I’m not a big lover of quoting other people but I make exceptions when I come across a truth that resonates with me. One such truth is a quote from management guru, Ken Blanchard, who said, “None of us is as smart as all of us.”
In essence, this refers to the power of our collective intelligence – when we pool our intellectual resources, we end up with brain power that is far superior to the brain power of any one person. For this reason, I drum this into the delegates on the in-house leadership development programmes I conduct.
What this approach also opens the doors to is collective learning, where people learn different skills and qualities and then collaborate with one another to support a collective effort.
This takes the pressure off any one person having to learn everything while others wait to be led by that person with the so-called superior knowledge. Instead, one has a team of people who are competent in a range of different areas who work together, pooling their skills and resources to achieve a common goal.
Gone are the days when one person is looked to as the expert by a team of people who knew a lot less. Now, the power of a team lies in their collective knowledge, competence and intellectual capacity.
Which brings me to the collective learning opportunities we’ve created at the HR Summit on 13 at the Sandton Convention Centre …
We have created a series of conferences, workshops, unique experiences, one-on-one conversations, and demo opportunities all in one day. Practically, one person pitching up can only attend a limited number of these.
But here’s where things get interesting!
By applying the collective learning principle, companies which encourage their HR teams to register, then together plan for each participant to attend different sessions, can scale up their learning exponentially.
So, on the day, every team member follows their own programme during the course of the day, takes notes and then, back at the office they all get together and spend a morning giving everyone a chance to share the takeaways they acquired at the HR Summit.
Think about the learning experience this creates for your people and your company. Think about what it does for each individual. By giving everyone a chance to share what they learned, you’re giving them a chance to further expand their learning – it’s common knowledge (and very true) that one learns even more when one teaches.
Combine the learning at the HR Summit with the teaching back at the office and you end up with a highly effective collective learning experience.
The outdated approach of knowledge residing in the possession of a few, giving them power over others because they know something the others don’t know is falling into irrelevance.
With information and knowledge being so readily available on the internet, mere knowledge is no longer power. It’s what you DO with that knowledge that creates power.
I therefore want to suggest you encourage your HR team to register to attend the HR Summit. But tell them WHY you want them to attend and, together, agree on WHAT they attend on the day (you can look through the agendas, workshops and conversations that are on offer by visiting www.hrsummit.co.za).
One HR Director put it so well, saying, “You can get a week’s learning in one day!”
This is too good an opportunity to miss. Register yourself today and encourage your team to register. It’s free when you use the invitation code: HRFGuest
Alan Hosking is the Publisher of HR Future magazine, www.hrfuture.net and @HRFuturemag. He is an internationally recognised authority on leadership competencies for the future and teaches experienced and younger business leaders how to lead with empathy, compassion, integrity, purpose and agility. He has been an Age Management Coach for two decades and is the author of parenting best seller What nobody Tells a New Father.
