Codevelopment Action Learning For Business

Workplaces where the focus is on innovation, teamwork and learning have become a reality, thanks to a simple, practical, and effective approach called CAL: Codevelopement Action Learning. This book will help you to create a collaborative and empowering culture in your organization. The CAL method, tools, and theoretical foundations for each component are presented in detail here. Real case studies and research findings on the tangible benefits and impacts of the approach enrich its content. Authored by a dynamic team of CAL business coaches and academics, the knowledge is shared in a straightforward and accessible manner. Business leaders, entrepreneurs, human resources and learning professionals, coaches, facilitators, scholar practitioners, and more will welcome this book’s thought-provoking guidance to co-create solutions, accelerate goals, and grow capabilities for the 21st century.

Many global companies have been focused upon strategic executive development within a competitive environment. Often this has resulted in complex theoretical models which have had little or no practical application or impact. Leading-edge companies worldwide have established best practice in this area. This book shows how action learning can result in the effective and successful implementation of strategic executive development.

Action learning is one of the most prominent individual and organisational development approaches used in all parts of the world, including in over 70 member states of the United Nations. From its early beginnings in the 1970s, it has been adopted in private, public and third-sector organisations and has produced several variations. Used for leadership and management development, to support teamwork and problem-solving, and to encourage creative thinking, it can help to develop and enhance the learning capacity for individuals and organisations. Applied as a discrete activity focused on a priority need or on new or changed roles; as a linkage between more formal programs and the workplace or blended with other elements in a program, this book distils current and previous practice and theory to provide an up-to-date guide to action learning. The book will provide readers with an understanding of action learning, including the major elements, the choice of issues, the key skills, the role of the facilitator and applications organisation-wide. It will address such important aspects as how action learning can adapt to different national and regional cultures and how it can be evaluated. It will also offer a range of resources for further and deeper understanding.

For the first time in one volume, the leading proponents and practitioners of action learning define their approach, and describe how action learning and executive and organizational development are practiced in the public, private and 'not-for-profit' sectors around the world. Described in detail are the experiences of General Electric, Merck, Volvo, Japanese and Korean multinationals, as well as the Canadian Civil Service and The World Council of Churches, among others.

The first of a two volume set that fully explore the roots of action learning and the legacy of its principal pioneer, Reg Revans. Rather than prescribe one approach to action learning, it shows alternative approaches to fit different contexts, including classic action learning, action reflection learning and business driven action learning.

This second volume of two discusses the employment of action learning in different contexts, including healthcare, education, government, military and the business world. Use of action learning in delivery of Future Search Conferences is addressed, as well as action learning in community and civil society and the future of action learning.

Previous editions of Action Learning in Practice established this authoritative overview of action learning around the world. Over the last decade the move towards action-based organizational learning and development has accelerated, and action learning is now an established part of the education and development mainstream in large and small organizations. Fully revised and updated, this fourth edition covers the origins of action learning with Reg Revans' ideas, and looks at their development and application today. Action learning is self-directed learning through tackling business and work problems with the support of peers and colleagues. A professional and diverse workforce, attracted, influenced and developed in this way is more able to deal effectively with the growing complexity and pressures of working life. As the limits of conventional training and development become more obvious, leaders are increasingly attracted to action-based approaches to learning when seeking better outcomes and returns on investment.

In a knowledge-based society, people should not simply collect knowledge but should utilize and apply it to solve a problem. Action learning makes organizational members learn while solving real problems in the workplace. However, traditional action learning might not be effective for rapidly changing environments, because it is typically a process that requires substantial time. Therefore, this book provides a guideline on how to apply action learning quickly in workplaces—especially in virtual settings. Action learning allows the organization to develop people while, at the same time, getting work done. It is an alternative to classroom-based and online learning programs. In addition, it can also be an alternative to the instructional systems design (ISD) model or the successive approximation model (SAM) as a means of developing planned instruction if used for that purpose. Action learning can be an effective tool for Web 2.0 learning. Many organizations are now using self-directed teams and other team formats for work. It makes sense to revisit planned on-the-job training and learning with an emphasis on teams. Action learning is a process involving a small group with facilitators and action-learning process managers, so it is one of the best options for team-based problem-solving. This book provides real action learning cases. There are needs that have emerged in these post-pandemic times. There is a need to explain how action learning can be applied to various settings, issues, and challenges. Since COVID-19 occurred, many people must work in virtual or hybrid settings. This book gives trainers—who could be HR managers, operating managers, or learning and development professionals—guidelines that can be used in virtual settings to meet the new needs. Essentially, this book is written for team facilitators, supervisors, managers, or team members who wish to plan action-oriented, problem-based, and work-related learning experiences in real time. Because many action-learning books are written for an academic audience, it is not easy to put action learning into practice. Therefore, the goal of this book is to provide guidelines on how action learning starts, what basic principles should be considered, and what tools and techniques are needed for rapid action learning. The book is intended to be a primer on how to facilitate a planned learning project in a team or workgroup.