The Five Disciplines of the Learning Organization

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The Fifth Discipline
The Five Disciplines of the Learning Organization
And applications to Clemson and CREDO
A review of The Fifth Discipline The Art and
Practice of the Learning Organization by Peter M.
Senge Published 1990 by Currency Doubleday (a
Division of Random House)
Presented by Jonathan R.A. Maier Clemson Research
in Engineering Design and Optimization Laboratory
CREDO
February 9th, 2000
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Presentation Map
Roadmap to the Presentation

• What is a Learning Organization?
• The five disciplines of a Learning Organization

• How can we use this stuff in CREDO and Clemson in
  general?

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Learning Organizations
What is a Learning Organization, and Why Be One?
The ability to learn faster than your
competitors may be the only sustainable
competitive advantage
The average lifetime of the largest industrial
enterprises is less than forty years
A fundamental shift of mindfrom seeing problems
as caused by something out there to seeing how
our own actions create the problems we experience
A Learning Organization is a place where people
are continually discovering how they create their
reality, and how they can change it.
What if the high corporate mortality rate is
only a symptom of deeper problems that afflict
all companies?
Its just not possible any longer to figure it
out from the top and have every one else
following the orders of the grand strategist
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Learning Organizations
Examples of prototype learning organizations

• Herman Miller Furniture
• Hanover Insurance Companies
• Kyocera Electric
• Boeing
• Royal Dutch / Shell Oil
• Harley-Davidson

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The Five Disciplines
What are the five learning disciplines?
I. Personal Mastery II. Mental Models III.
Shared Vision IV. Team Learning V. Systems
Thinking
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Systems Thinking
Basic Ideas of Systems Thinking
Structure influences behavior
Structure in Human systems is subtle
Cause and effect are not closely related in space
and time.
There is no outside. You and the cause of your
problems are part of a single system.
Leverage often comes from new ways of thinking
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Systems Archetypes
Reality is made up of circles but we see
straight lines

• Systems Thinking is a discipline for seeing the
  structures that underlie complex sistuations,
  and for discerning high from low leverage change.
• In many systems, doing the obvious thing does not
  produce the obvious, desired change.
• Systems Thinking simplifies life by helping us
  see the deeper patterns lying behind the events
  and the details.

I. II. III. IV. V.
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Systems Archetypes
Natures Templates

• Balancing process with delay
• Limits to growth
• Shifting the burden
• Eroding goals
• Fixes that fail
• Success to the successful

I. II. III. IV. V.
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Systems Archetypes
. . . . . .
Balancing Process with Delay
Actual conditions
Delay
Corrective action
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Systems Archetypes
. . . . . .
Balancing Process with Delay
Example 1 A Sluggish Shower
Moral In a sluggish system, aggressiveness
produces instability. Either be patient or make
the system more responsive.
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Systems Archetypes
. . . . . .
Balancing Process with Delay
Example 2 The Real Estate Market
Notice the more drastic the response, the longer
it takes to reach stability--exactly the opposite
of what was intended.
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Systems Archetypes
. . . . . .
Limits to Growth
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Systems Archetypes
. . . . . .
Limits to Growth
Example A Growing Enterprise
Moral Dont push on the reinforcing (growth)
process. Remove or weaken the source of
limitation..
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Systems Archetypes
. . . . . .
Shifting the Burden
The shifting the burden structure explains a wide
range of behaviors where well-intentioned
solutions actually make matters worse over the
long term.
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Systems Archetypes
. . . . . .
Shifting the Burden
Example 1 Personnel problems
Moral Leverage lies in a combination of
strengthening the fundamental response and
weakening the symptomatic response. This usually
requires a long-term orientation.
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Systems Archetypes
. . . . . .
Shifting the Burden
Example 2 Alcohol addiction
Moral Notice how insidious the reinforcing cycle
is, fostering dependence on the symptomatic
solution. Meanwhile the underlying problem grows
worse and the capability for fundamental
solutions atrophies.
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Systems Archetypes
. . . . . .
Eroding Goals
Eroding Goals is a shifting the burden type
structure in which the short-term solution
involves letting a long-term, fundamental goal
decline.
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Systems Archetypes
. . . . . .
Eroding Goals
Example Quality standards
Quality standards and hence quality quietly
erode. Meanwhile, the customer base becomes
dissatisfied, driving down revenues and
undermining the enterprises ability to invest in
the fundamental solution.
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Systems Archetypes
. . . . . .
Fixes that Fail
Fixes that Fail describes a system where a fix is
effective in the short term, but has unforseen
consequences which may require even more use of
the original fix, thus perpetuating the problem.
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Systems Archetypes
. . . . . .
Fixes that Fail
Example Maintenance
Moral Maintain focus on the long term. Disregard
short term fix, if feasible, or use it only to
buy time while working on a long term remedy.
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Systems Archetypes
Success to the Successful
. . . . . .
In a Success to the Successful system, the more
one competitor succeeds, the more resources it
gets, thus starving its competitor.
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Systems Archetypes
Success to the Successful
. . . . . .
Example Balancing work and home life
Because of the dominant reinforcing feedback, a
Success to the Successful system is inherently
unstable. The imbalances are not self-correcting.
The only leverage lies in changing the underlying
structure.
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Systems Thinking
Recap of Systems Thinking
The bottom line of Sytems Thinking is
leverage--seeing where actions and changes in
structures can lead to significant, enduring
improvements.
The art of Systems Thinking lies in seeing
through complexity to the underlying structures
generating change.
Translation Systems Thinking is not a magic
bullet. It only helps you understand whats going
on and what to do about it. Its still up to you
to implement the necessary change.
I. II. III. IV. V.
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The Five Disciplines
The Other Four Learning Disciplines
I. Personal Mastery II. Mental Models III.
Shared Vision IV. Team Learning V. Systems
Thinking
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Personal Mastery
Personal Mastery Means

• The discipline of personal growth and learning
• Approaching ones life as a creative work
• Continually clarifying what is important to us
• The ability to see current reality
• Pursuing a vision as a purpose rather than just a
  good idea
• That practicing the virtues of life and business
  success are not only compatible but enrich one
  another
• Not something possessed, but a process.

I. II. III. IV. V.
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Personal Mastery
The Discipline of Personal Mastery
The way to begin developing a sense of personal
mastery is to approach it as a discipline, as a
series of practices and principles that must be
applied to be useful.

• Personal Vision
• Creative Tension
• Structural Conflict
• Commitment to the Truth

I. II. III. IV. V.
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Personal Mastery
Personal Vision

• Identify ultimate intrinsic desires, not only
  secondary goals
• Coupled with Purpose (why) (abstract)
• Vision is a specific destination (what)
  (concrete)
• True vision is not composed of negatives of the
  now
• Multifaceted (materialpersonalservice)
• Takes courage to hold and pursue

Personal Mastery is a process of continually
focussing and refocusing on what one truly wants,
on ones visions.
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Personal Mastery
Creative Tension
Vision
We are acutely aware of the gap between our
vision and reality

• This gap can be discouraging, or...
• The gap can be a source of energy, in fact...
• This gap is the source of creative energy!

Current reality
There are only two possible ways for the tension
to resolve itself pull reality toward the vision
or pull the vision toward reality. Which occurs
will depend on whether we hold steady to the
vision.
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Personal Mastery
Structural Conflict
Practically all of us have a dominant belief
that we are not able to to fulfill our desires.

• Our unawareness of this belief contributes to its
  power
• We cope by letting vision erode, focussing on
  erasing negatives, or through shear will-power
• But the only real leverage lies in gradually
  changing the underlying beliefs and by Commitment
  to the Truth...

I. II. III. IV. V.
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Personal Mastery
Commitment to the Truth invovles...

• Rooting out the ways we limit or deceive
  ourselves
• Continually updating our theories of why things
  are the way they are
• Continually broadening our awareness
• Deepening our understanding of the structures
  underlying current events
• Recognizing coping with structural conflict and
  then making appropriate changes
• Compassion Seeing the structures that trap all
  of us unless discovered

I. II. III. IV. V.
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The Five Disciplines
I. Personal Mastery II. Mental Models III.
Shared Vision IV. Team Learning V. Systems
Thinking
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Mental Models
The Discipline of Mental Models

• Involves surfacing, testing, and improving our
  internal pictures of how the world works.
• Our mental models determine not only how we make
  sense of the world, but how we take action
• Problems with mental models arise when they are
  tacit--when they exist below the level of
  awareness

I. II. III. IV. V.
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Mental Models
Mental Models and Skilled Incompetence

• A worse problem is that we tend to trap ourselves
  in defensive routines
• These insulate our mental models from examination
• Consequently we develop skilled incompetence,
• We become skilled at protecting ourselves from
  the pain and threat posed by real learning
  situations (!)
• Thereby we never learn to produce the results we
  truly desire!!!

I. II. III. IV. V.
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Mental Models
Example General Motors
The following tacit mental model was used at GM
for decades until the crisis in the 1980s, after
losing 38 of their market share to overseas
competitors

• GM is in the business of making money, not cars
• Cars are primarily status symbols. Therefore
  styling is more important than quality
• The US car market is isolated from the rest of
  the world
• Workers do not have an important impact on
  productivity or product quality
• Everyone connected to the system has no need for
  more than a fragmented, compartmentalized
  understanding of the business

I. II. III. IV. V.
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Mental Models
The Ah-ha! of Mental Models

• All we ever have are assumptions--never truths
• We always see the world through our mental models
• Our mental models are never complete
• Our mental models are chronically nonsystemic

So what are the skills necessary to use mental
models effectively?
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Mental Models
Skills of Mental Models

• Recognizing Leaps of Abstraction
• Exposing the Left Hand Column
• Balancing Inquiry and Advocacy
• Excercising Scenarios in complex situations

• Facing up to distinctions between espoused
  theories (what we say) and theories-in-use (the
  implied theory in what we do)

I. II. III. IV. V.
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The Five Disciplines
I. Personal Mastery II. Mental Models III.
Shared Vision IV. Team Learning V. Systems
Thinking
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Shared Vision
A Shared Vision is

• the answer to the question, What do we want to
  create?
• not an idea, not even an important idea
• rather a force in peoples hearts
• compelling enough to acquire the support of more
  than one person
• not imposed by one person or group onto others
• a vision that people are truly committed to,
  because it reflects their own personal vision

I. II. III. IV. V.
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Shared Vision
Mastering the discipline of Shared Vision
requires...

• First giving up the idea that visions are always
  announced from on-high
• Sharing your personal vision and asking for
  support
• Enrolling others vs. getting them to buy in
• Fostering genuine commitment rather than
  compliance

A committed person doesnt play by the rules of
the game. He/she is responsible for the game. A
compliant person just plays by the rules.
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Shared Vision
Examples of Shared Visions

• ATT Universal phone service
• Ford everyone affording a car
• Apple empowering people with easy to use
  computers
• Microsoft a computer in every home
• Herman Miller a gift to the human spirit
• JFK a man on the moon by the end of the decade
• Medieval cathedrals

You cannot have a learning organization without
shared vision. Without a pull toward some goal
which people truly want to achieve, the forces in
support of the status quo can be overwhelming.
I. II. III. IV. V.
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The Five Disciplines
I. Personal Mastery II. Mental Models III.
Shared Vision IV. Team Learning V. Systems
Thinking
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Team Learning
Team Learning involves

• Alignment
• Thinking insightfully about complex issues
• The need for innovative, coordinated action
• Dialogue and discussion
• Practice

I. II. III. IV. V.
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Team Learning
Alignment
When a group of people function as a whole
An unaligned team
An aligned team
An aligned team with individual empowerment
An unaligned team with individual empowerment
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Team Learning
Dialogue (dia logos)

• Occurs when a group becomes open to the flow of a
  larger intelligence ?IQgroup gt IQindividual
• attempts to go beyond any one individuals
  understanding
• Allows people to become observers of their own
  thinking
• Differs from discussion in that there is a free
  exploration of a complex issue, rather than
  presenting and defending individual viewpoints

I. II. III. IV. V.
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Team Learning
Three Conditions for Dialogue

• All participants must suspend their assumptions,
  literally to hold them as if suspended before
  us
• All participants must regard one another as
  colleagues
• There must be a facilitator who holds the context
  of the dialogue

In dialogue, different views are presented as a
means toward discovering a new view. Discussions
converge on a single conclusion or course of
action. Dialogues are diverging they do not seek
agreement, but a richer grasp of complex issues.
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Team Learning
Dealing with Conflict
The difference between great teams and mediocre
teams lies in how they face conflict and deal
with the defensiveness that invariably surrounds
conflict.
This is often a classic shifting the burden
type structure
Skillful facilitators learn to confront
defensiveness without producing more defensiveness
I. II. III. IV. V.
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Applications
Building a learning organization

• Read The Fifth Discipline
• Define our shared vision
• Begin using systems thinking (every day)
• Practice exposing our own mental models
• Begin to foster individuals personal mastery
• Practice team learning as a team

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Applications
Example Trying to improve writing skills in ME
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I realized this was a classic shifting the
burden type structure. Consequently I am
focussing on implementing the fundamental
solution.
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Applications
Example Why the graduate school is having
trouble recruiting (1st stab)
Fixes that fail
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Applications
Example Why the graduate school is having
trouble recruiting (2nd stab)
Shifting the burden
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Applications
Example Why the graduate school is having
trouble recruiting (3rd stab)
Eroding Goals
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Applications
Example Why the graduate school is having
trouble recruiting (4th stab)
Success to the Successful
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Applications
My solution
Management principles from the combined systems
archetypes point toward a long term focus,
strengthening the fundamental solution, holding
the vision, and disregarding the short term
symptomatic solution if possible.
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Conclusion
We have now had an overview of Learning
Organizations, the Five Disciplines, and how we
might apply these techniques to CREDO and
Clemson
The obvious question is, Where do we go from
here?
Opportunity for dialogue