Dear Catalysts:
An editorial?
When I first enlisted in the Army of learning organization recruits and
systems thinkers I was quite sure I would be exposed (via e-mail) to some
interesting notions, theories, and applications. I have been ignited by
some and dampened by other exposures. That's the way things go.
One of the advantages of the "digital age" is the presentation and/or
management of information in new forms. These forms enable the information
developer (teacher, facilitator, and product creator) to present or build
learning environments that seek to optimize one or more learning styles.
This is true in the sense of the traditional classroom, distant learning
setting as well as the work place where learning and organizational
problem solving (closing the gap between what is and what should be, if
you like) go hand in hand. This advantage however has created what might
be termed a plethora of options. By that I mean, more options than can be
sorted easily by the manager, teacher, facilitator, etc. Selection is
difficult if for no other reason than the possible number of choices.
Now comes the importance of time, resource management and the application
of theories in time's relative importance. With little argument, most
would agree, among all other variables or characteristics, time is the
common threat to all activity. No new news there I guess. Time as applied
to when an action needs to be completed, the number of iterations of an
activity, the interval between iterations, the time to select an activity
or series of them that will result in the desired goal (say a trained work
team) and the time, related to having the peak performance potential, to
start activities.
After all is said, studied and thought about, I find a common solution to
the problem of activity selection. It has to do with the understanding
that the characteristic of true human association to an organization
(socialization if you like) can not be measured in efficiency and cost
savings (including time) but can be damaged by attempts to create
them(cost savings). With that, the manager, teacher or organizational
leader relies most heavily on something that is not as clean as time:
experienced judgement.
Conclusion: While we might strive to improve information management and
decision making by the use of technology and the discovery of new ways to
conceptualize the common characteristic of time, if we are not striving to
solve the growing dilemma of practical selection methodologies, we may be
part of the dilemma not the resolution.
PS. Where do I reenlist?
Learning-org -- Hosted by Rick Karash <rkarash@karash.com>
Public Dialog on Learning Organizations -- <http://www.learning-org.com>