Learning in action:
David A. Garvin
Learning Definition
 Learning is a process that unfolds over
time and link it with knowledge
acquisition, deeper understanding and
improved performance.
Definition
 A learning organisation is an
organisation skilled at
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creating,
interpreting,
acquiring,
transferring and
retaining knowledge and
at modifying behaviour to reflect new
knowledge and insight.
Introduction
 How different organizations put different
learning strategies to work
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The stages of learning,
Types or modes of learning
The leadership challenge
 The heart of organizational learning = a set of
processes
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Design
Deploy
Lead
How an organization learns?
 The stage of Learning
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Acquiring Knowledge
Interpreting Knowledge
Applying Knowledge
Stage of learning
What knowledge
should we collect?
How should it be
obtained?
Acquiring
knowledge
From where?
By whom?
• Understanding to allow new
ideas to flourish
• Distinguishing relevant and
irrelevant information
Separate “signal from noise”
• Remaining open to
unexpected and occasionally
unwelcome
Stage of learning
What does the
knowledge mean?
Interpreting
knowledge
What categories
should we apply?
What are cause-andeffect relationships
at work?
- Test and Update continually
- Reasonable rather than right
Interpretation lies at the heart of decision making
Stage of learning
What new activities
are appropriate?
Applying
knowledge
What behaviors
must be modified?
How to generate a
collective response by
the organization?
• Translating interpretation into concrete behavior
• Hands-on experience is usually the best teacher
Learning Disabilities
 Biased information
 Flawed interpretation
 Inaction
Learning Disabilities
 Biased Information
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Blind spots “narrow or misdirected”
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Filtering “critical data are downplayed or
ignored”
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Lack of information sharing
Learning Disabilities
 Flawed interpretation
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Since the underlying processes are complex
and poorly understood.
Learning Disabilities
 Inaction
 An inability or unwillingness to act on
new interpretations
A problem of incentives and the frequent
lack of support for new initiatives
 A certain level of self-awareness
 Espoused theories vs theories-in-use
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Supporting Learning Environment
 Recognize and Accept Differences
 Provide Timely Feedback
 Stimulate New Ideas
 Tolerate Errors and Mistakes
Types of learning
Intelligence gathering
Experience
Experimentation
Types of learning
Types of learning
Intelligence
gathering
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Search
Aim at
The present
Organizational knowledge
Attend to currently
available information and
knowledge
Learning
methods
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Search
Inquiry
Observation
: Public sources or documents
: Skill need : care analysis and research
Inquiry
: interviews / surveys
: Skill need : framing and asking insightful questions
Observation : direct contact with users
: Skill need : attentive looking and listening
Search
 Using information from diverse sources
 Cross-checking the findings
 Ensuring reliability
 Shifting smoothly between passive and active
mode
 Devoting effort to analysis and interpretation
 Connecting with decision making
Inquiry
 Providing choice of respondents
 Carefully framing questions
 Respondents as representative and
appropriate
 2 forms
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Descriptive
Focus group and structured conversation
 Easy to summarize results
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Exploratory
Using open-ended questions to elicit perceptions
and needs
 Respondents on their minds
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Observation
 Carrying out in real context
 Acceptance of an observer
 Attentive looking and listening
 Suspending judgment and postpone analysis
long as possible
 2 approaches
 Passive observation
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To record experience for later review
Participation and interaction
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To clarify and refine understanding
Suitable technique
 Search matches with settings of published
information.
 Inquiry suits to settings of identifying key
sources.
 Observation suits to settings of gaining insights
by watching people.
Combination of them provides intelligence of
the highest order.
Types of learning
Types of learning
Experience
Aim at
The past
Organizational knowledge
Learning
methods
Draw lessons from activities Reflection and
that have already taken place review
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Single case or
comparison
reviews
Individual, group,
or organizational
reviews
Experiential
learning
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Learning and
experience curve
Two distinct ways of experience
 Repetition
 Efficiently performing the same tasks over
time
 Exposure
 Getting a new set of talent
 Added skill by the exploration of unfamiliar
engagement
Learning and experience
curves
Reflection and review
 Focusing on problem / success
 Taking time to reflect on experiences and
developing lessons for the future
 Reflection and review processes are weak due
to late in game.
 After-the-fact reviews as alternating periods of
learning and doing
 Focusing on tangible and result-oriented
programs
Types of learning
Types of learning
Experimentation
Aim at
Organizational knowledge
The future
Look ahead, trying out new
designs or theories to test
their validity
Learning methods
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Exploration
Hypothesis
testing
Experimentation
 Try-it-and –see approach
 Knowledge as provisional and
conclusions as tentative
 Designed activities to generate
knowledge
Types of experiments
Exploratory experiments
 To
see what would happen if
Hypothesis-testing experiments
 To
discriminate among
alternative explanations and
confirm prevailing views
Exploration
Lack of information leading to difficult to identity solution
 Probe-and-learn process
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4 elements such as a starting point, one or more feedback loops,
a process for rapid redesign and a stopping rule
 Demonstration projects
 On-line experiments
 Large scale simulation
Hypothesis testing
Deductive rather than inductive
Disciplined rather than playful
Targeted rather than open-end
Generating data, validating
theories, and ensuring new
ideas to be accepted
Conducting experiments
 Be clear about the purpose of the experiments
 Begin with a hypothesis in mind
 Ensure that all needed measures (pretest and
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posttest) are in place
Reproduce real-world conditions as closely as
possible
Manipulate a single variable at a time
Use comparison groups or other natural controls
Involve diverse, complementary observers
Search for distinctive patterns
Employ multiple, repeated trials
The leadership challenge
 Creating opportunity
 Setting the tone
 Leading the discussion
Leading learning
Methods that leaders use to work with people of an organization moving in the desired
direction.
Learning forums
Creating the
opportunity
Exploratory assignments
Shared experiences
Challenge and dissent
Leading learning
Setting the
tone
Security and support
Open communication
Questioning
Leading the
discussion
Listening
Responding