| Why should I care whether my organization learns? | A lot of people are counting on you being great at what you do. And to be great, you need to build knowledge. |
I’m sorry. I didn’t want to put “organizational learning” right there in the headline. I wanted to start with something intriguing, then slip in the yawn-words once you were hooked.
But you’re busy, and I’m not that tricky. So here we are, plunging into the topic like it’s a cold lake on a summer morning.
The point of learning is to build knowledge, and knowledge is a superpower. The more knowledgeable you are, the better you are at your work. This isn’t just a vanity thing. In the social impact world, the better you are, the better off your community will be.
A lot of people are counting on you being great at what you do. And to be great, you need to build knowledge.
“Organizational learning” is the process of creating, retaining, and transferring knowledge within an organization. This kind of learning is done in order to maintain or improve performance.
The key benefits of organizational learning include:
Sounds pretty great, right?
Learning is the result of deliberate, effortful activity. Anyone and everyone can build their knowledge. If you want to learn, all you have to do is put in time and effort. That’s true for people and it’s true for groups.
The difference between individual learning and organizational learning is the need for coordination. You can do whatever you want on your own, study any topic, or build any skill. But for a group to develop, retain, and share knowledge, leaders need to provide structure and encouragement.
At a high level, leaders can do four things to help promote learning in an organization: set learning goals, kick-start some learning routines, protect time for learning, and make sure that what’s being “learned” is being applied.
Actually doing those things takes a bit more effort. Creating learning routines and building a culture requires persistence (but it’s definitely worth it).
Most organizations don’t need to do different things to learn—they just need to do the same things differently. Focus on ways of communicating, because this usually has the biggest effect on learning.
These five learning routines and habits build on things you’re probably already doing, which makes them easy places to start.
We spend a lot of time telling people what we’re doing. In a staff meeting you might say, “Today I’m doing this. This week I’m focused on that.”
Unless you’re coordinating schedules or confirming priorities, this information isn’t that useful (no offence).
These conversations become much more interesting when you start using the language of experiments. Talk about your predictions and results, rather than simply naming a task.
Here’s how you reframe a task as an experiment:
“I am doing [this action] to generate [this outcome]. I believe this will happen because of [this reason], and I’ll know if I’m right if I see [this measurable end result.]”
When we say why we’re doing something, we can evaluate whether the task is actually worth doing. By sharing the reasoning behind our prediction, we build a collective understanding of what drives results in our work. And when we pick a measurement up front, we keep the emphasis on learning; even if our prediction is wrong or we “fail” the task, we still gain valuable knowledge.
If you’re telling people about something that happened, like a meeting you attended or a project you finished, make sure you include a “so what” statement. Describe what happened as a result of the event you’re telling people about, such as a description of what’s different now. This kind of context makes the information more memorable and helps others learn about the relationship between how you spend your time and the results that the group experiences.
Sharing the “so what” is especially important when the people you’re talking to are from different teams or different levels of the organization, or if it’s been a while since you discussed this particular topic.
The less familiar people are with a topic, the more likely they are to need a context so they can learn from it.
When possible, connect the dots between goals or intentions you set in the past, what is happening currently, and what you predict will happen as a result.
If you can connect the topic of conversation to a goal or previous lesson and show how it links to something you are hoping to achieve, the narrative thread makes the information more relevant and memorable to others.
For example, you might normally say something like this:
“My priority this week is to finish writing that article about road salt.”
Instead, you could say something like this:
“My priority this week is to finish writing that article about road salt. Remember the survey from last month that showed city councillors don’t know much about the harm road salt is doing to local rivers? We can put the explainer article on our website, promote it on social, and use it in our policy brief for the upcoming council meeting. If we can help councillors understand what’s at stake, I think they’ll vote to fund that pilot project on salt alternatives this winter.”
Learning flows from self-reflection and introspection, two things that human beings generally don’t do very well. We have a hard time being objective when our own egos and emotions are involved. We rationalize rather than analyze. And we don’t know what we don’t know.
When you’re trying to share an insight or report on work that’s been done, focus on evidence that supports and explains your conclusions. You might feel like that event went “great” or your board meeting was “productive”, and you might even be right. Unfortunately, those sentiments are too generalized to learn from.
You don’t have to refer to data or use a bunch of numbers—just be specific about what was done or what you observed. This is especially important when trying to learn from success. The more you know about why something worked, the more easily you can replicate the success.
It should feel safe and supportive when you’re asked to prove something you’re saying, not like a challenge or a lack of trust. If your team usually talks in terms of vibes, broad generalizations, and first-impressions, be
gentle.
Many organizations get comfortable with making predictions and commitments, then struggle to systematically follow up. It’s so easy to move on to a new topic or project without pausing to learn.
Yet, we do need to look back to move forward, to reflect on the past in order to succeed in the future.
By scheduling the follow-up conversation during the current meeting, you make sure that those predictions and promises are remembered.
For example, you might say:
“We set a goal to increase our individual donors by 10% this year. The fall fundraising appeal is our biggest campaign of the year, so I’m focused on drafting emails and organizing our lists for the next few weeks. I think we can increase donations by segmenting our list and sending requests tailored to people’s donation history. Most people donate within 48 hours of receiving the email, so we’ll know if we’re on the right track within a few days of the campaign launch on October 1.”
Then you’ll pop “Fall Donor Campaign Update: Are donations by 10%?” on the agenda for the first meeting in October. Both the agenda item and the relevant benchmark will remind you to revisit the topic at the right time.
Once you get into this habit, you’ll find that your current meeting agendas or project to-do lists are already pre-populated with the key information you’re supposed to focus on. Your internal communications flow together, as each conversation builds on the previous. Reflection and learning start to happen organically.
If you haven’t tried to build learning routines before, all this can feel awkward at first. You’ll feel self-conscious, as you would with anything unfamiliar. Don’t worry: it does get easier. Pick something from the list above, or something of your own design, and get started.
Over time, you will discover which specific practices and routines work for your organization. You’ll find a cadence that supports your growth. And the longer you do it, the easier it will get. After all, that’s the power of knowledge.
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