Share and prosper!

We work in teams within organisations and organisations form part of a larger community of suppliers, distributors and customers. In the past, and there continues to be, some great examples of organisations providing learning to suppliers, distributors and customers of product to ensure that the product provided by a supplier meets agreed or necessary standards, to ensure distributors of product sell it or represent it to agreed standards, and that customers know how to get the best value from it. This activity has, in some cases, seen the use of an organisation’s Learning Management System (LMS) used within this “extended organisation” framework.

But if we take this to another level and consider how the principles of social networking (perhaps best called business networking in this context) holds potential to be an enabler to drive more complex and meaningful relationships between organisations (and their employees) and its business community partners through increasing levels of co-operation, then collaboration through technology could become a new point of market leverage. To a large degree this will hinge on the level of trust engendered between the various parties, but a major driver in it being achieved is because the sharing of know-how is a valuable outcome and collaborative networks will naturally develop formal and informal tentacles that span the business community. Admittedly, the strength of these relationships will be tempered through a continuing strong element of competitiveness, but into the future, it is likely the business community will become dependent on them as the various partners engage through new channels and heightened levels of trust and co-operation.

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About Author

Bob Spence

Bob Spence is a widely known expert in the development of e-learning and workforce strategies, the management of e-learning development teams, processes to enhance quality of e-learning content and the use of technology to enhance human performance. During his career Bob has been recognised through numerous awards, recorded interviews, journal articles and he has presented at more than 60 conferences in Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, UK and USA. After pioneering the use of Computer-Based Training at a major Australian Financial Institution in the early 1980’s where he led a team of 32 learning and graphic designers that developed hundreds of hours of computer based training on CD ROM, his experience was enriched when, in 1999, he joined a “top three” Professional Services Firm as Director, e-Learning Asia Pacific. After moving on to another large Australian Bank in 2002, he led that organisation’s successful and internationally awarded implementation of e-learning. Bob advocates strongly for the development of people capability to enable the achievement of performance potential and since retiring from full-time work in 2007 he has shared his knowledge and experiences through a variety of mentoring, consulting and speaking engagements and through voluntary work in the community education sector. Bob and was named Learning Leader 2009 at the Learrnex 2009 Conference and is currently a Co-opted Board Member of large and very active Community College. His qualifications include an MBA with a major in Human Resources from the University of New England.

(2) Readers Comments

Ryan Tracey
February 6, 2012 at 8:16 am

Excellent idea, Bob.

How would you see this playing out? On an in-house platform managed by one of the players, or on a public platform such as LinkedIn?

Reply
Bob Spence
February 6, 2012 at 3:14 pm

Hi Ryan
Let’s say there is a manufacturing organisation looking for ways increase quality while fostering relationships with suppliers of components and distributors of a completed/assembled product. The organisation could, in conjunction with say the supplier of components, develop learning materials about the best way to develop the components so that the manufacturing organisation receives components to the required starndard. The manufacturing organisation could host the content of this learning material on it’s LMS and provide access to a partitioned area exclusively for the component supplier – it could be a small price to pay to ensure quality components.

Using the above simple example, I’m forecasting that the increasing need for competitiive points of differentiation between organisations may be enhanced by efforts to look for new and innovative ways to provide value and enhance relationships. Sharing of know-how and access to infrastructure may be one way an organisation, such as the one I depicted above, can provide value add across a supply chain and associated distribution channels. And there may be other strategies associated with increased collaboration that also add value.

The interesting point about this is that the learning function is in aposition to influence the provision of this learning based value add. What beter way to work with and get closer to the business!!

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