LEARNING TO CHANGE BUSINESS
description
Transcript of LEARNING TO CHANGE BUSINESS
LEARNING TO CHANGE BUSINESS
prepared by Professor Bob GarrattChairman, Board Performance Ltd, London
Chairman, ODPL, Singapore
Visiting Professor, Cass Business School, City
University, London
Some Definitions: 1
• CHANGE from the Anglo French chaunge - the movement from one state or condition to another
by itself it has no moral dimension
• GOVERNANCE from the Greek kubernetes - the steersman
Some definitions: 2
• Learning from the Old English leornung - the self-development of an individual’s attitudes, knowledge and skills
• Leadership from the Old English löd - showing the way forward and ensuring followership through a form of consultation
• Management from the Old Italian “managgiare” - the breaking of wild horses, C16th; and French menager - the domestic economy of a household, C18th
Corporate Governance is a Directoral Dilemma
concerns the appropriate board structures, processes and values
which drives the enterprise forward to achieve its Purpose whilst keeping it under prudent control
The Traditional Organisation
"Us"
"Them"
Symbols
PyramidalHierarchicalMany layersStrictly segmentedTop-down onlyCustomer unfriendly
Citizens/Customers
The Learning Organisation
Acceptance that good and bad learning occurs continuously at all levels of the organisationFocus on systems for capturing learning fastValuing of people and learningDiscussability = forgiveness provided one learns
External World
InternalWorld
Policy
Strategy
Operations
The Business Brain
The Learning Organisation
Giving direction
Monitoring external
environment
THE BUSINESS BRAIN
PerformanceControl System
Policy
Strategy
Operations
Disruptionsfrom the
environment
Deviationsfrom plans
The Learning Organisation
Giving direction
Monitoring external
environment
THE BUSINESS BRAIN
PerformanceControl System
Policy
Strategy
Operations
Disruptionsfrom the
environment
Deviationsfrom plans
Organisational Effectiveness
Organisational Efficiency
The Wrong-learning Downward Spiral
“Downsize”
“Rightsize”
Dumbsize
and
Capsize
For any organism to survive, its rate of learning has to be equal to, or greater than, the rate of change in its environment
L CL CSource: Reg Revans
The Learning Organisation
Primary Tasks for the Board
• Formulating Policy/ Foresight
• Strategic Thinking
• Supervising Management
• Exercising Accountability to owners and other stakeholders
The Learning Board - Basic Framework
BUSINESS BRAIN
ACCOUNTABILITY POLICY FORMULATION
SUPERVISING MANAGEMENT STRATEGIC THINKING
BOARDCONFORMANCE
BOARDPERFORMANCE
SHORT TERM LONG TERM
EXTERNAL
INTERNAL
POLICY FORMULATION
Stating PurposeCreating Vision and ValuesDeveloping Corporate Climate and CultureMonitoring the External Environment
BUSINESSBRAIN
Positioning in the changing marketsSetting Corporate Direction Reviewing and Deciding KeyResourcesDeciding Implementation Processes
STRATEGIC THINKING
ACCOUNTABILITY
To the CompanyTo OwnersTo Regulators and LegislatorsTo StakeholdersEnsuring Directorial Audits
Overseeing Management PerformanceMonitoring Budgetary ControlReviewing Key Business ResultsAssessing Organisational Capability
SUPERVISING MANAGEMENT
C R Garratt 1992
Operations Review Cycle
GovernanceReviewCycle
StrategyReviewCycle
INTERNAL
LONG TERM
Policy Review Cycle
EXTERNAL
SHORT TERM
Creating Strategic Changes
The Board Ensures That
• The organisational purpose is clear• The organisational vision is understood and accepted• The organisational values are understood and accepted• Their words are in line with the values and behaviours• Their business, funding, and people strategies are clear• Project management systems are in place to give
continuous quantitative and qualitative feedback on progress
• The emotional climate allows for learning and critical review
Organisational Capability Survey
TaskFocus
ProcessFocus
Internal Focus External Focus
Clarity of Personal Responsibility Organisational Clarity Financial Rewards
Work Quality Competitor Orientation
Organisational Adaptiveness Customer Orientation
Personal Rewards Personal Performance Group Performance
Leadership
Learning Climate
Four characteristics:
The Learning Organisation
It encourages people at all levels of the organisation to learn regularly and rigorously from their work
It has systems for capturing the learningand to move it to where it is needed
It values its learningIt values its learning
It is able to continuously transform itselfIt is able to continuously transform itself
The “Good Learning” Organisation: the idealised process of critical review and learning
A Mistake or Deviation is made
Accept Ownership quickly and assess Possible Risks
Are they potentially serious?
Take Corrective Action and Inform those affected
Codify problem and Resolution so that others may learn quickly
Problem Solved
Share your discovery to improve work processes and learning
Is there a flaw in the system or process?
Investigatecritically why the
mistakes happened
Tell someoneresponsibleimmediately
Co-operate actively to ensure error
is corrected
YES
NO
YES NO
The ‘bad-learning’ organisation
A mistake is made
Will it show?
Hide it and hope no-one finds out
ProblemAvoided
NO
Conceal itbefore anyone
finds out
Sit tight and hope the problem goes away
Can you hide it?YES YES
Can you blame:- others- special circumstances- a customer
Will an admission of guiltdamage your
employment prospects?
Be first toyour boss withyour version
of events
NO
YES
NO
NO
YES
Asking Discerning Questions
Directors are charged to think critically and independently; and to ask discerning questions of proposals to them using their “intelligent naivety” of the daily operations
Breaking The Existing Mindsetsso that:• Departments are seen now not as
pyramids but continuous “double loops of learning”
• fast decision making leads to fast feedback and project-based learning
• authority is devolved
• successful individual decisions is rewarded
Unblocking Resistance to Change
Changeannounced
Denial
Fear
Piloting/Demonstrating
Understanding
Acceptance
The Stability Group
ResistanceGrieving
Three Key Questions to Identify the Coalition of Powers to Implement Change
Who Knows? (Information not Speculation)
Who Cares? (Emotional Energy)
Who Can? (Formal Power for Change)
Developing Strategic Thinking
Developing Strategic Thinking
Strategic Thinkingis the ultimate test of the leader
rather than of the expert
It is the move from being clever to being wise