Reviews (8)

Documented and thoughtful
This book made me discover knowledge management. It is very well documented, very thougthful, easy to read... An excellent starting point.

Knowledge Enabling not KM !!
I had a pleasant surprise when a friend of mine decided to gift me "Enabling Knowledge Creation" by Georg Von Krogh, Kazuo Ichijo and Ikujiro Nonaka. It forms a sequel to "the Knowledge Creating Company" co-authored by Nonaka and Takeuchi published in 1995 . The first book was a seminal work which has profoundly influenced my views on Knowledge Creation (Nonaka refuses to entertain the concept of KM , resolutely denying that Knowledge
can ever be managed!) along with writers like Tom Davenport and Larry Prusak. However, the first book was open to a lot of criticism saying that it was just too "theoretic", "vague" and "generalised" ...Nonaka et al try and get more hands on, and tool bookish with this book.

However, this book is likely to disturb people who have read and formed ideas about KM by reading works of the American thought leaders.

In the start of the book the authors try and make the difference explicit.

In a passage titled "what's wrong with knowledge management?" they spell it out :

Pitfall I: KM relies on easily detectable, quantifiable information.
Pitfall II: KM is devoted to the manufacture of tools.
Pitfall III: KM depends on a Knowledge Officer.

While the premises of Knowledge Enabling and Creation are:

Premise I: Knowledge is justified true belief, individual and social, tacit and explicit.
Premise II: Knowledge depends on your perspective.
Premise III: Knowledge Creation is a craft , not a science.

The authors reiterate that organizational Knowledge Creation involves five main steps :

1. Sharing tacit knowledge
2. Creating concepts
3. Justifying concepts
4. Building a prototype
5. Cross-leveling knowledge.

To facilitate this the following 5 enablers need to be in place :

1. instill a knowledge vision
2. manage conversations
3. mobilize knowledge activits
4. Create the right context
5. Globalize local knowledge

The book is rich in case studies which show how different companies that follow these concepts are growing in leaps and bounds and innovating over others who remain stuck in the KM paradigm.

The authors note that in the Knowledge journey companies can be mapped in 3 phases, which might or might not be sequential.

1. The Risk Minimisers , whose focus is capturing and locating knowledge. The tools they use are data warehousing, datamining, Yellow pages, IC-Navigator, Balanced Scorecard, Knowledge Audits, IC-Index, Business Information Systems, Rule-based systems [these firms still view knowledge as a resource that needs to be collected and managed]

2. The Efficiency Seekers, who focus on transferring and sharing knowledge. The tools they use are internets, intranets, Lotus Notes/Groupware, Networked organization, knowledge workshops, knowledge workbench, Best Practice Transfer, Benchmarking, Knowledge-gap analysis, Knowledge sharing culture, Technology transfer units, Knowledge transfer units, Systems Thinking

3. The Innovators who enable Knowledge creation are typically those who embrace a knowledge vision, managing conversations, creating the right context, mobilize knowledge activists, globalize local knowledge, professional innovation networks, new organizational forms, New HRM-systems, new corporate values, project management systems, corporate universities, communities and storyboards.

Highly Recommended!
Dust off those liberal arts degrees before opening this challenging treatise on knowledge management, written by a trio of academics who call themselves "constructionists," quote Sartre and speak passionately of "post-modernism." Their work explains how to gain initiative and constructive input from workers by modifying traditional command structures - a grounded approach that is much more realistic than the revolutionary conversions called for by other experts. Managers who balk at the thought of granting autonomy or increased access to their employees may well be converted away from their hierarchical dogma here. We at getAbstract particularly recommend the lively knowledge-creation case histories and the wonderful section explaining how companies can create valid, imaginative futures. (What if IBM had imagined a world in which software was more important than mainframes?)

Sustainable advantage through knowledge enabling
In the many publications on Knowledge Management, the writings by Von Krogh and Nonaka (and, in this case, Ichijo) stand out in a number of aspects: 1) their emphasis of knowledge "management" as an essentially human and social process 2) their emphasis on linking knowledge management with strategic focus and business results 3) the inspiring examples and writing style.

This book is a clear showcase of these elements. It provides a profound yet pragmatic guidance on the road to becoming a learning organisation. Where capturing & locating, and transferring & sharing knowledge are essential in achieving competitive advantage through knowledge, the real source of sustainable advantage is, as the authors claim, the continuous creation of new knowledge, as a result of developing a strategic vision and an enabling organisation and culture to realise that (evolving) vision.

Being involved in implementing a number of the concepts in our organisation, I am convinced this book provides many ideas and tools that will help today's corporate world in reshaping our business for the knowledge economy.

Highly recommended!

Focus on knowledge creation, but what about integration?
The author's of this book are leading thinkers in the KM field. Perhaps the best way to describe this book is as a sequel to Nonaka's earlier 1995 book. But, we all remember what happened to Scarlett, again a much touted sequel. Although this book was a slight disappointment since Nonaka has set reader's expectations a little too high with his earlier groundbreaking title "The Knowledge Creating ompany" that, for the most part, defined KM as we know it. An academic reader will appreciate they theoretical insights provided and extensive references to supporting literature. But there are some aspects that this book underplays: 1. Knowledge creation is fine, but knowledge integration is perhaps as important---an issue to which the authors pay little attention. 2. Excellent ideas aside, this book underplays the significance of empirical evidence and most cases tend to be descriptive qualitative analyses. 3. The role of technology is highly underplayed. 4. The book has "sufficient" overlap with the authors' research papers in the uropean Management Journal. For academic readers who have read those, this might be a little disappointing. 5. The concept of KM and it's relationship with innovation at architectural and component levels is not described in much detail.

On the positive side, you will find that: 1) Lots of issues that were barely touched upon in Nonaka's preceding book are described in further detail. 2) The book is very well written and the tone is accsible to both academic and non-academic readers. 3) the concept of BA is elucidated in further detail Readers who do not follow academic research journals might find that an interesting extension. 4) A link between strategy and KM is well illustrated. For businesses, KM is of little value if there are no results. The authors describe how to look for those results (or in lay terms, ROI). Academic readers will also find Nonaka's recent paper in a recent issue of Organization Science (2000) to be of much interest. Academic readers must also realize that the approach here seems to be "post modern," and indeed quite qualitative in the European research tradition.

To sum my opinion, this book is a worthy addition to the bookshelves; but, it is not to be read without reading Nonaka's preceding book "The Knowledge Creating Company." A word of warning is in order: Academic readers will enjoy this title however, managerial readers might find it a little heavy and abstract. Indeed, this book stands out of the crowd with three authors who are well respected in the American research circles---consequently, its high overall quality comes as no surprise. Recommended. ... Read more

Book Description

Boogie the caveman is on a quest to understand how his people have become stuck in beliefs that drastically limit their ability to share insights and make progress. Join his hilarious journey of discovery and learn how to surface, share, and challenge your own and others' hidden beliefs and to recognize how they inform--and often misinform--what we do. With its engaging use of metaphor and detailed discussion guide, Shadows of the Neanderthal is a must-have resource for any organization on its own quest for clear and open communication. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Pocket Wisdom
Simple, yet powerful. A fun way to learn and very effective for group discussion.

An excellent resource!
I really enjoyed this book! The author's clever sense of humor and the great illustrations make a difficult subject--mental models--fun and easy to learn about. I think the book would help any company, family, or even couple get better at exploring why they think the way they do, and how to communicate better with colleagues and loved ones. The discussion guide at the end of the book makes it easy to start using the ideas in your day-to-day life.

Should be required reading if responsible for company growth
David Hutchens brings new insight and twists to an age old metaphor. This book begins with a humorous tale whose analogy, to the world in which we live and the mental models which we hold, will hit you between the eyes. The writer quickly points out problems every organization battles with to improve performance and grow. While the business culture has become so overwhelmed with change, many leaders have embraced their current state of affairs. Holding tight to what we have, we spend much of our energy trying not to lose market share. This book gives insight into why and when this happens and how to move from there. "In a world of chaotic information, the mind instantly locks onto that which it already knows--and simply filters out other data." (from Shadows of the Neanderthal) I'm glad I bought it. Thom Hazelip, Arthur Andersen LLP ... Read more

Book Description

The bestselling author of The Leadership Engine shows how great leaders develop their business knowledge into "teachable points of view" and in turn learn from the employees they are teaching.

Calling this exchange a "virtuous teaching cycle," Professor Noel M. Tichy shows how business builders from Jack Welch at GE to Joe Liemandt at Trilogy create organizations that foster knowledge exchange and how their efforts lead to smarter, more agile companies -- and winning results.

Using examples from GE, Intel, Dell, Southwest Airlines, 3M, Yum! Brands, The Home Depot, Genetech, Trilogy, and many others, Tichy presents and analyzes these principles in action and explains how managers can begin to transform their own businesses into teaching organizations and, consequently, better-performing companies.

Read by Ron McLarty ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Sensible advice, but repetitive, repetitive, repetitive
While I will never dispute the premise that great leaders teach, mentor and learn, it doesn't have to be repeated over and over until I get it. The hero of this book, and that is really the only way to describe it, is Jack Welch, former head of GE. There is a lot of ink used to laud Welch and what he did at GE. While I don't dispute that Welch deserves to be acknowledged as a great leader, Tichy comes very close to crossing the line between praising and deifying him.
The basic theme of the book is the dynamics of teaching and learning within a business environment. This includes all levels, from the lowliest greeters to the CEO and board members. It starts with the leader's Teachable Point Of View or TPOV. This is basically the leader's view of the company direction and how well it is communicated to the people underneath. Without question, this is a valuable point in the success of any organization, assuming that the TPOV is reasonable and the leader is capable of accepting feedback. Or, to put it another way, is the leader capable of learning from underlings? While good leaders must teach and do it well, they must also learn even better. For even the best teachers can be rendered ineffectual if the material they are trying to impart is valueless. In the modern business world, if you don't learn and adapt, you die.
Another focus is on the Virtuous Teaching Cycle or VTC, which is about leaders teaching leaders. This is of course sensible; any leader should constantly be training several potential replacements. The problem with this is twofold. The first is that there can be only one leader, so if more than one potential leader is being groomed, it is necessary to have an unambiguous selection mechanism in place. Succession struggles have doomed many countries and organizations. Secondly, this can lead to the successor suffering from the same weaknesses that the leader does, which is why some of the most successful leaders were outsiders, brought in to provide a necessary fresh perspective.
There are two points of criticism. The first is the repetition. Some of the stories are told several times, even to the point of distraction. The other is that education is a complex task and recent revelations in the corporate world demonstrate that there are leaders that are not only incompetent, but are even criminal. I would have preferred reading more about how learning is done in these dysfunctional situations.
With the pace of life and business changing so fast, companies must learn faster than they produce. While I agree with most of the points in this book, there is a tendency of the author to ramble and repeat, which I found distracting.

Robert Knowling?
I just read the intro to this book by Robert Knowling. As far as I can tell Robert Knowling was booted out of Covad having delivered dismal results. He is listed as CEO of Simbion, which according to Hoovers has 1-5 employees and $50-$100K in revenues. He is even featured on the cover. Am I missing something?

Nothing new
I was somewhat disappointed in this book despite its endorsement by one of my business school classmates.Professor Tichy discusses already well known principles of leadership within the context of what is promoted as a "new" approach.Only a few individuals and companies are profiled and are used repeatedly throughout the book.The examples cited fit awkwardly into the message that is being presented.The title of the book attributes greatness to the individuals profiled based on only one attribute--a belief in teaching and learning.This seems such a narrow focus on which to base such accolades.

A New "Business Classic"
Those who are familiar with my reviews of other business books already know that on several dozen occasions, I have strongly recommended The Leadership Engine (1997) which Tichy wrote with Eli Cohen and Nancy Cardwell. He teams up with her again in this book, expanding and enriching his concept of leadership development at all levels throughout any organization, regardless of its size or nature. Hence the importance of what Tichy calls a "Virtuous Teaching Cycle": Everybody teaches and everybody learns; all practices, processes, and values promotion teaching; all teaching is interactive to generate the effective exchange of knowledge; thereby, maximum use is made of everyone's skills and talents to ensure all-level alignment for smart and rapid response to needs, problems, opportunities, etc. Tichy asserts (and I agree) that hypertransformation (in established organizations) and hypergrowth (in start-ups) are essential to business success. The challenge in established organizations is to overcome what Jim O'Toole characterizes as "the ideology of comfort and the tyranny of custom." For start-ups, the challenge is to achieve appropriate scale while ensuring that new employees are brought on line and up to speed ASAP. In ten chapters, and with prevision as well as eloquence, Tichy explains how various organizations (notably GE) have met those and other challenges.

Unlike other authors who address many of the same issues, Tichy also includes a substantial Handbook (pages 285-394) which consists of ten Sections: The Teaching Organization, The Hand You have Been Dealt, Building Your Teachable Point of View, Pulling It All Together, Building a Team Timetable Point of View, Architecting the Leadership Pipeline, Scaling the Teaching Organization, Building Teaching into the DNA, Global Citizenship, and finally, Start the Journey. In the Handbook, Tichy explains provides decision-makers with with just about everything their need to know to design, implement, and then strengthen their own Teaching Organization, one within which the Virtuous Teaching Cycle sustains leadership development at all levels.

In his Introduction to the Handbook, Tichy quotes a brief statement from Thomas Stewart's most recent book, The Wealth of Knowledge:

"The knowledge economy stands on three pillars. The first: Knowledge has become what we buy, sell, and do. It is the most important factor of production. The second pillar is a mate, a corollary to the first: Knowledge assets -- that is, intellectual capital -- have become more important to companies than financial and physical assets. The third pillar is this: To prosper in this new economy and exploit these newly vital assets, we need new vocabularies, new management techniques, and new strategies. On these three pillars rest all the new economy's laws and its profits."

Tichy includes this brief statement because it is directly relevant to his own objectives in The Cycle of Leadership but also because, unless and until an organizations has all three pillars (not one, not two but all three), it cannot survive major challenges which await them, many of which have yet to be revealed. That is to say, the Teaching Organization can only be built on the foundation they provide.

"Winning leaders are teachers, and winning organizations do encourage and reward teaching. But there is more to it than that. Winning organizations are explicitly designed to be Teaching Organizations, with business processes, organizational structures, and day-to-day operating mechanisms all built to promote teaching." However, Tichy doesn't stop there. More importantly, the teaching that takes place is a distinctive kind of teaching. It is interactive, two-way, even multi-way. Throughout the organization, `teachers' and `students' at all levels teach and learn from each other, and their interactions create a Virtuous Teaching Cycle that keeps generating more learning, more teaching, and the creation of new knowledge."

Those who share my high regard for this book are urged to check out Peter M. Senge's The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization (1990) and The Dance of Change: The Challenges of Sustaining Momentum in Learning Organizations (1999), William Isaacs' Dialogue and the Art of Thinking Together: A Pioneering Approach to Communicating in Business and in Life (1999), Carla O'Dell's If Only We Knew What We Know: The Transfer of Internal Knowledge and Best Practice (1998), and Thomas H. Davenport and Laurence Prusak's Working Knowledge: How Organizations Manage What They Know (1997).

Great Team Building Ideas
After hearing about all the corporations with failing management, my business team went looking for some guidance.I learned a lot from this book about building and teaching teamwork, leadership skills and trust within a team.I really enjoyed the business case examples from other corporations.Our team is now going through the exercises in the leadership handbook in the back of the book and know it will help us all be better leaders.I highly recommend this book for any business team looking for some leadership training. ... Read more

Book Description

'The New Knowledge Management' is the story of the birth of "second-generation knowledge management," told from the perspective of one its chief architects, Mark W. McElroy. Unlike its first-generation cousin, second-generation Knowledge Management seeks to enhance knowledge production, not just knowledge sharing.As a result, 'The New Knowledge Management' expands the overall reach of knowledge management to include "innovation management" for the very first time.

'The New Knowledge Management' introduces the concept of "second-generation knowledge management" to the business community.Mark W. McElroy has assembled a collection of his own essays, written over the past four years, chronicling the development of related thinking in the field.

Unlike first-generation KM, mainly focusing on value derived from knowledge sharing, second-generation thinking formally adds knowledge making to the scope of KM.In this way second-generation KM expands the overall reach of KM to include "innovation management" for the very first time.'The New Knowledge Management' finally begins to bridge the gap between KM and the field of organizational learning, which up until now have been viewed as miles apart.

* Charts the next generation of knowledge management thinking by the President of KMCI: the leading KM organization
* Expands the overall reach of knowledge management to include "innovation management" for the very first time
* Mark W. McElroy, chief architect of second-generation Knowledge Management, shares his vast experience in a collection of his own essays ... Read more

Reviews (4)

a non-book
As the reviewer from mexico notes, most of the chapters of this book are reprints of previously published articles. This make the presentation disappointingly repetitive.

OK but still not practical enough
The author makes a great contribution creating the awareness that KM is much more that IT, and that it is about creating new knowledge and organizational learning. Although the idea is not new, he presents it through an interesting framework called the Knowledge Life Cycle. Thats great.

On the other hand, since the book is a compilation of previous papers from the author, I feel that he repeats the same ideas over and over again. I couldn't find explicit evidence of the aplication of these ideas on the day to day work. I also see a contradiction in the sense that he says that the new KM is more about creating new knowledge, but it seems to me that he is trying to create new knowledge through the re-frasing and re-naming of other author's ideas. Please...don't throw more "fancy words" to the KM arena, it is already full !

The "next generation" of Knowledge Management is here!
In this wonderful little book, Mark McElroy begins to do for Knowledge Management what Peter Senge did for Organizational Learning: He connects deep theory with cogent practice, bringing the entire discipline to a new level. The book is a carefully designed compendium of Mark's leading-edge thinking over the past several years. In it he lays out the foundations for the next generation - "demand-side" - Knowledge Management, which enhances individuals capacity to produce knowledge, rather than simply use what's already there. By integrating a unique approach to complexity science with insights from organizational learning, he develops a model of "sustainable innovation" which is based on a broader theoretical framework of Social Innovation Capital (SIC). His SIC framework generates a core insight - the Policy Synchronization Method - a theory-based yet practical method for creating the conditions that support innovation in the long term. His writing is as useful as his modeling, for he constantly grounds his thinking into concrete and highly applicable suggestions that can be utilized in a wide range of contexts. Near the end of the book he shows the economic returns on investment from his second-generation KM, and concludes with a "presentation" that can be used to help make the case for these ideas in formal and informal settings. As a professor of entrepreneurship and management at a business school, and a 20-year student of complexity science, I am a true fan of Mark McElroy, and I am excited by this book and the ones soon to follow.

Comments of book "The New Knowledge Management"
The book "The New Knowledge Management" addresses some very intriguing concepts and provides some innovative thinking in the knowledge management area. It shows how the fundamental concepts of organization learning, innovation, social innovation capital, and complex adaptive systems are related to knowledge management. The author introduces the reader to the idea of "second -generation knowledge management" which is used as a framework to relate the above concepts to knowledge management. "Second-generation knowledge management is more inclusive of people, process, and social initiatives than "first-generation knowledge management". The book provides some unique insights and organizations approaches to sustain innovation. These insights are the first of its kind and have far reaching implications to how we should manage organizations. The book is very thought provoking and a must read for people interested in theory and practical implications. I am currently using it as one of my text in teaching a graduate course in knowledge management. ... Read more

Book Description

Executives today recognize that their firms face a wave of retirements over the next decade as the baby boomers hit retirement age. At the other end of the talent pipeline, the younger workforce is developing a different set of values and expectations, which creates new recruiting and employee retention issues. The evolution from an older, traditional, highly-experienced workforce to a younger, more mobile, employee base poses significant challenges, particularly when considered in the context of the long-term orientation towards downsizing and cost cutting.This is a solution-oriented book to address one of the most pressing management problems of the coming years: How do organizations transfer the critical expertise and experience of their employees before that knowledge walks out the door? It begins by outlining the broad issues and providing tools for developing a knowledge-retention strategy and function. It then goes on to outline best practices for retaining knowledge, including knowledge transfer practices, using technology to enable knowledge retention, retaining older workers and retirees, and outsourcing lost capabilities. ... Read more

Book Description

How can you build a successful community of practice that is integrally linked to your company's strategic vision? Learn from the first-hand experience of Hubert Saint-Onge, recognized by Fortune magazine as a leader in the field of knowledge capital, and co-author Debra Wallace, the people responsible for a recent project to establish a community of practice for independent agents at Clarica Life Insurance Company- voted one of the most admired knowledge enterprises in the world by practitioners and researchers.

'Leveraging Communities of Practice for Strategic Advantage' combines theory and practice to outline a model for developing successful communities of practice and proposes a direction for establishing communities of practice as an integral part of the organizational structure. Saint-Onge and Wallace relate what worked, what didn't, and why as they tell the story from inception through implementation to assessment. Whether you're developing communities of practice or want to learn how to leverage existing communities for strategic gain, this book provides you with everything you need to launch successful communities of practice in your organization.

* Hubert Saint-Onge has been recognized by Fortune magazine as a leader in the area of leveraging knowledge capital
* Clarica has been voted one of the most admired knowledge enterprises in the world by practitioners and researchers
* Combines theory and practice to outline a model for developing successful communities of practice ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Very practical indeed
This book has proved very practical indeed with the developing of CoPs in our environment.

A useful practical model
The book describes the introduction of a virtual community of practice, the Agents Network, at Clarica Life Insurance, Canada's first and oldest mutual insurance company. The book offers a practical and detailed example of the establishment, implementation and evaluation of the virtual community, with examples of the tools used by the project team at Clarica.

The authors introduce the notion of communities of practice as a new strategy to leverage knowledge capital to create sustainable competitive advantage. By valuing communities of practice, by recognising the contribution of community members, and giving support for time and commitment) and providing an infrastructure (e.g. giving them a communication platform, active facilitation and information resources), the authors suggest that organizations can increase the speed of innovation and knowledge sharing.

The Community Development Process Model (p.137) provides an excellent 'roadmap' to the approach they undertook that is readily understood. Practical suggestions and tools about evaluating the value of the community are also provided. There is a good combination of theory and practice and, therefore, something for anyone interested in this topic. It has a balance between high-level strategic models, and detailed and practical examples.

The approach taken at Clarica was systematic and project-managed, with the organization playing a very active role in facilitating the conceptualisation, establishment, growth and expansion of the community. The organization obviously provided significant resources to undertake the project. Virtual communities of practice, like the one described in the book, clearly require strong organisational support and resources due to the technological infrastructure they require to be effective.

The authors do not purport to provide a recipe - rather, they tell a story about the introduction of a virtual community of practice in one organization - as such, the book offers an in-depth view of the process. The questions asked at the end of each chapter are intended to challenge readers to assess whether the approach described would work in their own organization.

Practitioners may be tempted to read more widely to find alternative approaches to developing communities of practice, and to select 'the best of the best'. The Clarica approach is only one way, but it does provide sound conceptual models that set the strategic context, as well as diving directly into the detail. There is a useful associated website.

The Future is Here!
Hubert and Debra, thanks, you two have written a monumental work, but in such a humble and mater-of-fact manner. The more I read, the more I became frustrated with the title, because although the book is about the strategic nature of "Communities of Practice," it offers so much more. For the last thirty years, people have been trumpeting the 'end of the hierarchy,' but without anything to put in its place. Know we know the future, and it is here!

In Nonaka and Takeuchi's "The Knowledge Creating Company," there was the suggestive diagram of the "hypertext organization." It showed three layers, the hierarchy, the project team community and a third space, the knowledge community. A few years later Nonaka understood that this third space was what the Japanese call "Ba," a shared mental space. Is this not what you two are talking about in your "Reflective and Strategic - Communities of Practice?"

Please write your next book as quickly as possible and reveal the key to the "culture of leadership," a phrase that got short-shrift. Revisit the earlier work you did at The Mutual Group around "values." I am convinced this, more than any number of memos, meetings and check lists, was what made it possible to accomplish what you did at Clarica. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Good, plus the Beitler book.
Burke does another fine job with this book. In addition, I recommend "Strategic Organizational Change" by Michael Beitler.

The soul of OD
To me, this book represents the soul of OD. It defines for the practitionaire what it means to be an OD consultant, its values and consequently, the type of interventions we choose to use. A must buy. ... Read more

Book Description

A Strategic Boot Camp for Leadership Development "David Dotlich has worked with top management of the best companies to deliver Action Learning programs for over fifteen years. His insights into how leaders develop and his experience as a coach and executive are captured in this excellent book." --Arnold Kanarick, executive president and chief human resources officer, The Limited Plug into a dynamic leadership development process custom made for today?s rapidly changing, technology-driven business environment. Unlike traditional classroom-style programs, Action Learning engages managers in emotionally intense, team-oriented experiences that directly address the immediate strategic needs of the organization. Here, authors Dotlich and Noel detail the many Action Learning sessions they?ve conducted at Shell, Ameritech, Citibank, and other leading corporations that have used Action Learning to quickly and successfully implement a variety of tactical and quantum change initiatives. Readers benefit from a clearly defined framework they can use to construct an Action Learning program of their own--a program that gives companies the power to re-create themselves by first re-creating their leaders. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Action Reading
For over the past hundred years there has been the debate over whether leadership is a competency that can be trained and fostered or whether it is an innate skill that individuals are born with. Dotlich and Noel add fuel to that fire as they assert that there is a mechanism called Action Learning that can create within organizations the necessary shifts in attitudes and behaviors at the leadership level for substantial organizational renewal. Action Learning, simply stated, is fostered experiential learning. In that there is nothing new here. What is new, however, is the way in which Dotlich and Noel have created a "whole body" syllabus for organizations that includes key learning activities that are tied to business objectives.

Where many leadership programs are deficient is in tying key attitudes, behaviors, and competencies into key business situations. Making the learning relevant and urgent is the key. The tie between learning and business application must be more than cognitive. It has to be an experience that includes intellect, emotion, risk, feedback, and reflection. "When we are fully engaged in a process, we are much more likely to be profoundly influenced by it." The way in which Action Learning creates this engagement is through tackling a significant business issue with people from cross-functions within an organization. The context of the book is the demonstration of the Action Learning principles as they were applied by Dotlich and Noel on several organizations going through major transformation. Some of the richest scenarios come from Citibank's challenge to become unified in how it approached business, General Electrics mandate to become global thinkers, and Johnson & Johnson's need to upgrade and develop executive talent here and abroad. Each of these industries utilized the Action Learning framework to tackle the necessary changes brought on by the complexity of today's business.

The term framework is intentionally as there is no template for this process. Action Learning is pliable, versatile, and malleable in order for it to flex to the urgent needs of the business. What makes up this framework is consistent. Action Learning is comprised of a process that selects key issues, creates cross-functional teams, designs presentations, and involves senior management. The time frame for this process can span nine weeks to nine months. In the process the individuals are given key assignments, attend specific seminars and learning events, and have a dedicated coach and sponsor. The sponsor is the key ingredient that ensures Action Learning success. The sponsor is the senior executive who endorses Action Learning and creates an atmosphere affirming the process and creates a top-down awareness of what's at stake for the business not address the key issues. The dedicated external coach offers the second key ingredient-reflection and feedback. In the midst of chaos-business today, there is often little time for individuals to reflect upon actions taken and impact of those actions. The coach observes individual and team dynamics and offers key questions for awareness and reflection. Some of the most powerful questions include:
Is your team on the right track?
Will your project make a significant difference in cutting costs or raising revenues?
Have you made any breakthroughs?

Through Action Learning, Dotlich and Noel claim that leaders in organizations can re-create that frames of reference in order to more effectively adjust to emerging business issues and are more effective leaders. They have identified ten contrasting mindsets that illustrate the gap between traditional leadership and re-created leadership. These include:
ü Providing direction versus providing directions.
ü Owners versus mangers.
ü What might be versus what is.
ü Involvement versus isolation.
ü Generalist versus functionalist.
ü Reflection versus doing.
ü Emotion versus intellect.
ü Faith versus skepticism.
ü Receptive versus rejecting.
ü Free speech versus censorship.

Re-created leadership that is realized through the Action Learning process enables leaders to be more agile and responsive to employees, customers, ideas, and opportunities. I recommend this book for anyone who is responsible for business strategy, anyone who is leads a cross functional team, and anyone who participates in curriculum design. The Action Learning framework and the accompanying scenarios offer ideas, important key questions, and a context for personal and organizational success.

Great approach to an important subject
The authors have done well in this book. They show the importance of leader development, as well as how easy it is to get you and your organization pointed in the right direction. As a trainer, I know that the principles discussed are valid and implementable.

Also recommend a book we use in our leader development program that has scored high with our managers and well-received by our top execs: ""The Leader's Guide: 15 Essential Skills.""

Dumbed down for the average reader
The book contains really basic information that is not a new revelation. For a better book on the subject read "Action Learning in Action: Transforming Problems and People for World-Class Organizational Learning"; Michael J. Marquardt. Marquardt's is slightly better and provides better real life examples.

Good content, but what's new?
This is a terrific book if you have no idea how best to train people in a corporate environment. But if you do, then this book is old news. The ideas and concepts are absolutely right, but unfortunately the authors try to imply they invented this method and no one else has ever done it. I currently work for a training company, and we have used all of these techniques for years. In fact, many of the authors' examples are over 10 years old. On the other hand, let me repeat that the authors' educational techniques are right. But they never went into enough detail to really tell a company how to do it themselves. I wonder why? They need to tone down the sales job. At the end of the book, I wanted to get an unlisted telephone number to keep them from calling to sell me Action Learning techniques.

How to change mindsets/organizations¿the ongoing challenge
Unlike traditional leadership development, this approachimmerses executives in a process of change; learning-by-doing in acontrolled environment. Based on experiences of major corporations, the authors present a model of action learning and show how it has been applied. Action learning is tied to organizational change and building new mindsets-the ongoing challenge in today's hyper-competitive global economy. The process is also issue-focused. This book shows how to test and use this enormously valuable process. Recommended readings are provided. A worthy contribution to leadership and organization development. ... Read more

Book Description

In 'Key Issues in the New Knowledge Management,' Firestone and McElroy, the architects of the New Knowledge Management (TNKM) provide an in-depth analysis of the most important issues in the field of Knowledge Management.


The issues the book addresses are central in the field today:
* The Knowledge Wars, or the issue of "how you define knowledge determines how you manage it"
* The nature of knowledge processing
* Information management or knowledge management?
* Three views on the evolution of knowledge management
* The role of knowledge claim evaluation in knowledge processing, or the difference between opinion, judgements, information, data, and real knowledge in knowledge management systems
* Is culture a barrier in knowledge management?
* The Open Enterprise and accelerated sustainable innovation
* Portals
* How should one evaluate KM software?
* Intellectual Capital
* Measuring the impact of KM initiatives on the organization and the bottom line
* KM and terrorism

* The first book to address head-on the central issues in Knowledge Management
* Moves the discussion of knowledge management into the hot area of innovation
* Charts the next generation of knowledge management thinking by the President of KMCI: the leading KM organization ... Read more

Book Description

From Saudi Arabia to Singapore, Sweden to South Africa, global companies as diverse as Shell, Deutsche Bank, GE, and Sony share one powerful secret: they have created thousands of new products and services, improved service quality, and made fundamental changes to their organizations' cultures by unleashing the power of action learning.

For over a decade, world-renowned consultant, educator, and award-winning author Michael Marquardt has been helping organizations and world govenments revolutionize the way they solve problems, build effective teams, develop leaders, and transform themselves into learning organizations. Now he calls on his pioneering experiences and the fundamentals first introduced in his best-seller ACTION LEARNING IN ACTION to deliver the next-generation tools and techniques to make action learning successful each and every time, in any organization.

With more than 20 best-practices exmaples, checklists, and other hands-on guidance, OPTIMIZING THE POWER OF ACTION LEARNING puts the "action" in action learning by focusing on the six essential components that make action learning work: the problem, group diversity, a reflective inquiry process, action strategies, a commitment to learning, and the all-important participation of a well-trained action learning coach. Marquardt explores the more recent innovations in the field, lays out the advanced skills needed for success today, and offers step-by-step procedures and specific strategies for introducing and sustaining action learning in any organization. ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Insightful!
People with an intense interest in knowing all the details of action learning will find the answer to their prayers in this book. Author Michael J. Marquardt writes with the zeal of a revival tent preacher, filled with the sincere belief that action learning can help solve any problem, meet any challenge or achieve any aspiration. As he clearly explains, action learning is intended to build both knowledge and leadership. He sets out the steps your organization should pursue to implement action learning, and to use it well. He includes questions, checklists and extensive examples. All he omits are any caveats or cautions about this approach. He's a booster and an expert, just so you know where he's coming from. We recommend his manual to human resource professionals.

Impressing the power of "action learning"
Optimizing The Power Of Action Learning: Solving Problems And Building Leaders In Real Time by educator and consultant Michael J. Marquardt (Professor of HRD and Program Director of Overseas Programs, The George Washington University), is a "user friendly" guidebook to an effective learning technique for facing increasingly intimidating and complex organizational challenges, especially with regard to global business concerns. Impressing the power of "action learning" to respond to the need to create new products, improve service quality, and transform organizational cultures, Optimizing The Power Of Action Learning is a confidently recommended success guide complete with a well-thought-out process for introducing and sustaining action learning among groups to the reader's particular and maximum advantage.

Action Learning for Executive Development
With this book, Marquardt has created the most exciting and practical model for executive development I have ever seen. Warren Bennis recently asked, poignantly, "Is there a future for leadership?" Marquardt is leading all management educators into the future of leadership. As director of an executive Master's program at American University, I am astonished at how powerful Marquardt's model is for developing "leaderly learners," in the magical phrase coined by Peter Vaill. Action learning is perfect for leaders who want to learn and learners who want to lead. Marquardt's chapter on the role of "action learning coach" is, by itself, worth a shelf of books of leadership. My executive participants are raving about how action learning has transformed their individual mindsets, allowing them to surface take-for-granted assumptions, as well as helped them begin to transform the culture or collective mindsets of their organizations.

The best guide for action learning practitioners
Overall, this book is invaluable in that it provides readers with great insight into the ¡°what,¡± ¡°why,¡± and ¡°how¡± of action learning. It explains key components and principles of action learning in great detail. In addition, the author explains how to apply the components and principles covered in this book by giving specific examples and procedures. The usefulness of this book is illustrated by the questions and checklists, which are very practical. I believe this book will surely serve as an action learning manual for HRD practitioners for years to come.

Fantastic How-to Book
Mike Marquadt has done it again! This book is an especially useful in that it lays out the process of Action Learning in easy to follow how-to steps. It makes an outstanding handbook for anyone looking to harness the power of Action Learning. ... Read more

Book Description

The ability to learn faster than your competition may be theonly sustainable competitive advantage! A learning organization is onewhere people continually expand their capacity to create results theytruly desire, where new and expansive patterns of thinking arenurtured, where collective aspiration is set free, and where people arecontinually learning how to learn together. This compilation of 34powerful essays, written by recognized experts worldwide, is rich inconcept and theory as well as application and example. An inspiringfollow-up to Peter Senge's groundbreaking bestseller The FifthDiscipline. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Perspectives on Learning Organizations
As far as I can see it is a book all about different perspectives, a book that adds on to the list of books that focus on the theoretical and/or philosophical sides of learning organizations. As such it is a good book, with contributions from 40 acknowledged authors/researchers.
The book is built up around four parts:
- Guiding ideas
- Theories/Methods/Processes
- Infrastructure
- Arenas of Practice
The book is packed with lots of good ideas that may form a base for further exploration in the field. Most of it is well edited, even though there is some extra "fluff" in some of the articles.
It is a good introduction to "learning organizations", but I will hesitate to call it a "how-to"-book . . . .

strong collection of essays
I've had to read a slew of leadership books for my doctorate -- as for a collection of thoughtful essays, this is one of the best. It's well organized, well laid out and has almost every major thinker represented. It's got theoretical parts, practical parts and questions for down the road. The essays span all types of learning organizations: schools, hospitals, companies, etc... It's a bit long, but if you take it piece by piece, this is a very enjoyable and informative collection. Highly recommended and well-conceived.

Excellent combination of ideas, theory, and practice!
What is a learning organization? What are the principles upon which a learning organization is built? What is needed to develop a culture that embraces these principles? The concept of the learning organization began several decades ago, but only recently has it gained widespread recognition among business people and academics alike. This is in part due to the success of Peter Senge's 1990 book The Fifth Discipline and his pragmatic, step-by-step guide, The Fifth Discipline Fieldbook (1994).

Thirty-nine of the most respected scholars and practitioners come together to share a comprehensive explanation of the ideas, principles, attitudes, skills, systems, and infrastructure needed to create the ideal workplace of the future. Authors including MIT's Fred Kofman and Peter Senge, Harvard's Rosabeth Kanter, and London Business School's Charles Handy are recognized worldwide for their work in teaching organizations about change, systems thinking, organizational development, diversity, and total quality management.

The author's essays are categorized into five main parts. Part One: Guiding Ideas primes our intellect by posing questions and sharing ideas about what learning organizations represent. Part Two: Theories/Methods/Processes presents how stories, dialogue, coaching, systems thinking, and other learning tools facilitate the creation of learning organizations. Part Three: Infrastructure identifies some of the ways we must change what we do to achieve maximum learning potential. Part Four: Arenas of Practice identifies various workplaces and takes a look at how to build learning organizations within them. Case studies are used to describe how learning organizations are working in various organizational settings.

This book is written for practitioners, scholars, and active participants of adult learning environments. The principles and practices can apply to any organization that wishes to increase its learning potential, including businesses, schools, health care, and governmental organizations.

The rate at which organizations and individuals learn must keep up with the ever-changing environment that surrounds them. This is a global environment that requires us to communicate and learn from our co-workers, customers, clients, competitors, investors, friends, and family. Our world is becoming increasingly interconnected and it would be prudent to take advantage of that fact. We are not islands and as such, we cannot learn alone. The more skilled we become at applying the breadth of knowledge and skills that are presented in this book on becoming a learning organization, the more prepared we will be for competing in the Knowledge Era. ... Read more

Book Description

What is the purpose of social science and management research? Do scholars/researchers have a responsibility to generate insights and knowledge that are of practical (implementable) value and validity? We are told we live in turbulent and changing times, should this not provide an important opportunity for management researchers to provide understanding and guidance? Yet there is widespread concern about the efficacy of much research.These are some of the puzzles/pressing problems that Chris Argyris addresses in this short book. Argyris is one of the best known management scholars in the world- a leading light whose work has consistently addressed fundamental organizational questions and who has provided some of the key concepts and building blocks of our understanding of organizational learning-single and double learning, theory in use, and espounded theory, etc. In this book, he questions many of the assumptions of organizational theory and research, and his investigation is not confined to academic analysis.He also scruntizes that capacity for 'unproductive reasoning' (self-deception and rationalization) that is common amongst managers, consultants and indeed more generally. As well as engaging with the work of leading organizational researchers (Sennett, Gabreil, Burgelman, Czarniawska, Grint, for example) he also ponders the work of the consultants, commentators and accountants who endorsed Enron. Throughout his purpose is to affirm the goal and values of useful knowledge.His style/inquiry is direct but fair, challenging- if at times uncompromising. Drawing on his own wealth of experience of researching and working with organizations, this book will be a reference point for all concerned to develop useful knowledge and confront the defenses and deceptions that are only too commonplace in the business and academic worlds. ... Read more

Book Description

"This is an outstanding compilation of the latest and best research in human resource development. It is well organized into one handy volume for the benefit of researchers and practitioners alike. The articles are accompanied by scholarly analysis that highlights the implications of the research and helps readers relate the article one to another and sorts out the similarities and the differences in them. The book is recommended without reservation as an aid to elevating our profession to new heights." --John H. Zenger, President, Times Mirror Training Group "The authors' common approach to examining the studies was helpful. The road map of definitions, selection of articles, commentary on the articles, and implications for researchers and practitioners was helpful in orienting the reader. Together, the selected articles, and authors comments provide a solid package. Researchers, graduate students, and practitioners will appreciate finding so much wisdom in one resource." --Deane Gradous, HRD ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A Great Book on Human Resource Development
The authors have accomplished an enormous task of compiling information in an excellent format. The chapters are well arranged.The information is well documented and pertinent.This book covers Individual Learning andPerformance, Team Learning and Performance, and Organizational Learning andPerformance.References are quoted and cited.This book contains researcharticles that are informative and vital to understanding the components ofHuman Resource.The authors, Russ-Eft, Preskill, and Sleezer, have givenus, the readers, a superior review on Human Resource Development. ... Read more

Book Description

Take a satirical scamper through organizational life in the midst of  changing times, brought to you by master storyteller and former World Bank executive Steve Denning. With wisdom and a healthy dose of wit, Denning introduces a cast of furry characters who together learn the fine art of change through storytelling in their quest to overcome obstacles, generate enthusiasm and teamwork, share knowledge, and ultimately lead their company into a new era of success and significance. Through the stories of Squirrel Inc., readers will learn that the ability to tell the right story at the right time can determine the outcome of any major change effort. In each chapter Denning's squirrels learn to use storytelling to address leadership challenges:

•  How to bring about change
•  How to communicate who you are
•  How to transmit values
•  How to foster collaboration
•  How to stop rumors
•  How to share knowledge
• How to lead your organization into the future

... Read more

Reviews (2)

BUY THIS BOOK!
Squirrel Inc. absolutely sings along. It's not only jockerblock full of strategies for how to use storytelling as part of innovative strategies for change within organizations, it's a fun book to read. Steve Denning is a master teacher and storyteller. He is also a leading business consultant with a tremendously strategic mind and an extraordinary sense of humor.

If there is one book on change management you buy this year - this should be it.

Leadership IS Storytelling
I LOVED THIS BOOK! The author uses a funny story about a company--run by SQUIRRELS- to show how stories can be used to help organizations deal with change and spark innovation. I've read a lot of business fiction--some of it good, some of it bad--and I found this book to combine enough prescriptive advice within its offbeat colorful story to really be of use to leaders at all levels of the organization. ... Read more

Book Description

Offers a thoughtful critique of the roots of management education and argues that institutions of higher learning must teach managers how to integrate the discipline of learning into their very being. Such learning must be marked by strong self-direction, willingness to take risks, and integration of the learning that life teaches outside the classroom.

... Read more

Reviews (2)

A new paradigm
We used this book in a life-long learning class which was part of our MAed program. The whole class (8) was struck with the first half. He's tough on conventional learning, but leads us back to the childhood interest in learning which is not self-conscious, but just grows out of being a child. A book that is thought-provoking and provides a framework for change.

excellent insights about the new ages in front of us
The author presented a very well developed imagination about what types of world and society is coming to us and what tasks we should prepare for. The seven traits of LWB(learning as a way of being) were excellently contrasted with the present paradigms of education which we must overcome. I wish the author or else could go further into the possible and more concrete pictcures of educational system in comparison with the present public and state educational system, represented by the schools. ... Read more

Book Description

Empower Your Business to Succeed by Learning

?How Organizations Learn gets to the practicalities and realities of organizational learning. This is not a fad; it's the outline of effectiveness for organzations of the future.?

?Parick Canavan, corporate vice president and director of global leadership & organization development, Motorola

In this essential volume, authors DiBella and Nevis outline exactly what it means to be a learning organization. And they offer sound advice on how to increase the learning capabilties of your own company. Here you will discover a powerful array of tools and techniques for leveraging your organization's unique learning style, as well as a productive framework that will help your company learn more fully and adapt more quickly in today's volatile marketplace. A practical fusion of theory, original research, and real-world methodology, How Organizations Learn is the most comprehensive work to date concerning this all-important competitive advantage.

... Read more

Reviews (3)

Change through learning
There are many books on the change process but few address the learning that must occur by those who are changed. DiBella and Nevis provide a tool for you to analyze the learning capability of your organization, as well as to help you identify those learning leverage points that need to be tweaked for the organization to achieve its goals.

An Organizational Learning Model That Makes Sense
In my quest to learn about organizational learning, I have probably read the majority of what has been written on this topic. I have found this book by Anthony DiBella and Edwin Nevis to be the most useful in providing insights to capacity development while building on some solid theoretical foundations.

The authors build on the work of giants in organizational development, but their approach is considerably more pragmatic, consistent with the movement of organizational theorists to link their work to practice. They describe the importance of involved leadership and provide examples of how that would look. They note the difficulty of linking specific outcomes to learning inputs, because of the time lags that exist. They note that "learning itself becomes transparent over time, and we fail to recognize what we have learned or accomplished" (DiBella & Nevis, 1998, p. 199). Another feature is the acknowledgment that leadership is not vested in a single individual but rather "is exhibited both vertically and horizontally throughout any organization" (p. 76), a view that is espoused by enlightened leadership writers and valued by employees around the world.

They present organizational learning as a learning cycle, consistent with the beliefs of other theorists and practitioners. By using the learning cycle as a foundation, the authors set up a model of organizational learning as a continuous process, similar to continuous quality improvement processes or the widely recognized experiential learning model of David Kolb.

The authors respond to an identified need for tools to measure organizational learning and offer a variety of methods by which organizations can be analyzed and improved. Their model is grounded in theory, but it offers tools for translating the theory into organizational practice.

In addition to providing a meaningful model, describing organizational learning styles, and identifying facilitating factors (those factors that could be changed to enhance organizational learning capacity), the authors offer practical advice on how to enhance the factors that contribute to more productive organizational learning.

The DiBella/Nevis model is the most concrete and complete of all of the organizational learning resources reviewed. Unlike most of the writings about organizational learning, there is a research base, a research tool, and guidance on planning organizational interventions.

Their model makes sense with what we understand about learning. It also makes sense with what we know about the way organizations work. And helping organizations learn makes sense for individuals and society.

Director of the Center for Learning, Northwestern Michigan College

In-depth, practical, best book on learning organizations!
I am an organization consultant and have found DiBella and Nevis's book very useful. For instance, they provide a practical framework for assessing learning in teams. This book lacks the usual faddish gibberish surrounding learning organizations. I believe this book is significant, particularly for trainers and consultants. I chose this book to review in-depth for Training Media Review magazine. Solid, useful conceptual presentation. ... Read more

Book Description

Facilitation Basics allows you to focus on the learners and help an audience "get" a facilitator's message by focusing on the basic principles that underlie effective learning facilitation. In addition, you will find solid tips and techniques on creating a learning climate, facilitating learning activities, managing difficult participants, using media to support learning, and assessing your facilitation quality and success. ... Read more

Book Description

The role we each play in our own downfalls create the profound--and profoundly entertaining--basis for this series of linked "meditations" as the author of The Abilene Paradox takes another irreverent look at the nature of life on the job. In this work, Harvey explores the ethical, moral, and spiritual dilemmas we all face in the modern world of work. But he does it in a most unconventional way. His is an approach that mixes equal parts humor, philosophy, and insight to make us laugh, think, and examine organizational behavior in a brand new light. The twelve essays themselves carry such spirited titles as "What If I Really Believe this Stuff," "On Tooting Your Own Horn," and "Ode to Waco." Altogether, it's an enthralling collection of wise and witty parables that illustrate the redemptive value of the truth in a voice that is ultimately understanding of human shortcomings. ... Read more

Reviews (4)