Active [investment] management strategies demand uninstitutional behaviour from institutions, revealing a paradox that few can unravel

David F. Swensen (2009). “Pioneering Portfolio Management: An Unconventional Approach to Institutional Investment, Fully Revised and Updated”, p.8, Simon and Schuster

Innovative learning approaches demand unconventional approaches from learning functions. This means understanding the counter-intuitive principles that organisational learning isn’t managed by the organisation and control is ceded away from the centre. I’m regularly disappointed when I see organisations demanding innovation and active change to the way they do learning but their strategies, initiatives, and approaches are simply the same things refolded.

A few recent examples:

A new management programme which has already been decided will be 10 days, 5 modules, 70/30 face to face but without any analysis being done that this is the right thing to be doing.

EDI training for an organisation with limited BAME employees when no analysis has been undertaken about the recruitment processes at advert, shortlisting, or interview and

The decision to add a platform with specific learning content for a Functional group of people in the organisation. This will be the fourth learning platform in the organisation.

I KNOW this is tough; uninformed stakeholders can only make guesses and with little information will default to what they’ve seen, done and tried before.

Inform them.

Help them understand the simple answer won’t solve the complex question.