Title:
1Creating a Learning Culture
- How I performed an Organizational Vulcan Mind
Meld - and
- Earned my never-big-enough Paycheck
- Sandra Smith, Training and Develoment Manager
- Denver Public Library
- 720.865.2071 ssmith_at_denver.lib.co.us
2- Learning is like rowing upstream
-
- not to advance is to drop back.
- Chinese
proverb
3DENVER PUBLIC LIBRARY
4How To 1
- What does a Learning Culture currently
- look like in your organization? Â
- WHAT kind of learning is happening?
- WHO is doing it?
- HOW is it being done?
5MY EXPERIENCE
- What DPL five years ago had no clear program
only as needed, reactionary at best small number
of classes - Who Training Manager, occasional SME, no general
staff involvement, no executive or manager
awareness of ROI of training - How classes by TM, occasional SME, no general
staff involvement, periodic Training Calendar
6How To 2
- Who is the motivator? Why should it
- look differently?
- Who Who wants a Learning Culture? You? Others?
- Why Organizational Circumstances? Personal
Motivation? Dictates from above? What is needed
and why now? If not now, what consequences?
7MY EXPERIENCE
- Who me seeing an unmet need and being willing
to tackle it - Why my position exists for a reason!
- Why there are organizational needs and
- potential ROI to staff and and the community
8- DPL Organizational Needs
- DPL is changing org in changing library times
tech, activities, customers, relevance - Are a learning orgset example to staff
- Need to share expertise internally for better
customer service (our mission) - Need highly skilled, consistent staff
- Staff looking for development opportunities
positive work environment, retention - Foster a sense of personal responsibility and
accountability for the defined topics - An acknowledgement by executives of the
importance of the role of staff via executives
support, personal participation and exchange of
mutual expectations
9- Provide a targeted, effective system of ongoing
professional development for staff, including a
cost-effective utilization of staff time and
resources - Introduce a framework for defined competencies,
expectations - and accountability
- Maintain awareness of DPL practices and
perspectives including current policies,
practices and services of all departments and
branches - Provide an opportunity for colleagues to network
and develop and a sense of community - Provide consistent knowledge and information for
all staff - Ensure excellent customer service
10How To 3
- Whaddaya Want?
- and
- Do a Reality Check
- What do you want it to look like?
- What can it look like?
11TIPS
- Use your skills, background, talent to identify
what youd like to see - Think what would be better around here
- Observe and Listen chat with others, get
feedback in a casual way at first, get a sense of
where peoples priorities, issues, problems are.
Do walkabouts and observe. - Define what is needed specifically do an
inventory of what needs to happen now and
later, doable and potential
12MY EXPERIENCE
- My identified goals in 2001
- to expand the types of classes offered database
skills, supervisory techniques, wider numbers of
skills classes, sharing opportunities about the
activities of DPL - to involve more staff in the attending of classes
(ones that they feel are valuable to them in
their work life) AND get the right butts in the
right seats
13MY EXPERIENCE
- to involve more staff in the leading of classes,
sharing their expertise and experience with
others, developing presentation, people and
organizational skills - to introduce competency-based outcomes,
evaluation and ROI to the learning program, what
does it look like - to create the mundane but necessary structure for
tracking data and statistics on the learning
program
14How To 4
- How do you
- ACTUALLY ACHIEVE
- How To 3?
15Oh nooooo..are we talking Culture Changes???
- Culture is People their beliefs, attitudes,
values, behaviors - Culture is the Organization rules and policies,
customs and norms, ceremonies and events,
management behaviors and trust, rewards and
recognition, communications, physical
environment, organization structure, goals and
measurements
16YOU EXPECT ME TO CHANGE ALL THAT???
ARE YOU NUTS?
17DONT PANIC!!I ONLY EXPECT YOU TO DO
18A VULCAN MIND MELD ON YOUR ENTIRE ORGANIZATION
19Start the Conversation (in the Mind Meld
handout this is thegetting physical part)
- Get info on past training data, details
- Talk with those who have done the training
- Talk with staff/managers about past learning
opportunities and current desires
20MY EXPERIENCE
- Informally chatted to multi-level staff I knew
and didnt know via lunches, after-hours, when
they would come to me with questions about
anything - Formally talked to key managers had list of
questions - Re-talked to people after gathering initial
information clarify, summarize
21Plant the Seed (this is the Mind Meld
transference of ideas)
- Plant nuggets of what is possible to be done with
training in a learning culture - ROI to the bottom line
- fixing daily problems
- workforce satisfaction
- improving work environment
22MY EXPERIENCE
- Â
- Kept conversations on-going but with intent to
further my goals - Article in newsletter about what I do
- Contribute useful nuggets to meetings
- Send articles to key staff/all staff
- Proactive in offering to help/fix issues
23Marshall your forces (in the Mind Meld handout
you and the recipient now have the same
knowledge, interests)
- Identify your key people soft or hard sell them
on your resources, goals connect with their
closest advisors - Explore merging your resources, helping one
another - Support all who come for help or you reach out
to, make connections with new staff - Give positive reinforcement to those who get
it, help you, do good deeds to the benefit of
your goals
24AND DO NOT
- WAIT IN YOUR OFFICE FOR SOMETHING USEFUL TO
HAPPEN FOR YOU - IT
WONT
25MY EXPERIENCE
- Â
- Gained active support from key people initially
two directors, five managers, five librarians
(committee), three staff SME trainers - Formed training committee used earlier
connections capital to get permission if
necessary
26S.W.O.T. (in the Mind Meld handout, all the
risks)
- Strengths, Weaknesses,
- Opportunities, Threats
- Identify these for the potential learning
program - both holistically and specifically
- Get input from others
- Dont operate with blinders. Dont ass-u-me!
27MY EXPERIENCE
- Identified, with key people, my SWOTs
- Data generation process Documented
- achievements for my supervisor and
- reviewing rater created tracking/statistic
- method
-
28Make a success happen. (in the Mind Meld you
have succeeded with one person)
- Do a training or development program for a work
unit (one of your supporters?) - Coach a staff person, manager
- Problem-solve a process
- Contribute to in-house publication how you can
contribute, resources available to people, FYI
articles and useful information - Facilitate a meeting
- Make a new learning opportunity available to
staff tutorial, offsite class, video
29MY EXPERIENCE
- Â
- Asked key SME for librarians to do training in
TC asked key group to do as well on any topic of
interest - Sent out request for staff to share expertise by
conducting a class - Did great teambuilding day for a manager who is
influential - Created/conducted several new classes in TC
performance evaluations, NEO, discussion
roundtables, time management - Saw supervisors with staff problems offered and
helped fix - Found videos, tutorials
30Build on Success (in the Mind Meld mode, go for
more!)
- Follow up on any opportunities that result
- Continue making people connections
- Keep your program in the limelight
- Start working on bigger goals
31MY EXPERIENCE
- Â
- Reinforced new presenters praise, help, how
valuable to staff and library mission - Heard about new SmartyPants service proactively
asked and responded to needed training saw new
skills needed as well as synchronicity from
earlier efforts to connect with staff - Led to BRAINCELLS series for librarians
- Led to Beyond Today series for senior librarians
- Led to Take the Lead series for Lead Clerks
- Led to new service styles training for all staff
32Level One Reaction
- Increase in class number and attendance
- 199954 classes 2001100 classes
- 2000200 attendees 20041140 attendees
- Increase in positive comments
- Staff asking for more classes, giving suggestions
33Level Two Learning
- More staff wanting to do classes
- Attendees asking for more information on a topic
- SmartyPants pre-and post-testing results
- BRAINCELLS self-assessment ratings on
- learning achieved
- Supervisors value classes
34Level Three Behavior
- Executives/managers/supervisors
- ask for training
- use me as resource
- Verify performance improvement in staff
- Are willing to participate in training
35Level Four Results
- CEO supports, is engaged
- Library Commission supports They Like!
- Cost-effective use of presenters and attendee
time - Quality consistent, more frequent and timely
information to the Right Butts in the Right
Seats - Have two on-going Training Committees
36Personal Level One Reaction
- Satisfaction in my job
- goals identified and aimed for
- co-worker relationships
- accomplishments
37Personal Level Two Learning
- More knowledgeable about needs of organization
- Increased project management/ /strategic
planning/training skills - Increased awareness of training/learning
challenges
38Personal Level Three Behavior
- More collaborative, team focused
- More proactive, focused on goals
- More seeking outside experiences/input/connections
39Personal Level FourResults
- ROI to career and self
- Experience
- Skills
- Contacts
- Community contribution
-
40 - If you are going
- to take Vienna
- then Take Vienna.
- Napoleon I
41Discussion questions
- What others ideas do you have for creating a
learning culture? - What successes? Challenges? Failures?
- Why did they happen?
- What other resources are out there to help?