Chief Learning Officer - October 2007 - (Page 12)

letters to the editor Winning Opening Statements I liked Norm Kamikow’s editor’s letter (“Being First is a Blast”) in the August 2007 issue of Chief Learning Officer magazine. Yes, this advanced capability of conglomerating data and information will change the way business operates, with any luck, for the better. Of course, the downside is that there is no guarantee any of the information is correct and from a truly authoritative figure. Those entrusted with the training of their people had better be aware of it and develop a plan on how to use it. A couple of the articles start to touch on the new media available to us to train people, and it is not just internal organizations that can use these tools. As a professional organization, in a virtual reality, we have broken some new ground and taken on some of the new technologies, tools and approaches to enable our members’ development. We have been using wikis to gather best practices and develop agreed terms. We have produced “Ask the Expert” calls, which then are available as podcasts, so people can listen to them on the go. Our on-demand training modules are available to our member clients — the professionals who are doing the work and need the knowledge — as a living encyclopedia. We also maintain a message board within the system so people can share best practices, case studies and new ideas with colleagues around the world. So far, the results are good, and the participants happy, and with thousands enrolled in our programs, they are tried and tested. Mark Hemingway Director, Member Services, International Association for Contract & Commercial Management Ridgefield, Conn. Although I always enjoy reading Norm Kamikow’s editor’s letters, I particularly appreciate his wisdom in the September 2007 letter (“A Word to the Wise”). Many leaders are intelligent, but not all of them are wise, and yes, there is a difference. October 2007 can and the wisdom to know the difference.” Having been made to recite this endlessly throughout my youth, it was only after my grandmother’s passing (and my own metacognition) that I came to fully understand the prayer and the critical role wisdom plays in life. As I taught this simple yet profound lesson to my own daughter, I changed the order of the requests. Having spent a great deal of my life trying to change that which could not be changed, it seemed a better idea to teach her to ask first for the wisdom to size up the situation and then be granted the tools to act accordingly. Each time my daughter is faced with difficult choices, I recite “the platitude.” And just as I had done, she responds with a nod and “Yes, I know, Mother — ask for wisdom.” Yet, I am certain that she grasps the magnitude of this mantra, as her choices and decisions reflect wisdom far beyond her 20 years. What a blessing it is to know what you don’t know or at least to know that you don’t know! What grace to have the humility and courage to acknowledge it! Again, Norm, I thank you for your comments. I feel a little less isolated today by my perceptions and observations of the world and people around me. Merle Obregon Product Specialist TEDS Inc. Negotiating for the Right Results On June 25, I received the CLO Executive Briefings e-newsletter with the featured article titled “Teaching Negotiation Skills? Embrace the Power of ‘No.’” As director of negotiation programs with Mediation Works Inc. (MWI) in Boston, I felt the need to respond. The article, summarizing Jim Camp’s latest book, “No: The Only Negotiating System You Need for Work and Home,” points to several very pertinent take-away lessons for those looking to improve results achieved when negotiating. As an internal negotiator, CLOs often need not only to achieve the best results at the negotiating table, but also to maintain and improve working relationships over the long term, especially because those whom they are trying to influence and negotiate with are the same parties they are struggling with for “parity and a seat at the C-suite table … programming funds and resources ….” That being said, negotiators must consider the long-term implications (read: consequences) of their actions/negotiating style and must ques- To share your comments, opinions, questions or suggestions with Chief Learning Officer editors, write to letters@clomedia.com. Letters may be edited prior to publication. Please include your full name and, if desired, company name and title, when writing to us. The business community is a microcosm of our society at large. Both suffer from the same affliction: too much information, knowledge and ego and not enough wisdom. Even “common sense is not so common anymore” could not be truer than it is today. Just as once was said, “Science without conscience is the ruin of the soul,” so knowledge without wisdom is the demise of great intellect. My grandmother cherished the prayer, “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I I www.clomedia.com I Chief Learning Officer 12 http://www.clomedia.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Chief Learning Officer - October 2007

Editor's Letter Table of Contents Letters to the Editor Taking the Lead Trends Best Practices Effectiveness Guest Editorial Elements of Social Media Arrive on the Learning Scene Trend Micro: Making Learning More Modular CLO Profile Learning’s Role in Talent Management INTTRA: Using Global Learning to Better Enable Talent Management Operationalizing Communities of Practice U.S. Army: Sharing Lessons from the Field Looking Back, Moving Forward Leveraging Business Data to Develop Strategic Learning Solutions Chrysler LLC: Metrics, Score Cards and Automobiles Advertisers' Index Editorial Resources Connecting the Dots: Recognizing Talent Development Differences at Nonprofits Nonprofits in Health Care: Learning at ENH Case Study Business Intelligence Case Study In Conclusion

Chief Learning Officer - October 2007

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