Learning is an organizational essential. It is key to so many needs: operational, production, team relationships, breaking down operational silos, and employee engagement. Adult learning is quite a bit different than adolescent learning, and many organizations, particularly smaller and mid-size ones lack development professionals. Yet, we know that learning is essential for sustaining the business as well as the needs of our team members.
The power of team learning.
Having done this work for 32 years, I’ve seen firsthand, the many mishaps that can occur in the absence of organizational learning and lack of relationships. It may be surprising that organizational learning actually depends on inter-departmental relationships. Peter Senge, PhD in the Fifth Discipline calls out the need for effective team relationships as imperative to ensuring that the organization can function to its full potential. Team learning is one of the five pillars of the fifth discipline. While Senge specifically calls out the functional or operational team, knowing that that inter-departmental communication is key to effective operations, it takes team learning to a new need. One that involves the cooperation of everyone.
I reflect back to Cascade Medical quite often because their story is so compelling. I wonder if and how things may have been different if the organization had more departmental relationships. Would it have influenced more information sharing? Would more team members have asked vital questions that might have saved the business?
In the absence of development professionals, how do we assist our team members to grow and develop? We offer a variety of tools to help adults learn and create organizational learning stickiness.
ALS learning and development suite of tools-
Learning readiness checklist and development rubric: helps learners acknowledge their own mental state in preparation for learning as well as measuring their learning progress,
Learning map: the learning map is a relatively new tool that helps to bring the learning back to the team, and shits cultural,
Career pathways development: provides a variety of tools for team members to create a clear path for development and career advancement,
Learner evaluation: our unique tool not only evaluates the learning gap, it identifies organizationally when you have reached learning saturation, or when its time to make a shift!
The benefits of mentoring:
Mentoring is a powerful organizational tool. When done well, there are many benefits that extend beyond developing the mentee. Placed with the wrong person, however, can lead to significant, negative consequences. Early in my career, when I was still an Executive Director in long term care, I made that very mistake.
A new caregiver joined the team and was placed with a caregiver to shadow. The new caregiver walked off the job because the “mentor” was so awful. It also resulted in a large-scale investigation resulting in the arrest of the mentor for elder abuse and theft. I vowed at that time to ensure that only the best of the organization would be selected to mentor – and be well prepared to do so!
ALS Mentoring toolkit-
Mentors have a powerful voice and role within your organization, if anything should be consistent it should be mentoring. Mentors should have a consistent experience regardless of who they are mentoring with. Additionally, mentors should have some responsibility for ensuring that mentees are getting the right information at the right time, and in a way that is most meaningful to them.
Coming soon as part of the ALS Mentor Training: a mentor rubric designed to identify who among your team is ideal to mentor new team members.
We offer several tools to help your organization, and your team members learn, develop, and grow. Check out our suite of learning tools – inspire your team and transform your organization!
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