The second half of the three-block series (Session 8-10) will focus on "learning through practice" methods to promote knowledge creation and organizational learning. Taking the "action learning" method as a starting point, we will summarize the characteristics of the methods used in human resource development today and explore their potential and challenges.
Following the 8th session, "Understanding the Characteristics of Action Learning," the 9th session, "Methodology for Organizational Change (2): Systems Approach," will critically examine action learning from the perspective of "problem solving" as a human resource development methodology. The following is a discussion. The aim of this section is to organize the issues involved in human resource development activities that utilize the problem-solving methodology (i.e., the systems approach).
As we have already mentioned repeatedly, one of the characteristics of action learning as a human resource development methodology is the interconnectedness of the activities of "problem solving" and "individual and organizational learning. The emphasis is on the relationship between the two. To put it simply, the basic stance of Action Learning is that "individuals and organizations learn through problem solving. So, what kind of "problem-solving methodology" leads to learning? In this regard, Marnord (2001), a well-known "action learning researcher," mentions the following two approaches.
"There are two types of problem-solving approaches: one is the analytical/rational approach and the other is the integrative approach. Advocates of the analytic/rational approach believe that there is one correct solution to a problem. The group follows logic to identify the cause of the problem, develops various solutions based on careful analysis of the situation, and then decides on a solution. Advocates of the integrative approach, on the other hand, believe that problems have multiple solutions and that action, thinking, and learning are equally important. They see problem solving as not only one goal, but the learning that results from problem solving is also one goal."
（Marcord, 2001: 109）
The latter of these is a problem-solving methodology known as the "systems approach. In other words, the systems approach does not consider only the result of improving or reforming an unfavorable situation as the "outcome of problem solving," but also the learning of the individuals involved in problem solving and the organization as a whole as the outcome of the problem solving process. (Checkland Schools, 1994; Senge, 1995).
Certainly, in the context of discussions on problem-solving methodologies, this notion that the learning generated from problem solving is also considered to be one goal has novel and appealing content. However, in the context of a discussion on human resource development methodologies, we need to be a bit more cautious. The fact that "individuals and organizations learn through problem solving" does not necessarily mean that "the best way for individuals and organizations to learn is to solve problems in a practical setting.
Based on the above, using the contents of "Action Learning in Practice: Problem Solving and Organizational Learning Nurture Leaders" as a springboard, we will organize the issues of human resource development utilizing problem-solving methodologies (= systems approach). This is the aim of this study.