Tuesday, April 13, 2010

CIL: Critical Thinking...getting to the right decision


CIL Critical Thinking: Rebecca Jones and Deb Wallace (managing Director, Baker Lib Servcies Knowledge and Lib Services, Harvard Bus School... dwallace@hbs.edu

rebecca@dysartjones.com


  • aotus is modelling / living critical thinking

  • is not about being critical!!! or being smart

  • about thinking productively etc

  • pres is on slideshare...beckyjojojones...also on www.dysartjones.com (slides and worksheets)

  • not just for academics...practical applications...challenge assumptions

  • what are the traps / landmines?

  • (Deb has climed Mt. Kilamanjaro!!!)

  • tend to suffer from “deer in the headlights”...need to focus on the right thing at the right time

  • critical thinking is really about:

    • decision making and problem solving

    • openmindedness

    • productive dialogue...with colleagues / mgnt...to get to the best decision

  • three simple underlying facts:

    • implicit that we can't make decisions alone or in a vacuum

    • the decisions and problems we face are increasingly complex

    • it's hard and it's worth it

  • Good critical thinking

    • raises the right questions clearly and precisely

    • focuses on the real problem or decision to be taken

    • gather and assesses relevant info

      • uses abstract ideas to interpret info effectively

  • “critical, not criticize!”

  • why?

    • For customers...designing meaningful servcies

    • for organizations...planning, netiation, managing, relationsip building

    • for ourselves and professional cred:

      • aware and factor in our:

        • tendancies and assumptions

        • perceptions and selecitons based on conditioning / beliefs etc

        • reconstructive memory affected by time, what we want to remember, how we want to view a situtation

      • confidnt in our:

        • knowledge

        • ability to reason

  • wake up call...

  • naming the process at first makes it legit:

    • challenge usual practices

    • rethink what has been thought

    • expand the emphasis from shot-term fixes to long-term fusion

  • shake off the feeling that you'll have all the answers

  • common decision traps:

    • framing

      • put the frame up first...clarify status quo, anchor and sunk-costs...brainstorm “what is your view / perpsecitve of this problem?” We don't all see the status quo through the same frame...put up a frame!...and notes inside...put it on its side...”how will we reframe?”...what would the new frame look like?

      • Status quo:

        • tendency is to prepetuate what we already know

        • when we take action we take responsibility

        • psychologically risky....to avoid this:

          • focus ont he real goals and ask how status quo helps move towards them

          • evaluate vs all others alternatives in terms of the future

      • anchoring / chains around our ankles!!!

        • what we hear or see first influences our subsequent thinking...

        • to avoid:

          • be aware

          • purposefully use different starting points

          • as you gather other peeps to discuss the issue, try and limit the info you give them

            • clarify base assumptions

            • keep coming back to them

      • sunk cost

        • investment already made...justify past decisinos...

        • to avoid:

          • consciously set aside past investments

          • stop sinking costs into sunk costs

          • reward turn-arounds and “trys”

      • reaching clarity means wading through confucion...know your own conflict handling style...good chart on slide...very personal...



Deb...Harvard Bis School (lovely grey hair!!!)...iconic building...birth of MBA (what would give a degree more cred than a “big honking library!”...keeps mission out front

  • now called “knowlege and library services”...to illustrate so much more going there than “library”

  • building, and organization, was gutted from the inside

  • critical thinking...it's important to THINK...

  • we don't change goals like we change our underwear!!!

  • to build and enrich an info and knowledge ecosystem (one of their goals)...also...

  • to be the trusted advisor for HBS in knowledge, info and learning practices

  • identified startegic shifts

  • an embarassment of riches of thought...wow...top world leaders in planning / cirtical thinking available to them @ Harvard

  • sense of urgency not super fab...sort of like turning the Queen Mary...have to work within the culutre and with the resoruces available

  • exercising good judgement

    • capability development

    • modelling best practice

    • road maps

    • performance management

    • project management

      • team norms

      • opportunity management

      • after action reviews

  • the status quo is not what we alwyas have to go back to

  • critical that we think

  • need organizational frameworks to allow people to think cirtically

  • all day, every day

    • customer service standards

    • service delivery agreement

    • customer relationship management

    • exceptions management

    • strategic alighnment

    • employee engagement

    • balanced score cards

    • job descriptions / work designs

  • sign: “Service Management Alighnment Engagement”

  • every aspect of the lib has to constantly be engaged...all day, every day

  • 300 type A entrepreneus on faculty!!!

  • lib @ Harvard Bis School ranked very low by employees...working from botton / middle up to address peeps' concerns...can't think critically if you're not happy / engaged at work...good point...

  • balanced score card session later on...way more than just stats

  • also did work on concrete job desciptions / work designs...need to know what you're susposed to be doing

  • manage carefully...it's new

    • disagreement must be incited and managed...leave the convo open for disagreement

    • organizational culture must encourage questioning, especially of decision-makers' assumptions and propositions

  • if peeps are not allowed to think, they will not be engaged

  • critical characteristics

    • harnessing all the types of thinking in your org

    • communication skills...esp listening

    • self-awareness and self-acceptance

    • curiuos, interested and questioning

    • admits lack of valid information or understanding

    • assesses and evaluates info info and propositions for their value on the issue at hand

  • What's critical:

    • awareness

    • just try it

    • discipline your decision-making to uncover thinking erorrs and prevent judgement errors

  • slide with bibliography



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