Welcome,
I can share some experience from working with a development NGO in South
Africa. In this context, (some may argue in most contexts), South Africa
is a developing country. Not having been involved in LOs in a "developed"
situation,I can not say if the experience would have been different in
other LOs. Our understanding of a learning organisation is one that
encourages lifelong learning in staff, and continued improvement in
organisational practice.
We perceived the keys to be an open management structure, exposure to
systems thinking, exposure to creative problem solving, and the space to
learn from mistakes where necessary.
I fully agree that
>institutional memory and learning are key
>ingredients to survival.
and the progression and development of the institution as an LO have been
documented and shared with all new staff members. Turnover was quite
high, mainly due to staff development policies, and staff taking advantage
of other more lucrative/influential opportunities. However, this was not
seen as too much of a problem, but almost as part of our development
mandate. New members are given opportunities to work with a mentor, and
the inclusive, transparent management structure allows for continuing
learning and reinforcement of the idea of learning. In addition, the
inclusive management structure drew on the indigenous tradition of
collaboration. ( I should note that in some cases, the idea of
collaboration was more present than the substance in some communities -
which meant that exposure to effective collaboration could not always be
assumed for new institutional staff).
Ok, so what do I mean?
Open management structure.
This entails an inclusive decision making structure (we called it a
management committee) that included field staff as well as "management".
Admittedly, this worked better while the organisation was small. (8
members). As the organisation grew, we were able to extend the structure
to be project based, so that each project had its decision making
committee which could include all staff members. The management committee
now comprised only senior management and project managers. Project
managers became effective mentors for project staff to engage in
collaborative decision making, within a framework that was established
through the management committee. Staff input during the project meetings
was often fed back to management which effectively changed the framework
ex post. How does this help transformation and growth of an lo? Well, in
my opinion, the process of effecting change in project and organisational
direction provides staff with the opportunity for empowerment (which in an
earlier post I noted I believed could only occur from within the staff
member). I also believe that empowerment is essential for effective
learning.
Exposure to systems thinking.
Using Checkland and Senge, the notion of relationships and emergence are
constantly revisited through the process of action learning - gathering
information, making meaning of the information, developing a model for
improvement, implementing that model and developing new/refining models
with ongoing evaluation. Archetypes sometimes help with identifying
problems, but are not necessary.
Creative problem solving:
Lateral thinking and other creative processes are encouraged in problem
solving and generally these tools are used in collaborative problem
solving. These tools (processes) help to continually expand our
perception of the world and open us to continued learning.
I think the space to learn from mistakes speaks for itself.
Above all, being open and learning from our "clients", being ever mindful
that we exist because their needs do, and finding new ways for
participatory learning, actionand improvement, have kept the organisation
alive and provide a learning environment for continued human development.
I hope this has been useful.
Although I am no longer with the organisation, I would be happy to refer
you to some in the organisation that may help explore these issues
further.
Still learning,
/Les
-- Leslie Lax Kelowna BCe-mail: leslax@cnx.net web: http://members.cnx.net/leslax
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