Learning has become more important than ever. It builds resilience and helps us live better. However, learning means different things in different organizational cultures.
In the authority culture, learning about customers looks like this: I hear you, but I need to evaluate what aligns with what I am willing to do. If customers are lucky or things do "align", the service provider meets people halfway, the furthest they are willing to go.
In the learning culture, learning what people want is this: I hear you. I see you. Let me figure out what else I can do to better serve you. People are lucky to interact with businesses like this because the provider understands the customers even before the customers understand themselves. Pete Carroll built a culture that’s all about the players. Acumen chooses to stand with the poor and makes every decision to serve them. Summit Public Schools build a culture that's all about students.
When "learning" is about self-serving instead of serving others, we should at least be honest about it and not pretend it's something else.
