Benchlearning

"Book of the month": Learn from and with others. Now it has finally arrived - the book BENCHLEARNING. An important part of the book deals with the pre-conditions for grown-ups to learn in work life. Benchlearning combines operations and the human element in a win/win-situation. The employers achieve increased efficiency and the employees attain a richer work life. The book contains both the theories in management and pedagogics as well as practical examples from actual projects. Benchlearning change peoples mind-set towards increased awareness and a higher degree of participation and renewal.
Chef

"Management issues mostly focus on the executive perspective. The authors instead emphasise the role of the employees and Benchlearning as a method to develop the "learning organisation". There is substantial new pedagogical thinking and the book constitutes a good example of creative innovation in Swedish management thinking."
Dagens Industri

Following the success of his previous book, Benchmarking - A Signpost to Excellence in Quality Productivity, Bengt Karlöf creates a new concept - Benchlearning - by combining the practical technique of benchmarking with the more abstract ideas of Knowledge Management and Organisational Learning.

Benchlearning details a completely new way of thinking which provides insights, methods and tools which deal with the continually increasing importance of the human element in organisational development, acknowledges existing theories of knowledge formation and provides case histories (such as Ericsson) and methods with which these new Benchlearning concepts can be applied.

The main feature of the book is how to combine efficiency with organisational learning. Using examples from different organisations Benchlearning shows how to monitor efficiency, provide inspiration for a development drive, and illustrate how people's attitudes can be influenced. This emphasis on learning from other people's experience is a key point for successful development.

The application of the authors concepts promotes a win-win-win situation - Employee performance improves as they learn to develop, customers gain more value and choice and owners benefit from a more competitive organisation. This book provides the next step in benchmarking.Dieses Buch stellt ein neues Konzept vor: "Benchlearning". Es ist eine Kombination aus praktischen Techniken des Benchmarking und den etwas abstrakteren Vorstellungen des Knowledge Management und Organisational Learning. Autor Bengt Karlof zeigt hier am Beispiel einer detaillierten Fallstudie von Ericsson, wie diese innovative Idee in der Praxis Anwendung findet. Zahlreiche Beispiele aus verschiedenen Unternehmen belegen anschaulich, wie man Effizienz überwachen kann, Inspiration für einen Entwicklungsschub liefern kann, und nicht zuletzt auch die Einstellung von Mitarbeitern und Kunden beeinflussen kann. Angewandtes Benchlearning verspricht Gewinn auf drei Ebenen: die Mitarbeiterleistung verbessert sich in dem Maße, wie Mitarbeiter lernen, sich weiterzuentwickeln, Kunden erhalten einen größeren Wert und mehr Auswahl und der Unternehmer profitiert von einem weitaus wettbewerbsfähigeren Unternehmen. "Benchlearning" beschreibt die nächste Stufe des Benchmarking - topaktuell, praxisnah und erfolgversprechend! Eine unverzichtbare Lektüre für alle Manager, die durch hochwertige und kontinuierliche Lernprozesse die Erfahrungen aus Benchmarking-Aktivitäten in die Praxis umsetzen wollen. Preface.

Introduction.

Observations on Management.

The Benchmarking Legacy.

Fundamentals of Knowledge Formation.

New Requirements for Corporate Development and Knowledge Formation.

Benchlearning and Modern Knowledge Theory.

Benchlearning in Practice.

The Method Step by Step.

Epilogue.

References.

Index.

Bengt KarIöf is the senior partner and founder of Karlöf Consulting, a Swedish-based strategy consultancy with worldwide interests.

Renowned for his work in the area of strategic development, Bengt Karlöf has acted as a consultant for numerous major organisations in both the public and private sectors over the past twenty years. He lectures widely in both academic institutions and at management seminars on all aspects of strategy. He has written a number of books on the subject, which have been translated into several languages.

Always from a practical stance, Bengt Karlöf’s aim is to produce a business strategy which will make organisations work more efficiently.

Kurt Lundgren is an acting professor at The Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm and a researcher at the Swedish National Institute for Working Life. Different aspects of the economics of learning have been the main content in Kurt Lundgren’s research. Increased complexity and a rate of technological change have changed the conditions for individual and organisational learning. Kurt Lundgren is now working with research and development projects in the famous Kista area – The Wireless Valley – outside Stockholm.

Marie Edenfelt Froment is a partner and president of Karlöf Consulting, a Swedish-based strategy consultancy with worldwide interests.

With an educational background of Human Resource development, Marie Edenfeldt Froment tries to combine strategy and business development with aspects of both individual and organisational learning. She works as a consultant for both private and public organisations and was responsible for the case studies described in the book.

This new method integrates efficient methods and human development at a time when such integration is recognised as increasingly vital to organisational success. It:

• offers practical inspiration on improving quantitative goals – company performance and competitiveness – by influencing the attitudes of people within the organisation
• provides a new method combining the qualities of both the learning organisation and knowledge management
• shows how this concept can be applied using case studies and illustrations, and the results of pilot projects
• describes practical perspectives and tools on management and learning theory

This book will be invaluable to senior and middle managers, consultants and practitioners, and MBA students, as well all those working within organisations who are keen to improve and develop their performance.