Adaptability and Responsiveness:
The Case for Dynamic Learning
By
Lloyd Baird
Boston University
School of Management
595 Commonwealth Ave.
Boston, Massachusetts 02215
617/353-4168
lbaird@bu.edu*
Darrell Griffin
Whole Systems
Two Newton Place, Suite 190
255 Washington Street
Newton, Massachusetts 02458
dgriffin@wholesys.com
Acknowledgments: We acknowledge the participation and support from the Boston University Institute for Leading in a Dynamic Economy (BUILDE) that made this research possible. In particular, we are grateful to all of the corporate members who shared their experiences and continue to work with us to understand leading and learning at the edge. We acknowledge the funding and support from Nielsen Media, the United States Army, Partners Healthcare, British Petroleum, IBM, Sears, and the Lend Lease Corporation.
*Correspondence should be directed to Lloyd Baird, Boston University.
Executive Summary
The pervasiveness and declining cost of computing make adaptability and responsiveness not only possible; they make it absolutely necessary. At the organization level, we see on-demand solutions, mass customization, and flexible project-oriented approaches to organizing. At the individual level, we see a concern for the meta-competencies of self-awareness and adaptability. Change has always driven a need for learning and adjustment. What is new is the speed at which it must be done.
Managers and human resource professionals have long developed and implemented learning agendas aimed at improving individual and organizational performance. Some approaches are based on a competency assumption: we know what must be learned to improve performance — we l ...