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1、Learning Technologies 2009London, UKGeorge SiemensUniversity of Manitobagsiemenselearnspace.orgJanuary 29, 2009Learning and technology: success and strategy in a digital worldIn October 28, 1906 a train heading to Atlantic City, jumped the track over a drawbridge at Thoroughfare Creek . Train doors
2、were locked, rendering it almost impossible for anyone trapped inside to escape. Fifty-seven people were killed. This event barely warrants mention in light of the enormous carnage of the 20th century. Yet, the way in which this event was covered by the press has impacted almost everyone in western
3、society over the last 100 years. Information shapers.After the railway accident, Ivy Lee http:/diglib.princeton.edu/ead/getEad?id=ark:/88435/m039k489x - a young ambitious partner in a new public relations firm convinced Pennsylvania Railroad to issue what many consider to be the first press release.
4、 In spite of the tragedy, the railroad was applauded for its openness and transparency in the event. Newspapers, prior to Lees press release, had difficulty finding accurate information. Corporations werent cooperative. Eye witnesses could vary greatly in their accounts. Through more transparent com
5、munication with the public, businesses realized that they were able to shape information to create favourable views of their company See CBCs production of Spin Cycles for greater detail: http:/www.cbc.ca/news/background/spincycles/index.html . Influencing the interpretation of information became as
6、 important as the initial provision of information.The origin of public relations firms reveals how new ways of interacting with information results in the generation of new corporate and even societal processes, a relevant lesson for educators and learning and development professionals. Shaping inf
7、ormation influences public perception, politics, and eventually government policy. AT&T was one of the first organizations to recognize the link between public opinion and government policy. Their PR initiatives generated public acceptance of a near-monopoly corporation, built on the message of AT&T
8、 as imperative to a prosperous American society See Stuart Ewens PR! A social history of spin for greater detail on AT&Ts use of PR to influence the American public. Public relations developed in tandem with media growth. Media formats were multiplying in the early 20th century. Radio and television
9、 offered alternatives to newspapers. Each new medium offered another opportunity to shape messages to an intended end. Pictures, movies, and billboards were used by government departments and organizations to create representations that moved the hearts, rather than minds, of society. The power of m
10、edia and live speaker sessions (the famous four-minute men) were used by Committee on Public Information http:/www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/063.html during WWI to great effect in generating support for the war. Emotions, not logic, served to advance the aims of public relations
11、, marketers and propagandists in the early 20th century. In late 20th century as the web, and more recently, the participative web, matured, the field of public relations was dramatically altered. Information through a few centralized points such as television, radio, and newspapers can be shaped. I
12、nformation through multiple decentralized points is largely unshape-able. Complexification of media reduced control-ability.Vision-LessMy talk has two arguments: 1) Our excessively small view of learning and its role in the organization is insufficient. We need a broader view; learning and developme
13、nt should be concerned with all interactions with information. 2) Learning in organizations is about developing the capacity for people to handle information in a meaningful manner. Productivity with information, leading to increased organizational capacity to adjust to changing strategies and exter
14、nal factors, is the only sustainable foundation on which to build future learning and development departments.Essentially, our need is to think in networks in how we socialize, create value, relate to others, and in understanding how perceptions are shaped through fragmented information sources.Netw
15、orks help us to understand how a mandate from a division leader or the company president generates points of action at the ground level. Or how innovations and successes in one region translate into other regions. Or how hidden, undiscovered organizational knowledge combine to form new innovations i
16、n product or process. What is happening with inFORMation?Walter Benjamin, in The Work of Art in The Age of Mechanical Reproduction, states that the “mode of human sense perception changes with humanitys entire mode of existence” . Changed methods of interacting with information and with others influ
17、ences and drives organizational (re)design. As goes information, so goes the design of our organizations. Information fragmentation has increased personal control. Information containers books, courses, newspapers, and even news broadcasts have not (yet) been rendered obsolete, but their value has c
18、hanged. As a result, it has become difficult for messages to be broadcast centrally. The U.S. president, the Pope, and the Queen are turning to multi-channel and distributed approaches to connect with their audience. Twitter feeds , Youtube channels , and other new (social) media initiatives http:/w
19、ww.whitehouse.gov/ abound. Messages from governments, corporations, and spiritual organizations are quickly dissected and analyzed at great length in highly personalized forums (blogs, podcasts, videocasts). As early as 1916, using Web 2.0-esque language, Lee prophetically stated: “the people now ru
20、le. We have substituted for the divine right of the kings, the divine right of the multitude” Stuart Ewan: PR! A social history of spin. P. 75.Hyper-fragmented information is accentuated by a parallel trend of increased participation with information and conversation. Centrally created messages have
21、 lost their impact over the last decade. Emerging technologies sometimes called web 2.0, participative web, and so on have low entry barriers to participation in conversations. Information shaping through central PR methods has given way to participatory, fragmented conversations.When organizations
22、attempt to utilize the energy of distributed participation, the desired effects are not always achieved. Openness reduces control-ability of messages generated. In 2006, General Motors launched a “design your own ad” campaign on the Chevy Tahoe in conjunction with the television program The Apprenti
23、ce. The winning ad was intended to be used as part of a national campaign. The responses and a hazard for any type of user generated content in open spaces were largely critical of the Tahoe. The speed of information dissemination through emerging media has also accelerated over the last decade. In
24、2004, the Asian Tsunami demonstrated how quickly images, first-hand accounts, and appeals for help could be handled through blogs. In 2005, Hurricane Katrina again raised the profile of participative/amateur media as a means of sharing information. In the 2008 American presidential election, the pow
25、er of social networks aided by technologies like mobile phones, Twitter, blogs, and video were on display in full force, mobilizing substantial voter turnout. More recently, on January 15, 2009, Flight 1549 crash landed in the Hudson River. Within minutes, comments were posted on Twitter and images
26、were being shared on Flickr Will Richardson offers a more detailed account of how the news developed and spread: http:/weblogg- The capacity of individual bystanders and observers to significantly augment traditional media is apparent. But it raises a problem for information departments media, PR, l
27、earning and development: How can a specific message be created and distributed in a decentralized world?The days of Ivy Lees and Edward Bernays (see “torches of freedom” ) ability to overtly shape information and discussion to generate certain views have been replaced by a fragmented information eco
28、logy. An accident like Thoroughfare Creek would receive very different coverage with todays media.What lesson can the learning and development field learn from the massive transformations in public relations?Swanson has stated Swanson, D. R. (1086). Undiscovered Public Knowledge. Library Quarterly.
29、56(2) that “undiscovered public knowledge” is a by-product of the growth of information. Information is not being connected. We are often unaware of valuable information and, when we encounter it, its value is not recognized as it competes in a sea of inconsequential details.Events such as 9/11, 7/7
30、, Mumbai, Bali bombing, and even the current financial crisis, exhibited warning signs that were not understood in a context that could shape and influence action. After each event, information was discovered suggesting that the incidents were not as unforeseeable as initially thought. Access to qua
31、lity information has limited value if its not shaped in a manner that reveals potential impact.Information abundance is not more of the same, but rather something different altogether. P.W. Anderson declared, succinctly, that “more is different” http:/www.sccs.swarthmore.edu/users/08/bblonder/phys12
32、0/docs/anderson.pdf . As the scale and complexity of systems increase, fundamental rules change. “More information” requires new methods and new approaches for filtering and recognizing important elements. Herbert Simon addressed the value of “grouped complexity” in his well-known 1962 article “The
33、Architecture of Complexity” http:/www.informatics.sussex.ac.uk/courses/ModDis/Internal/SimonAoC.pdf . To make his point, he introduces two watchmakers: Hora and Tempus. Both men were well-reputed as creators of exquisite watches. Their shops were similar in setup, with a phone located in each. As ar
34、tists with exceptional reputation, their customer base grew rapidly. Over time, however, Tempus lost his business while Hora flourished. Why? The answer is found in how they created their watches. With each watch containing over 1000 pieces, the manner in which they assembled watches was important t
35、o their success. The phone their main contact with customers rang frequently. Tempus assembled his watches in a holistic manner. If he put the watch down to answer the phone, it would fall to pieces and hed have to start over. Hora, in contrast, designed his watches in subassemblies of 10 pieces eac
36、h. He could readily be distracted without his work being impacted. His method of watch making matched the needs of his circumstance. The main challenge was not to build a superior watch, but to build a watch through a process aligned with the context of how the watchmaker gained new customers.If lea
37、rning and development models reduce employee productivity (to attend training out of context), method has been mismatched to intent and the context of the learnerLearning and Development as Information ShapingThe relationship between public information (news) and corporations was altered by the deve
38、lopment of public relations. Through PR activities, the interests of a corporation were translated into language understood by the public and in the service of the organizations goals. The fragmentation of media and PR has resulted in greater need for corporations to be transparent and exhibit chara
39、cteristics expected by the public, rather than to shape information to create a perception that isnt reflective of reality. The PR field shifted from information shaping to engagement with consumers.This opportunity (challenge) also exists for learning professionals. The full spectrum of information
40、 interaction should be the focus of organizational learning and development departments. Bringing these concepts together in a meaningful manner can help L & D departments play a much more critical role in the organization. Productivity with information, leading to increased capacity to act in compl
41、ex environments, is the new value point. Consider teleconferencing, marketing, or even customer relations. Learning and development has traditionally been assigned a role of helping people develop skills to perform their work. Learning should, however, be woven through the entire company, touching a
42、ll points of information interaction and capacity building.Those in the learning field who work with emerging technologies are uniquely positioned to play an important role in how information is shaped and shared across an organization whether in service of developing work skills or in inter-departm
43、ental communication. The tools to solicit engagement, to communicate across geographical distances, and to function in distributed teams are now readily available. Regrettably, to date our field failed to conceive a compelling vision for the use of new technologies beyond serving existing narrow vie
44、ws of learning. In the past, learning needs have been addressed through various approaches: knowledge management, performance support, learning and development, and talent management. Integration across these fields was often lacking, resulting in diminished capacity and effectiveness of information
45、 use. Impact was reduced by weak implementation and fractured and isolated organizational silos.Trailing Productivity with Technology: Existing systems as barriersProductivity benefits of new technology are often delayed because existing systems act as barriers. Paul A. David David, P. A. The Dynamo
46、 and the Computer: An Historical Perspective on the Modern Productivity Paradox. The American Economic Review 80(2). addressed the productivity paradox as expressed by Robert Solow: We see the computers everywhere but in the productivity statistics” (p. 355). Heavy investment in computing technologi
47、es, over many decades, had not substantially impacted productivity. David turned his attention to a previous instance of a large-scale investment in technology that failed to return immediate results: the dynamo or electric generator. When the dynamo was deployed, its first use was to replace the ex
48、isting steam engine that powered multi-story buildings, modelled on a central-shaft and belt system. In spite of the dynamo, the entire system of production continued on the model of the steam engine. Productivity benefits of the electrical engine were delayed for decades as factories were wired and newer factories were designed as single story buildin
