Editorial

Citation

Gimson, A. (2011), "Editorial", Development and Learning in Organizations, Vol. 25 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/dlo.2011.08125aaa.002

Editorial

Article Type: Editorial From: Development and Learning in Organizations, Volume 25, Issue 1

When was the last time you took a look at “You plc?” As we enter the second decade of this third millennium, it seemed timely to make some space to consider our own development as well as what might be appropriate for our organizations. We often hear the cry from our profession that L&D or HR do not have a strong enough voice at the board table. What might we need to be doing differently to get ourselves and our contributions to the business more recognised? What professional New Year’s resolutions might we consider?

Keith Denton kicks us off with this issue’s Viewpoint. He sets out seven practical steps that anyone can take to increase their professional reputation. For example, keeping a focus on the needs of the business and solving business problems will get us much further than developing highly complex policies or indulging in the latest OD fad.

Going a step further, who springs to your mind when you think about the term “thought leader?” Mindy Gibbins-Klein invites us to contemplate how we actually define this term, both for individuals and at an organizational level. Her useful model sets out four elements:

1. 1.

   reach;

2. 2.

   engagement;

3. 3.

   authority; and

4. 4.

   longevity.

Working on these will help us and our organizations stand out from the crowd.

Moving back to focus on our businesses, Steve Flynn elegantly debunks the notion that we can directly motivate other people. Instead, energy needs to be directed to creating the right environment in which people feel motivated. But, beware. You need to understand the maturity level of your organization in order to choose strategies that will work.

How many of us have been involved in one, or more, change initiatives that fail to deliver the results they were designed to produce? Tony Court outlines an illuminating model on how the HR function can build people’s capacity to deal effectively with change through a focus on addressing behaviours, values and beliefs.

NLP – neuro-linguistic programming – often gets a mixed press. Some people shy away from what they see as overt “manipulation of others.” Some become almost evangelical in their desire to apply the tools and processes. Lisa Wake provides a balanced view of how NLP can be usefully integrated into OD interventions using the example of logical levels of change.

Our first review article, “ Diverting round obstacles to diversity,” continues the “change” theme with an interesting case study from a university in Chicago. Anyone thinking of embarking on a university-wide change program would find value in reading about their experience.

“Putting people first” highlights another useful case of how one organization in Nigeria, Zenith Bank, is working to retain its key talent. It demonstrates its recognition that business success relies heavily on its people through a focus on communication, career development, remuneration, welfare services and retirement funds.

“The holistic approach to training” presents a reminder of the different types of data that should be mined if you are undertaking a training needs analysis. It would be usual to ensure understanding of the organization’s purpose, goals and culture but perhaps less common to include analyses of sickness and attrition rates and focus group information.

Our final article, “How Pixar animates its talent team,” explores how to ensure creativity is not lost in either fear of failure or too much ongoing success. For example, developers in Google are able to use 20 per cent of their time to pursue their own projects. Managers might be encouraged to think about their role differently if they accepted the view of Ed Catmull, co-founder of Pixar: “Management’s job is not to prevent risk but to build the capability to recover when failures occur.” One for all of us to reflect on, I think.

Anne GimsonStrategic Developments International, UK. anne@stratdevint.com