for the learning organization. But ironically, strong leadership can be an obstacle. Those who aspire to lead occasionally create a culture of dependence. The best leaders recognize they must also be teachers in their organizations, taking time to listen, to encourage, and to instill in others the spirit of finding their own way. History is filled with examples of both kinds of leaders—those who leave a vacuum when they step down from power, and those who leave a strong, selfsufficient organization as their legacy. If you want to create a learning organization you must be willing to share, to accept and to foster. Selfgrowth is important, but recognizing and encouraging growth in others is more important. Don’t work to make yourself indispensable; work to make yourself replaceable.

I recently attended a leadership and management meeting in Kansas City. One of the members brought out his new cell phone and showed us a new “app” which made it easy for citizens to bring issues to the attention of their public works department. This would not be surprising except this particular member the year before proudly announced he was “cell phone free.” We all got a good laugh. This incident represents to me how leaders find excitement and new opportunities when they are willing to learn new things.

Donal Hartman can be reached at (802) 485-2767 or hartmand@norwich.edu.

References

* Edmondson, A. C. & Garvin, D.A. (2008) “Is Yours a Learning Organization?” Harvard Business Review, 86 (3), 1009-116. (Take the survey in the materials.)

See also http://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=lUP4WcfNyAA (excellent video by Garvin and Edmondson on how to become a learning organization).

** “How to Develop a Learning Organization,”http://www.scribd. com/doc/15610933/How-to-Developa-Learning-Organization, retrieved June 8, 2012.

See also http://www.youtube.com/wa tch?v=Rhu3xXjT3lw&feature=topics (teaching learning from the employee level upwards; skills sets/confidence/ ownership)

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