Courageous Conversation video: We really need to talk about knowledge and learning

How do people learn? How do people working on different projects and programmes learn from each other? What’s the relationship between learning and knowledge? What is knowledge, anyway?

Watch this video to gain insights into knowledge and learning, so that you can apply new thinking to yourself and your projects. The content in this video came from the courageous conversation on Tuesday 10 October 2017 in Reading, with Jonathan Norman and Judy Payne leading the discussions.

A Courageous Conversation is a small meeting to discuss a topic that is misunderstood, controversial, or doesn’t usually get aired. This video is a 10 minute whiteboard animation that encapsulates the views expressed at the meeting using words, metaphors, humour and some fantastic graphics produced by Vanessa Randle. Expect to meet a pig, a farmer, members of the nuclear priesthood and Jack’s zimmer frame.

It might surprise you to discover that when we talk about knowledge and learning, we are not necessarily talking about the same things. Philosophers and scholars have been disagreeing about knowledge and learning since the time of Socrates, Plato and Aristotle.

To this day, different perspectives cause confusion – especially for project management professionals. Where is the learning in lessons learned? What exactly is a learning legacy? Can knowledge be captured? Where do communities of practice fit in? What can we do to cut through the confusion and improve project learning?

Tell us what you do to improve your knowledge and learning. Share your experiences of the way your organisation encourages (or prevents!) you in engaging with this. Let us know what you think organisations should do to give you the space you need to develop as a project professional.

Judy Payne
APM Knowledge SIG Co Chair