Libraries as Learning Organizations

5th Marina G. Dayrit Lecture SeriesNational Library of the Philippines

T.M. Kalaw, Manila, 29 November 2013

LEARNING ORGANIZATION IN LIBRARIESChristine M. AbrigoDe La Salle University Libraries

“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the ones most responsive to change.”

-- CHARLES DARWIN(on survival of the fittest)

“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the

most intelligent, ARE the ones most responsive to change.

-- CHARLES DARWIN(on survival of the fittest)

Does your library thrive on…

“Academic librarians struggle to understand the dimensions of (the) change and to find the

means to accomplish it.”

-- FOWLER, 1998

UnderstandingLEARNING

when do you know you are learning?

When you commit shortcomings;

When you fail at something

Problem: Making mistakes in an organization becomes a personal issue.

This culture has to be erased and

instead, be realigned to the

culture of learning.

Learning in the context of LO

Lifelong generative• expanding it to

produce the results that we want to achieve

Continuous and conscious

Getting your act together and move forward• Lessons learned,

lessons applied

Doing your homework• Identify

problems/gather data, review all areas - people, processes

Types of Learning

• Short term• Just in time; deal everything at hand• Keeping current processes, systems,

operations, services at bay• End product: Plateau

• Nothing added, nothing removed, nothing changed, no new development; Just existing

Maintenance learning

Types of Learning

• Long term• Vision-oriented

• New knowledge is acquired and applied; working to achieve the best improvements

• Participatory• End product: Bamboo

• Adaptable, useful, forward-looking, injects innovations and change

Anticipatory learning

UnderstandingLEARNING ORGANIZATION

Learning Organization

• Ideal form of organization• Needs effort

Organizational Learning

• Activities/processes• Exists without any efforts

vs.

LEARNING ORGANIZATION


"Organizations where people continually expand their capacity to create results they truly desire, where new and expansive patterns of thinking are nurtured, where collective aspiration is set free, and where people are continually learning how to learn together.“

(Peter Senge, 1990)


"An organization skilled at creating, acquiring, and transferring knowledge, and at modifying its behavior to reflect new knowledge and insights.“

(Giesecke and McNeil, 2004)

An organization that rocks the boat.(CMAbrigo, 2013)

LO takes place in…

Organizational

Group

Individual

LO takes place in…

Your library

Your team

You


NOT a self-serving school of thought,

but an organization-serving discipline

NOT a self-serving school of thought,

but an organization-serving discipline

Always geared towards

improvement (all levels)

Always geared towards

improvement (all levels)

A source of competitive advantage

A source of competitive advantage

End goal: Organizational effectiveness

End goal: Organizational effectiveness

How do you spell LO?

A cquiring knowledgeC reating knowledgeT ransferring knowledgeI nstituting changeO vercoming failures to gainN ew knowledge

…For YOUR Library.

Disciplines of LO (Senge, 1990)

Designed to be inter-connected; You can choose to learn and apply any.

You are not expected to master all in one go. But you can try.


Personal mastery• Developing knowledge and

skills that will benefit both self and organization

• Continuously hones craft with the future of the organization in mind


• Embedded assumptions and generalizations of how the organization is viewed

• Ingrained perceptions that affect one's actions and learning behavior

• Maybe negative, maybe positive

Mental models


Shared vision

Forming one vision for the organization and work together to realize it

Not just a statement, but a picture of the future that will inspire one to learn and be a contributor to keep the organization moving forward


Team learning

Personal masteries in one pot

Open environment; all on equal footing

Successful only if there is a shared vision


• The glue that sticks all disciplines together

• Seeing that one action affects the entire organization (holistic view)

• Everything in the organization is interrelated

• A thinking that will lead to the continuous improvement of the organization

Systems thinking

LO Model (Senge, 1990)

CORE LEARNING CAPABILITIES

• Personal mastery• Shared vision

• Team learning• Mental models

• Systems thinking

The ball game calledLEARNING ORGANIZATION

Players

Manager

•Leader•Visionary•A 'big picture' person•Learner

•Staff•Work-related learning•Brains are picked; allowed to speak their minds out•Skills are appreciated•"Strike anywhere" attitude

People

Players

Should create opportunities for learning (therefore, improving services)

Organization

Game

• Learning behavior

Ball

• Knowledge • You manage it, then you share it

LEARNING ORGANIZATIONin Libraries

How does your library become a LO?

Be best friends with Change

Promote learning; challenge thinking

SHARE knowledge

(leads to change for the

betterment of the organization)

Reward learning

Current reality

You subconsciously practice LO principles.

How other libraries apply LO

• Session 100 - Libraries as learning organisations: how to nurture growth in our staff and our communities - Continuing Professional Development and Workplace Learning with Education and Training (79th IFLA WLIC 2013, Singapore)

Some LO practices mentioned in Session 100

University of Western Australia• Service implementation method (New

service: Student ID Support)• Core capability: Reflective conversation

State Library of Victoria• Maturity assessment matrix• Core capability: Aspiration

Some LO practices mentioned in Session 100

University of Bucharest• KM model for Romanian academic libraries• Core capabilities: Aspiration and Reflective

conversation

Virginia Tech University Libraries• New instructor cohort• Core capabilities: Aspiration and Reflective

conversation

So, you think your library can dance to the tune of LO?

LEARNING ORGANIZATION in the Local Library Scene

Why do we strive for our library to become a learning organization?

Because we are in the business of imparting knowledge (and this is dynamic) to our clients.

We level up our learning as an organization because lifelong learning is our

mission for our stakeholders.

Why do we strive for our library to become a learning organization?

Because of the growing• competition for services• new technologies• changing customer expectations• changing values in the workplace• challenges of higher education

Common issues

Making excuses about learning new things (e.g., low confidence level, no budget, et

al.)

Making excuses about learning new things (e.g., low confidence level, no budget, et

al.)

Organizational

near-sightedness

Organizational

near-sightedness

Complacency

(simply exists)

Complacency

(simply exists)

FactionsFactionsBundy clock attitude (a willing prisoner of

routine)

Bundy clock attitude (a willing prisoner of

routine)

Taxing in time and energy to implement

ideas

Taxing in time and energy to implement

ideas

Practical applications

TIP: Focus and develop 1 or 2 LO disciplines e.g., Shared vision + Mental models

Practical applications

• Should be the primary mover on behalf of the entire library organization

• Maps out strategic directions for the library

Head or Chief

Librarian

• Should be active not just in acquiring new knowledge, but more importantly, to use this knowledge and SHARE it with co-staff

Staff

DLSU Libraries version of LO

Our motto

Though no concrete framework yet, LO principles are apparent

Lifelong learning

“Re-defining the way we learn”

Team learning

• Annual in-house general staff training and policy refresher

• Librarians’ mentoring

Team learning

Sharing knowledge gleaned from trainings / conferences / seminars participated in

Shared vision

Framing a common vision from bigger group down to the library group

Personal mastery

• Active participation in skills trainings and research

• Integrating knowledge gleaned to the library operations for improved service

“Mission and purpose will abide; methods and modes

will morph.”-- Rettig, 2003

What is your charge?

Be flexible. Sway with the wind but keep your stand.

Challenge

As the Supervisor/Head

Create a climate of learning,

experimenting, risk taking. (Giesecke &

McNeil, 2004)

See the big picture LEAD

Challenge

As the Staff• Appreciate change; accept

challenges• Acquire new and beef up

skills…BUT, impart what you know

Challenge

As an ORGANIZATION

Be one in mind

Acquire new knowledge and beef up skills…BUT, impart what you know

Is your library a LEARNING ORGANIZATION?

SCALE

4 = applies fully

3 = applies to a great extent

2 = applies to a moderate extent

1 = applies to little or no extent

*Source: Marquardt, M. (2002). 16 steps to becoming a learning organization. Virginia, USA: ASTD (American Society for Training & Development) Press.

Learning Organization Profile*

Below is a list of statements. Read each one carefully, then decide the extent to which it actually applies to your

organization by using the scale below:

4 = applies fully

3 = applies to a great extent

2 = applies to a moderate extent

1 = applies to little or no extent

Be honest with your answers as the goal is to identify where your organization is presently at so that you can make

improvements.

Learning Dynamics: Individual, Group or Team, and Organization

_______ We are encouraged and expected to manage our own learning and development.

_______ People avoid distorting information and blocking communication channels, using such skills as active listening and

effective feedback.

_______ Individuals are trained and coached in learning how to learn.

_______ Teams and individuals use the action learning process. (that is, they learn from careful reflection on problem

situations, and then apply their new knowledge to future actions.)

_______ People are able to think and act with a comprehensive, systems approach.

Organization Transformation: Vision, Culture, Strategy, and Structure

_______ Top-level managers support the vision of a learning organization.

_______ There is a climate that supports and recognizes the importance of learning.

_______ We learn from failures as well as successes.

_______ Learning opportunities are incorporated into operations and programs.

_______ The library is streamlined--with few management levels--to maximize communication and learning across all levels.

People Empowerment: Employee, Manager, Customer, and Community

_______ We strive to develop an empowered workforce able to learn and perform.

_______ Authority is decentralized and delegated.

_______ Managers take on the roles of coaching, mentoring, and facilitating learning.

_______ We actively share information with our customers to obtain their ideas to learn and improve services and products.

_______ We participate in joint learning events with supplies, community groups, professional associations, and academic

institutions.

Knowledge Management: Acquisition, Creation, Storage and Retrieval, and Transfer and Use

_______ People monitor trends outside our library by looking at what others do--for example, by benchmarking best

practices, attending conferences, and examining published research.

_______ People are trained in the skills of creative thinking and experimentation.

_______ We often create demonstration projects to test new ways of developing a product or delivering a service.

_______ Systems and structures exist to ensure that important knowledge is coded, stored, and made available to those

who need and can use it.

_______ We continue to develop new strategies and mechanisms for sharing learning throughout the organization.

*Source: Marquardt, M. (2002). 16 steps to becoming a learning organization. Virginia, USA: ASTD (American Society for Training & Development) Press.

Technology Application: Information Systems, Technology-Based Learning, and EPSS (Electronic Performance

Support Systems)

_______ Effective and efficient computer-based information systems help our organizational learning.

_______ People have ready access to the information superhighway--for example, through local area networks, the Internet,

and so on.

_______ Learning facilities such as training and conference rooms incorporate electronic multimedia support.

_______ We support just-in-time learning with a system that integrates high-technology learning systems, coaching, and

actual work into a seamless process.

_______ Electronic Performance Support Systems (EPSS) enable us to learn and do our work better.

Scoring (Maximum Score 100)

81 - 100: Congratulations! You are well on your way to becoming a learning organization!

61 - 80: Keep on moving! Your library has a solid learning foundation.

40 - 60: A good beginning. Your library has gathered some important building blocks to become a learning organization.

Below 40: Watch out! Time to make drastic changes if you want to survive in a rapidly changing world.

YOUR PROFILE

E-mail address: _________________________________

Type of library where you are currently connected:

☐ Academic

☐ School

☐ Public

☐ Special

Number of years connected to this library:

☐ 0 - 3

☐ 4 - 6

☐ 7 - 9

☐ 10 - above

Your current level of management in this library:

☐ Top management (i.e., Director/Chief Librarian/University Librarian, and the like)

☐ Middle management (i.e., Section/Department/Branch or satellite library Head)

☐ Others (please specify) _________________________________

SCORES

81 - 100 = Congratulations! You are well on your way to becoming a learning organization!

61 - 80 = Keep on moving! Your library has a solid learning foundation.

40 - 60 = A good beginning. Your library has gathered some important building blocks to become a learning organization.

Below 40 = Watch out! Time to make drastic changes if you want to survive in a rapidly changing world.

What does it take…?

Proactive LibrarianProactive Librarian

Flexible Organization

Flexible Organization

Learning Library

Organization

Learning Library

Organization

KEEP.MOVING.

FORWARD.

Thank [email protected]

ReferencesGarvin, D. A., Edmondson, A. C., & Gino, F. (2008). Is yours a learning organization?. Harvard Business Review, 86(3), 109-116.

Giesecke, J. and B. McNeil. (2004). Transitioning to the Learning Organization. Faculty Publications, UNL Libraries. Paper 5. http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/libraryscience/5

Jain, P. and S. Mutula. (2008). Libraries as learning organisations: implications for knowledge management. Library Hi Tech News, Vol. 25 Iss: 8, pp.10 - 14.

Marquardt, M. (2002). 16 steps to becoming a learning organization. Virginia, USA: ASTD (American Society for Training & Development) Press.

Ortenblad, A. (2001). On differences between organizational learning and learning organization. The Learning Organization, 8(3-4), 125-133.

Stephens, M. (2013). Learning To Learn. Library Journal, 138(11), 44.

Worrell, D. (1995). The learning organization: Management theory for the information age or new age fad?. Journal Of Academic Librarianship, 21(5), 351.

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Libraries as Learning Organizations

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