Every leader must possess proper learning organizational skills in order to properly maintain and train the teams which look up to them. When it comes time for training, strategy and logic must be applied strongly in order to lay out groups and patterns for learning so that optimal training is achieved in a minimal amount of time with the littlest stress possible.
Organizational Learning Techniques For Team Building
There are a number of strategies for constructing these teams within an organization for this task, but they all begin the same basic way, with training needs analysis. This is the crux of learning organizational skills.
In training needs analysis, the positive and negative aspects of an organization are measured from individuals on up to the whole organization through SWOT analysis and organizational evaluation. Through this evaluation, the strengths and weaknesses of an organization may be determined so that what training is necessary may be determined, and what strengths may play to achieving this new learning. Without this assessment, one is leaping blindly into the darkness, with hopes of being lucky enough to land on solid ground.
Now, at this point, there are a few different methodologies which may be employed for developing teams for organizational learning. First, bear in mind which learning technique you are actually ascribing to, as organizational learning and knowledge management are different techniques serving similar purposes. In knowledge management environments, the best bet is going to be to develop about four units regardless of context, and let the spiral information spread run in parallel over all four. Dividing the unit into four (or 8 in large groups) is so that the spiral has less area to cover, and allows more or less parallel progress rather than strictly linear.
The Strategies
If you’re working with actual organizational learning, there are two strategies that are the most pursued. Contextual trickle is one of the more commonly applied, in which specific new learning is diverted to the applicable individuals and teams. These teams are then formed by relevance and levels of Venn overlap. The other way is to divide teams based on divisions or departments, and allow for some extraneous learning to be part of the experience for individuals. This will work fine if the organizational learning culture values knowledge significantly, but if there is no value for knowledge that isn’t directly exportable, the former will be more successful.
Another method is the classic classroom environment, which is based on department context like the previously mentioned strategy as well. With this, different departments must be trained at different times, on a fixed schedule, or else it will grind business to a halt. Frankly, classrooms don’t work well, as the educational system in most 1st world countries will attest to. This is a rigid, irksome method which should only be a last resort.
An alternative to these methods is to blend organizational learning and knowledge management techniques to form a hybrid in which Venn context is used to match groups, though with less strictness than with straight organizational approaches. From this, the spiral path of knowledge management can be applied to each group individually, allowing for wide coverage within small selections of area.
Conclusion
These are a few of the more popular strategies that can contribute to learning organizational skills, but more strategies are developed every day.
Now, at this point, there are a few different methodologies which may be employed for developing teams for organizational learning. First, bear in mind which learning technique you are actually ascribing to, as organizational learning and knowledge management are different techniques serving similar purposes. In knowledge management environments, the best bet is going to be to develop about four units regardless of context, and let the spiral information spread run in parallel over all four. Dividing the unit into four (or 8 in large groups) is so that the spiral has less area to cover, and allows more or less parallel progress rather than strictly linear.