This paper seeks to advance the understanding of the complementarity between action learning and lean. Today, this is an underexplored research area, despite the high degree of similarities and syngeneic possibilities between these two research streams. The paper describes an action learning intervention at VELUX, a Danish rooftop manufacturer…

A multi-national company is transforming into a learning organization. An experiment was launched to include Virtual Action Learning in the process of transformation. For that, a team will work together as Action Learning Set in order to define how Virtual Action Learning can be successfully and sustainably implemented, and furthermore, how…

Scholars have examined Revans' problem-solving praxeology in many contexts but have not fully explored the concept in the case of physical co-location. Hence, we focussed on investigating Revans' conceptualisation in a co-located context by paying particular attention to the 'different forms of learning' that emerged from it. The research setting…

This account of practice details the experiences of two doctoral students, on a DBA programme in the UK, as participants in an action learning set. It outlines the background to setting up the action learning set and describes early assumptions made by the students in relation to action learning structures. It highlights the initial difficulties…

This article sheds light on employee wellbeing. We reveal how an 'adapted' action learning intervention (a change laboratory) introduced prior to the Covid-19 pandemic in the UK, enabled learning and action to emerge within an educational programme. We utilise the theoretical lens of activity theory to illustrate the challenges and tensions of…

This account of practice describes an online program started in 2022, which helps leaders at BNP Paribas to be more effective problem solvers and inclusive leaders by developing stronger questioning and listening skills. The goals of this program were aligned with action learning and could have been achieved with standard, coach-led action…

This paper uses action learning as a basis for producing research data that help explore the relationship between learning and listening in public organizations. The regional government of Gipuzkoa in northern Spain is engaged in a sustained effort to change the way it interacts with and interprets the future needs of society. Based on grounded…

This journal will look at action learning during my assessed and supported year in employment (ASYE), and the importance of this, I will reflect on how action learning informed practice issues I faced and how this helped me to develop and become a more confident practitioner. I will discuss and reflect on the process of action learning, group…

Promoting open reflection and exploration on group dynamics is delicate work and is often considered 'not very business-like' in a business context. How to approach this work is a constant balance and struggle for action learning practitioners. In this account of practice, we present central elements in our action learning framework -- Action…

ResDiary is a Glasgow-based software company providing software to the hospitality industry. Over a 9-year period the company has grown from 5 to 100 employees and increased annual turnover 20x. In January 2019, the CEO retired from the business and two new CEOs were appointed. This account of practice investigates what organisational changes were…

This account of practice provides a practical example of the use of mindfulness practice within action learning which was a component of a bespoke UK Business School post-graduate leadership development programme commissioned by an English NHS Mental Health Trust aimed at improving the leadership capacity of mid-level managers through work-based…

This study aims to address how practitioners successfully implement action learning in organizations with different cultural values. To effectively adopt action learning, Japanese learners need to learn questioning skills, as they have been brought up in an atmosphere that negates questioning. Using Kolb's learning model, this study aims to…

This account of practice examines the implementation of and reactions to action learning through the Lean methodology in a unique, cross-cultural context. I review my time spent as a Lean coach; engaging with, training, and using action learning with employees in a garment manufacturing facility located in Bali, Indonesia. This research addresses…

The aim of this paper is to review the relevant literature on organisational learning and offer a preliminary conceptual framework as a basis to explore how the multi-levels of individual learning and team learning interact in a public healthcare organisation. The organisational learning literature highlights a need for further understanding of…

This paper brings together the reflections of the authors on their shared and individual experiences of virtual action learning. Whilst many conclusions are shared, there are also some points of difference in practices.