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BREAKTHROUGH PROBLEM SOLVING WITH ACTION LEARNING

STANFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS

Contents

Acknowledgments.........................................................................................xiiiIntroduction............................................................................................11 Problem Complexity and Problem Solving in the 21st Century............................................92 Action Learning and Breakthrough Problem Solving......................................................303 Sales and Marketing...................................................................................634 Technology Applications...............................................................................815 Environment and Sustainability........................................................................936 National and Community Development....................................................................1127 Product and Services Innovation.......................................................................1288 Corporate Culture and Ethics..........................................................................1429 Talent Management and Development.....................................................................15410 Virtual Settings.....................................................................................17111 Organizational Change and Learning...................................................................18712 Action Learning Principles and Strategies for Breakthrough Problem Solving...........................201Bibliography............................................................................................227Index...................................................................................................235

Chapter One

For nearly 20 years, Nationwide Insurance had been searching for an equitable way to offer its associates a discount on insurance and financial services products. A few weeks after forming an action learning team the company developed a breakthrough strategy that is now being implemented nationwide.

Although the problem appeared fairly simple on the surface, it had been challenging Constellation Energy for a number of years—namely, how to develop a work schedule to cover one of its power plants for six days a week, 24 hours a day. It was a challenge to design a system that would be fair to all the employees and still meet to the financial and legal constraints of the company. Remarkably, an action learning group, in less than eight hours, came up with a solution that had eluded Constellation for many years; it was a solution that met the approval of the plant workers and managers as well as the financial and legal people at Constellation.

Design an energy-neutral building to house 1,200 employees? Impossible! But an action learning group did so. The building—the headquarters of the United Nations Environment Programme in Nairobi—was described by the UN secretary general as "a living model of our sustainable future" at opening ceremonies in March 2011.

The Growing Complexity of 21st-Century Problems

The critical problems faced by organizations in 2011 are much more complex than problems encountered even five to ten years ago. The 21st-century workplace is marked by an enormous amount of ambiguity that has arisen from a wide array of rapidly changing socioeconomic trends and markets, overnight innovation from competitors, mergers across disparate corporate cultures and industries, new distribution channels, and the globalization of business.

As organizations evolve, they must maintain their strategic capability as they deal with internal and external complexities. Problem solving has thus become a way of life in challenging times. Organizational members, particularly leaders, are required to exercise discretion, take calculated risks, capitalize on the constraints of time and resources, analyze environmental uncertainties, make skillful decisions, and take considered action. As problems become increasingly complex—that is, they are not easily identifiable at first sight and are oftentimes subsumed within other issues—leaders are tasked with the responsibility of providing a way out so that, collectively, they take their organizations to the next level of competitive resilience.

Action Learning—21st Century's Powerful Problem-Solving Tool

Organizations around the world have discovered that action learning is a powerful way to solve complex problems and develop sustainable strategic actions (Boshyk and Dilworth, 2010; Marquardt, 1999, 2004a, 2004b, 2011b; Kramer, 2008, Pedler, 1983, 1991, 1997, 2012). A special issue of Business Week (2005) proclaimed that action learning is a key problem-solving tool for managers. And a 2008 study by the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) found that 63 percent of all executive programs used action learning for problem solving and leadership development. Action learning is increasingly seen as not only the best, but as the only problem-solving tool that can solve large, complex problems, a tool so critical in times of "whitewater" changes.

Why does action learning work so well in generating breakthrough strategies that solve complex problems? Because it was conceived, designed, and tested for the express purpose of solving problems. It has all of the elements that are necessary for group problem solving. It enables diverse groups to learn while they are solving problems and thus become smarter and better equipped to comprehend the root problems and issues, to explore multiple resources and options, and to creatively and systematically identify the best powerful and effective actions. The ability of action learning groups to learn while working (changing the tire while the car is moving, so to speak) and to fully employ the most powerful problem-solving tool available—i.e., the question—leads to consistent and remarkable breakthrough strategies.

It is the inherent and spontaneous problem-solving nature of action learning that makes it such a powerful tool for enabling organizations to develop breakthrough strategies while working on critical and complex problems (Marquardt et al., 2009; Pedler, 2012). In Chapter 2 we explore how and why action learning is so powerful and successful, but first let us (a) examine why problems have become more complex and (b) the essential elements of breakthrough problem solving.

The Complexity of 21st-Century Problems

Complex problems are those that are intricately connected to the roots of other problems. Normally, a complex problem is solved by carefully considering its individual layers and issues. However, given the organic structure of today's organizations, in which inter-, intra-, and extra-organizational dynamics are changing so rapidly, complex problem solving has become a lot less straightforward. Organizational dynamics includes human relations as well as sophisticated team, organizational, and environmental structures. Complex problem solving, therefore, is not just about seeking solutions; it also entails the identification of new problems that could potentially emerge from each solution found. The complexity therefore lies in the uncovering of the more deeply rooted symptoms of a...