Not really replying, but adding to this thread:
I agree to the following two statements on measurements by E. Goldratt
- the first on the purpose of measurement and the second on the
effect:
"The purpose of measurements is to motivate the parts (departments,
individuals) to do what is good for the organization as a whole."
"Tell me how you measure me, and I will tell you how I will behave. If
you measure me in an illogical way...do not complain about illogical
behaviour."
Lets assume, that we have established a logical set of measurements
which fulfill that purpose (right now, I think this is what Goldratt's
TOC- theory of constraints is really about). Then, learning can be
measured by evaluating the improvements in the measures.
If the measures don't improve, is this an indication that learning
does not take place? I don't think so. I think that learning is
absolutely natural to all humans (not only to humans, but to any
living systems, generally to "complex adaptive systems" as well). So
if the measures don't improve, there may be hidden contradictions,
conflicts among them - they are illogical. Such conflicts block the
positive effects that learning could have otherwise for the
organisation as a whole. Simply the wrong lessons are learned. But
then, any independent way of measuring such learning doesn't help at
all.
So I guess, that "measuring learning" by means of measuring the rate
of improving the organisation's measures does tell more about the
consistency of the measures and whether they are well understood
throughout the company (coherency), than on learning, which as I
believe, is just natural as long as it is not blocked. And I guess,
that any other kind of "measuring learning" doen't make sense.
I am wondering, what the limits to this quite simple point of view
are.
Secondly I am wondering, what does make illogical sets of measures
stable?
Liebe Gruesse,
Winfried
--"Winfried Dressler" <winfried.dressler@voith.de>
Learning-org -- Hosted by Rick Karash <rkarash@karash.com> Public Dialog on Learning Organizations -- <http://www.learning-org.com>