Robert
I am not...yet...as pessimistic as you on this issue. I do believe that
there are some important "truths" underlying a number of the threads which
are discussed on this list, as well in the literature. Concepts such as
Knowledge Management, Total Quality, Balanced Scorecards, Scenario
Planning, Increasing Returns, Mental Models, Systems Thinking, etc. All
of these can live under a tent called The Learning Organisation. And,
there are examples of "real" LOs out there--McKinsey, Toyota, ABB, Goldman
Sachs, Microsoft, many, many others. However, if we want, ourselves, to
learn from these examples we have to commit ourselves to examining them
and trying to understand the special lessons each can give us. This is
hard work, but it will take us somewhere, if we really do want to learn.
Let's start walking the talk before the world passes us by.
Cheers for now
Richard
> > This criticism was written more than 5 years ago. Can we not do
> > better?
>
> Clearly to me, the answer is no, we cannot do better, because we are
>
> not interested in doing so. The LO terminology is philisophically
> rich but essentially bankrupt (as happens to many fad type ideas).
> Typically this happens not because the concepts or ideas are faulty,
>
> but because the demagoguery of the originators required to get a
> hearing eventually gets taken on by the disciples, who can't pull it
>
> off....they end up talking the words, sometimes without those words
> having meaning.
>
> Deming's work is another example.
>
> Tom Peter's is perhaps another but different example, the difference
> being that he has admitted his shortcomings and grown, when he
> discovered that many of his "excellent" companies didn't stay that
> way long.
> Robert Bacal
Richard Goodale
Managing Partner
The Dornoch Partnership
"Discovery, Creativity, Leadership"
goodale@dial.pipex.com
+44-1383-860660
--Richard Goodale <fc45@dial.pipex.com>
Learning-org -- Hosted by Rick Karash <rkarash@karash.com> Public Dialog on Learning Organizations -- <http://www.learning-org.com>