Non-profit organizations,
funders, management institutes and others engaged in community building and
health improvement are advocating for a new approach to increase organizational
effectiveness – becoming a learning organization.
What is a learning organization?
There are numerous definitions
of what constitutes a learning organization:
· Uses evaluation as a
fundamental strategy for gathering information for reflection, learning and
growth in order to drive internal improvements. (LaFrance Associates, Evaluation for Learning: Basic Concepts and Practical Tools)
· Not about how individuals, as individuals, learn in
an organization, but about how individuals and work groups working with others
learn from one another’s experience. (Hallie Preskill, Center for Civic Partnership’s 2006
Organizational Learning Conference, citing Dibella & Nevis, 1998).
· Weaves a continuous and enhanced capacity to learn,
adapt and change into the fabric of its character and has values, policies,
practices, programs, systems and structures that support and accelerate
organizational learning. (Michael O’Brien,
organizational consultant)
What do learning organizations do?
·
Continuously and
effectively learn and use what is learned to improve programs, services,
advocacy efforts and the overall effectiveness of the organization.
·
Consciously and actively
promote, facilitate and reward collective learning.
·
Integrate evaluation into
all aspects of organizational and program planning and implementation.
What are the key
elements of organizational learning?
· Social
process, focused on the interaction among individuals and teams.
· Embedded
in the culture of the organization and is supported at all levels.
· Leads to
well-informed decision making.
· Results
in adaptation to changing environments.
· Ensures
fidelity to and helps achieve the organization’s mission.
What are the steps in organizational learning?
The following three
critical steps for organizational learning were identified by Peter York, of the
TCC Group: (link
to Creating a Community of Learners, item #2 under Online
Tools)
· Organizational Planning –
begins the learning process by scanning the environment, taking stock of the
organization, conducting client needs assessments and developing strategic
plans and programs.
· Building Capacity –
guided by the plan, capacity building invests in the “nuts and bolts” necessary
to achieve the organization’s mission. Most
nonprofits identify these as the capacities most directly tied to program and
service delivery, such as fundraising, human resource development and
operations.
· Program Implementation –
builds ongoing learning opportunities into service delivery to improve the
quality of the program and increase abilities to achieve the intended outcomes.
Cutting across each of
the steps is the process of evaluation focused on the goal of learning and
improving the work of the organization.
Many non-profits and foundations are also incorporating theories of
change (link
to future ToC tip sheet) and logic models (link to future LM tip sheet) into their organizational
and program planning and evaluation processes.
Essentially a theory of change defines how and why you expect the
desired outcomes to occur and usually applies to several programs or the whole
organization. In contrast, a logic model
visually presents your understanding of the relationships among your programs’ resources,
planned activities and anticipated results and usually applies to a single
program.
How does evaluation inform organizational learning?
Evaluation (link to Evaluation tip
sheet) for
accountability is important– stakeholders need and deserve to know whether organizations
or groups did what they said they’d do and if their investments produced the
desired results. However, a learning
organization expands the purpose of evaluation to become a tool for learning
and improvement within the organization and at times across the sector. The following aspects
should be considered in using evaluation effectively to promote learning:
· Build ongoing evaluation
into your organization’s routine practices.
· Involve key stakeholders
and staff in important roles in developing, leading and conducting evaluations.
· Use data for continuous
learning and improvement.
· Stay focused on the
primary purpose of evaluation – to learn, improve and grow in your ability to
achieve your organization’s mission.
Evaluation to Improve Your Programs and
Organization
LaFrance and Associates
www.civicpartnerships.org/docs/home/files/LaFrance%20Eval%20101%20Packet_v1.doc
This guide, created
by LaFrance for the Center for Civic Partnership’s 2006 Organizational Learning
and Evaluation Conference, provides a set of concepts and practical tools and
methods for conducting evaluations that support organizational learning and
effectiveness.
Creating a Community of
Learners: Successful Evaluative Learning
for Nonprofits and Funders
TCC Group
www.tccgrp.com/pdfs/per_brief_col.pdf
This
briefing paper outlines the steps in the “Community of Learners” approach as an evaluation method that actively involves the staff and
leaders of an organization in the evaluation process. It includes a “How-To Guide” for the
Community of Learners approach.
Evaluative
Thinking Assessment Tool
Bruner Foundation
www.brunerfoundation.org/ei/docs/evaluativethinking.assessment.v4.xls
This
assessment tool helps organizations self-determine the extent to which
evaluative thinking is present in 15 different organizational capacity areas
such as mission, governance, leadership, program development, etc. It was designed to help organizations obtain
data about and discuss their evaluative thinking at a particular point in
time.
GrantMakers for Effective Organizations
www.geofunders.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=Page.viewPage&pageld=441
This site is geared
primarily for funders, but contains very useful information for nonprofits and
grantees. Provides a list of suggested
readings with links and publishes a Learning
newsletter (requires membership, inaugural issue is available online).
Learning As We Go: Making
Evaluation Work for Everyone
TCC Group – Peter York
www.tccgrp.com/pdfs/per_brief_lawg.pdf
Leading Organizational Learning: Harnessing the Power of Knowledge
Goldsmith, M., Morgan, H., Ogg, Al, (editors),
2004, (Jossey-Bass).
Leading Organizational Learning is a handbook for nonprofit,
business and government leaders to understand how to master learning and
knowledge sharing within their organizations.
To order visit www.joseybass.com
or online bookstores (amazon.com, powells.com, barnesandnoble.com).
Society for Organizational Learning
Includes the Society for Organizational Learning (SOL) Library – a searchable collection of publications, presentations, papers and web links. Also has publications available for purchase, including the revised edition of The Fifth Discipline, Peter Senge’s seminal work that launched organizational learning. The new edition outlines the “state of the art” of organizational learning.
Additional Resources Available from The Center for
Civic Partnerships www.civicpartnerships.org;
916.646.8680 Organizational
Learning and Evaluation Webpage (link to OLE page) ¨Conferences ¨Training ¨Presentations Copies of presentations and handouts from prior
conferences are available Tip
Sheet Series on Organizational Learning & Evaluation (link to each individual tip sheet) ¨Evaluation ¨Organizational Learning ¨Logic Models ¨Theory of Change ¨Qualitative & Quantitative Methods Tip Sheets covering a wide range of community
building and improving livability topics are also
available on the Center for Civic Partnerships’ website (link to Tools
& Resources page listing all tip sheets)