24. Solving problems with Action Learning
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Action learning is a very simple group process for solving problems. Once you know how it works, you can use this process in many settings. It can help you create massive value in a short space of time with a team/group of people. This video explains how the process works.
In this video you will learn how to facilitate an Action Learning session for a group of five or six people.
If you want to make rapid and immediate progress on a problem, a challenge, an idea or an opportunity, then this simple process really is a great choice. It is both remarkably simple and incredibly powerful.
I have used Action Learning with many groups and business teams and watched them as they made more progress on a problem or issue in thirty minutes than they had previously made in weeks or even months.
The essence of Action Learning is asking great questions that lead to new insights about problems or issues, and actions that can be taken. When this is done in a structured way, amazing things can happen.
You and I, and the people that we work with are often far smarter than we might give ourselves credit for. Using Action Learning, we can solve most of the problems or issues that we face, rather than immediately seeking help from external sources.
So let’s start by talking about what you need to do before the action learning session.
• Choose the people you would like to join the group. Either five or six people is ideal. And they should want to come. Not be forced. Seven people is OK. Four people is just about workable. But eight is too many and three is not enough.
• Choose the problem or issue that you want to work on, or ask each person to think about and bring their own issue to the session.
• Choose the location or room. You just need five chairs in a semi-circle with one chair in front facing the others. No tables. Each person will need some paper and pen to make notes with.
• Next, work out how much time you need. The minimum time you need for one problem of issue is thirty minutes. If I was working with a team on one problem or issue, I would though plan for one hour, to give us enough time for an open discussion after the first 30 minutes of the action learning process. If each person in a group of 6 brings a problem or issue, and each person gets thirty minutes, then you will need three hours, plus fifteen minutes for a break.
• Lastly, you need to let those people know the plan: What they will be doing and Why. What they need to think about (if anything). When and where you will meet, and how long the session will last.
On the day, you need to set the room up before everyone arrives.
Once everyone is there and settled in, how do you set up or frame the action learning session?
Well, here is a simple way to do this, based on six people each bringing an issue to the group. If you will just be focusing on one problem for the whole time adjust the language as necessary. And feel free to print out the words I use, and use them in your own way.
“So thank you all for coming today.
The purpose of this session is to make progress on some of the most important problems and issues that each of us faces right now. Doing this will move us closer to achieving our goals.
I have used Action Learning before and it’s helped me to solve problems much faster than when I have tried to solve them by myself.
We will take a break at 1030, and we will finish at 1230.
Some of you know how this works, but some of you don’t, so let me briefly explain the process. It’s really very simple.
1. Each of us will have thirty minutes as the Presenter. When you are the presenter, you will get two minutes to describe your problem, issue or idea to the group. It doesn’t matter if it is still rough and unformed. That’s why you are bringing it to the group.
2. After the presenter has described their issue, each of us in turn asks the person an enquiry or reflection type question. A question that helps the presenter to deepen their understanding of the issue and generate insight for them about it.
So this is not to be our advice wrapped up as questions, especially if we think we know what the solution or answer is. Action Learning is all about the asking of great questions and then the listening to the answers. It is about the presenter’s insight. Not about how clever we are.
One of us will write down all the questions for the presenter so they can focus on listening and thinking, and so they have a record of them afterwards.
You will notice that questions will naturally come into your mind as the process evolves. As you think of these questions, just write them down so you remember them and then you can choose which one you want to ask when it’s your turn. I will give you a list of questions that you can choose from if you need to.
