Buzzword for budding managers

Outward Bound Learning is increasingly catching the fancy of corporates, writes Col Rajinder Singh Gadhok (retd)

What is OBL? Osama Bin Laden? No. It is an effective methodology for individual and group development in the field of self-awareness, team work, interpersonal relations, communication skills, leadership etc. This is ideally carried out away from the place of work, in unfamiliar settings.

Genesis of the concept

‘Outward Bound’ as a concept can be traced to the noted German born educational philosopher, Dr Kurt Hahn, who called it Gordonsoun activities. There had been some emphasis on sea training and coast-guardship at Gordonstoun, but when the school moved to its wartime home near Aberdovey, the idea of sea training and of learning from the sea took root. The first Outward Bound Sea School was founded in 1941 and the practice of short challenging courses (26 days) for boys from industry, complete with a confidential report on their behaviour and performance under pressure, quickly became established.

The notion of ‘Action Learning’' in management development relates to the experiment by Reg Revans after World War II in Britain. In order to meet the increased demand of coal, there was a need to quickly develop fresh managers for the collieries and there was just no time to train them in the classrooms. The best way to overcome this problem was to take them to the coal mines and provide them the opportunity to observe the conditions in which other managers operated. They shared and compared what they had learnt.

The same principle was effectively used in the Armed Forces in India, when the long training periods for officers had to be drastically curtailed due to the 1971 war. Cadets were sent direct to operational areas after basic training, where they were superimposed in the new environment with the new task and very shortly shouldered responsibilities with great success. The learning in both cases was exponential and results satisfying.

People really begin to learn effectively when they are confronted with difficulties and have the opportunity to share constructively their concerns and experiences with others. This is the basis for assessing how to improve their individual skills and the tasks which they have to perform.

Its relevance

The traditional management education sessions are based on the usual lecture inputs of concepts, ideas and research. They are followed up by historical case studies, together with experiential simulations. These simulations usually involve some role playing and group decision-making. These are all supported by group discussions. Even though these programmes are enjoyable and contribute towards the development of certain skills, the skill development occurs outside the context of the normal work environment and exigencies of the situations. Rarely do these actually discuss real life managerial practices based on real life cases brought by real life managers who are present. The focus is o ‘there and then’ rather than on ‘here and now.’ Therefore, there is no significant transfer of learning from simulations to actual life situations.

Learning cycle

Learning really takes place through the Kolb Cycle of Concrete Experience, Reflective Observation, Abstract Conceptualisation and Active Experimentation.

And experience forms the first step in the learning chain. The next step, reflective observation, is to reflect on our observations. The issue here is to connect with one's inner feelings and ask, “What happened?” This helps to explore further and to draw out learning points.

The third step, abstract conceptualisation, is to form a link between the new experience and our previous knowledge. You need to ask here, “What is the significance of what happened?” This helps to build up a mini-theory. Finally, learning is completed when new ideas are tried out in practice. The question to ask here is, “What will I do as a result?”

There are several reasons why the out door model is considered very effective in training interventions. The major ones are that the training takes place in a new, unfamiliar environment and the participants feel completely disoriented initially. As a result of this, a greater sense of humility is induced and the "I know it all' block is removed. The participants become more open to learning and can easily put the experiential inputs to their job. Situations are so designed as to overcome personal limitations inculcating a sense of stretch through mastering challenges. These experiences also give those with initially low self-esteem, an opportunity to shine and emerge more confident through the mastery of difficult situations and the leaders learn how to really lead.

Outward bound learning has become a genre and corporates are increasingly taking to it. But the outdoors by itself is no training medium. Yes, it does expand experiences, but that by itself is not enough for transfer of learning. Everybody has experiences. If you live long enough, you're going to have innumerable experiences.

The question is how much you've learned from the experiences you've had. In conducting experiential learning programmes, the reflection and debrief really become vital. The facilitator needs to watch events like a hawk. Later, he brings up situations and discusses them. To draw learnings from every experience, no matter how small, is an art. And this is where facilitation skills become vital.

The 'Outward Bound Learning' is a wonderful learning medium. People are stretched in the outdoors. Activities should be difficult enough to cause pain and frustration . These are two of our most common blocks. Participants need to learn how to overcome them. Difficult activities teach possibly the greatest of human lessons--- humility. And yet, conversely, in learning humility, self-esteem is built up. Participants learn that " to rise one must first learn to fall."

Debrief and follow-up

Perhaps, most important aspect the participants learn is the relevance of reflection and debrief. To carry it back to their work areas and to their teams to bring out learnings from real day-to-day experiences. They learn how to build a real knowledge bank within the team and the company as well. The programme is concluded with a thoroughly deliberated follow-up action plan, both at the individual and department levels. If this is meticulously followed with the help of facilitators, it will ensure that learning is transferred to the shop floor, while irritants if any, are identified and gradually removed.