‘Many small brains are superior to a few large ones’ Fujio Chou Chairman Toyota Motor Corp
I could say ‘nothing’ is new. Action learning has the ‘tools’ to solve problems like Brexit but unfortunately, at times like this we tend to fall back on Action.
With any ‘open ended’ problem, whether personal or organizational, the first step is to identify the ‘right’ problem. You can always put right the wrong decision on the right problem, but you can never put right the right decision on the wrong problem. At one stage in my career I was involved in negotiations with the Trades Unions. The issues we discussed were really irrelevant. The ‘right’ problem was that the Unions wanted more involvement in the way things were done and management in the main did not want to understand; thus instead of synergy we had conflict.
With Action Learning we start by helping our clients to identify the ‘right’ problem clarify the desired outcome and identify actions necessary to achieve them; This inevitably means identifying those who will have to live with the solution and involving them in the decision making process. The real problem of course, as we see daily in what is happening around the world, is that it is very difficult to turn autocrats into participative managers!
If you are facing open ended problems and have the courage to do something new, why not give Action Learning a try? We can help you to help yourselves.
George Boulden January 2019