Workshop: Amplify Learning In Your Team With More Double-Loop Learning

Do you remember the first few weeks of your first professional job? It's entirely likely that you were struck by weird rules, awkward procedures, and illogical ways of working. But like most of us, you probably started excepting that as "the way we do things here" after a while, without second-guessing it.

This is a simple illustration of single- and double-loop learning as defined by the organizational theorist Chris Argyris. It is an important part of our book the "Zombie Scrum Survival Guide". Single-loop learning focuses on solving a problem within an existing system that is defined by sets of beliefs, structures, roles, procedures, and norms. Double-loop learning challenges the system, and underlying beliefs themselves. But unfortunately, as our experience grows, we are often increasingly blinded by it to see new options.

Although both types of learning are important for continuous improvement to happen, double-loop learning is important in particular for complex work where teams have to constantly challenge not only how they do the work, but also why. Teams affected by Zombie Scrum tend to limit themselves to single-loop learning and can't benefit from double-loop learning because their existing beliefs about management, products, how to manage people, and how to manage risk remain unchallenged.

We created this do-it-yourself workshop to make your team aware of how different levels of learning are possible. And to help your team learn more effectively by using double-loop learning to challenge their existing ways of working and the system in which that works takes place.