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Here's the next in our series of weekly managerial TIPS (Techniques, Insights, and Practical Solutions)
to help you better engage your team in the activities that lead to higher performance.
CORE Bites Issue #74
(May 12, 2020)
On September 9, 1947, the much-anticipated Mark II Aiken Computer was being tested at Harvard University for use in the war effort during the latter part of World War II. It was built with over 765,000 electromechanical components, including switches, relays, rotating shafts, and clutches. Manual data entry was done with 60 sets of 24 switches. It could store a total of 72 23-digit numbers. To give you some context, this early computer could do 3 additions or subtractions in one second (!); a multiplication in 6 seconds (!); and a division in 15.3 seconds (!).
At approximately 3:45 pm, the program abruptly failed and all testing stopped. Upon investigation, a moth (yes, I said "moth") was found trapped between the relay contacts at Relay #70, Panel F. Remember, the system was largely mechanical so anything stopping a relay from closing would also stop any calculations. While the term "debugging" was already in use, the testing staff clearly appreciated this humor moment—finding the first real case of a computer "bug"—and, as proof, taped the moth to the log book. [Photo courtesy of the U.S. Naval Surface Warfare Center. Historical Center Photograph #NH 96566-KN.]
I'm using this historical metaphor because approximately seven weeks ago (depending on where you reside) we were severely impacted by a debilitating—and sometimes deadly—"bug" and our workplace "programs" quickly ground to a halt. Immediately, all focus turned to keeping our employees safe. This was absolutely the right thing to do as we prepared to fight a new enemy.
But what's becoming obvious—as I discuss go-forward business strategy with various leaders—is that one of the biggest casualties of this business-as-usual disruption has been workplace learning and employee development. When the coronavirus hit, all our circuit breakers were tripped and everything stopped—we literally hit the pause button on workplace learning.
This week's CORE Bites is a compelling (and, I hope, persuasive) reminder that we can't afford to put our capacity building, competency acquisition, 70:20:10 breadth/depth learning, mentoring programs, and other employee continuous learning processes on hold. Our organizations simply will not survive without continuous retooling and reskilling—especially in consideration of what we've been through in the recent past, and how these events will shape the future ahead of us. Learning is a key strategy to unleash employees' growth potential.
We're still operating with many physical restrictions in place, so it's time to get creative with our learning processes. This week (starting today), look for ways to regain learning momentum. Make it obvious; make it purposeful; make it impactful. The stronger learning capabilities that emerge will have a very positive—and very demonstrable—long-term impact on your team. The HVAs listed below are just a few ideas to stimulate your creativity:
I'd love to hear how these HVAs work for you!
Neil Dempster, PhD, MBA
RESULTant™ and Behavioral Engineer
"Learning can emerge as spontaneous order at the edge of chaos."
— Sugata Mitra —