Bus Routes and Bike Paths – Jay Cross on Informal Learning

Jay Cross is CEO of Internet Time Group and founder of the Workflow Institute. A thought leader in learning technology, performance improvement, and organisational culture, Jay coined the terms "eLearning" and "workflow learning." He is also CEO of the 1800-member Emergent Learning Forum. Thousands of people read his Internet Time Blog every day. He co-authored the book “Implementing eLearning” and writes a column on effectiveness for Chief Learning Officer magazine. His new book, which is just about to be published, is called “Informal Learning: Rediscovering the Natural Pathways that Inspire Innovation and Performance”. In advance of his presentation at Online Eudca Berlin, he offers a vivid outline of his thoughts on informal learning.

Nothing is more important to business success than continuously improving the know-how of workers. In the industrial era, management’s role was training workers what to do: formal learning. In the knowledge era, workers want to learn but hate to be trained; telling them how to do something insults their intelligence; they want to learn for themselves: informal learning.

Formal learning is like riding a bus. The driver decides where the bus is going; the passengers are along for the ride. On the opposite end, informal learning is like riding a bike: the rider chooses the destination, the speed, and the route. The rider can take a detour at a moment’s notice to admire the scenery or go to the bathroom.

Informal learning happens outside of the bus and the classroom. There’s no curriculum and no certificate of completion. It goes on all the time. Informal learning includes things like trying and failing, asking a colleague, reading a book, or watching television. Informal learning is how we learn about life. It’s how we make sense of things.

Formal learning--riding the bus--is great for novices. It’s efficient to have help getting the lay of the land and getting to the destination. Training departments are very talented at setting up bus routes.

Informal learning, like bicycle riding, is most appropriate for people who already know the territory. They want tips on the new short cuts and the essence of a topic. They want what they want, to plug the holes in their knowledge, and they won’t sit still for bus rides to their destinations. Been there, done that. Training departments don’t devote much effort to helping cyclists.

Here’s the irony: The cyclists are the high performers. Raising their performance 5% blows the roof off. (Whereas raising the performance of novices 5% doesn’t even register.) When it comes to learning, corporations spend most of their money where it does the least good. It’s all bus routes and no bike paths.

Some training departments justify treating everyone as a bus passenger by saying that works for both novices and the old pros. This is flat-out wrong. The bike riders will always find a reason not to take the bus ride. Workers with the most upside potential rarely receive any focused learning at all.

Informal learning is natural. It occurs when we treat people and organizations as organisms in nature. It is the pathway to business success in our emerging world.