Renewing professional organizations and action learning

Abstract

This account concerns the renewal of established professional organizations though action learning. In order to revitalize one national organization, an executive group of leaders committed to co-leading and co-learning through a friendly, computer-supported governance structure. Manifestations of our work together were an accelerated decision-making process and creation of interdependent committees (e.g., research committee, policy committee). Keys to the innovative learning described are peer learning supported by turn taking of the executive leaders and synchronous learning buoyed by asynchronous communications technology. We awakened to the reality that if our organization was to grow, as executive leaders we had to manage our own teaching and learning and tap one another's expertise. We also learned that while face-to-face meetings and annual conferences foster goal attainment, collaboration and camaraderie, they limit the momentum necessary for organizational revival in a rapidly changing world. Organizational capacity is developing quickly as the leaders experiment with action learning interventions that are raising the overall caliber of this professional association.

Keywords:

• National Council of Professors of Educational Administration
• action learning
• professional organizations
• communications technology
• learning-centered leadership

Acknowledgements

I wish to thank the anonymous reviewers who provided helpful comments on the original manuscript. I am grateful to these NCPEA leaders for their insightful feedback on the revised version: James Berry, Ted Creighton, Fenwick English and Rosemary Papa.