It seems like every training manager I’ve talked with lately says they are incorporating action learning into their programs. So I ask myself, “Is action learning the new silver bullet for training organizations?”

Let me start by defining what I mean when I use the term "action learning," because I’ve heard it defined a number of different ways. In short, I would say that action learning is a process in which groups of learners collaborate to solve actual workplace problems. In this way, organizations benefit from gaining solutions to critical problems, and participants benefit by learning from their experiences. Note that the collaborative element is  important here. The group exercise helps learners work through the problem as a team, helping them to build communication and collaborative skills, as well as social connections.

Using this definition, I have talked with several companies that are successfully using action learning projects to integrate learning more deeply into actual practice. These projects help learners apply the skills acquired during formal training to real-world challenges, and as I just mentioned, build social and collaborative problem-solving skills.

Let me give you one example of a successful leadership development program that incorporates action learning. The program was developed by Moses Cone Health System, a regional system of hospitals and healthcare centers in North Carolina. Like the rest of the U.S. healthcare industry, Moses Cone is facing numerous challenges, one of which is pressure to improve quality in clinical performance.

To address this issue, the hospital’s executives began looking at a learning & development initiative to enhance the capabilities of hospital leaders. The program they developed consists of various components, starting with a series of instructor-led classroom training sessions, followed by an action learning project.

For the action learning component, interdisciplinary teams of participants are charged with completing projects focused on real Moses Cone quality issues – such as reducing emergency room waiting time and improving accounts receivable cycles. Care is taken to ensure that teams include participants with diverse professional backgrounds, a tactic that was designed to encourage creative thinking. After completing the projects, teams present their insights and recommendations to course instructors and executives.

Moses Cone  did another smart thing. To ensure accountability and commitment to the leadership program, Moses Cone’s top 150 leaders have parts of their performance bonuses tied both to active participation in the program and to outcomes from the action learning projects.

The results have been impressive. Moses Cone’s CEO points to the hospital’s new quality-focused culture and leadership program as contributing to a decrease in its overall mortality rate in the past year.

This is an excellent example of how action learning, combined with traditional ILT, can be used successfully in L&D programs. And the combination here is important. I’ve heard about other programs that combine action learning with e-learning, coaching/mentoring, and other forms of formal and informal training. Action learning can be used to build off other learning events and integrate this learning into actual business practice. For more examples of successful programs that incorporate action learning, read our research paper “Global Learning & Talent Solutions”, available in our library.