Learn or Die: Using Science to Build a Leading-Edge Learning Organization

by Edward D. Hess

To compete with today's increasing globalization and rapidly evolving technologies, individuals and organizations must take their ability to learn—the foundation for continuous improvement, operational excellence, and innovation—to a much higher level. In Learn or Die, Edward D. Hess combines recent advances in neuroscience, psychology, behavioral economics, and education with key research on high-performance businesses to create an actionable blueprint for becoming a leading-edge learning organization. Learn or Die examines the process of learning from an individual and an organizational standpoint. From an individual perspective, the book discusses the cognitive, emotional, motivational, attitudinal, and behavioral factors that promote better learning. Organizationally, Learn or Die focuses on the kinds of structures, culture, leadership, employee learning behaviors, and human resource policies that are necessary to create an environment that enables critical and innovative thinking, learning conversations, and collaboration. The volume also provides strategies to mitigate the reality that humans can be reflexive, lazy thinkers who seek confirmation of what they believe to be true and affirmation of their self-image. Exemplar learning organizations discussed include the secretive Bridgewater Associates, LP; Intuit, Inc.; United Parcel Service (UPS); W. L. Gore & Associates; and IDEO.

Genres: Business, Nonfiction, Leadership, Management, Psychology, Education, Science

280 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 2014

About the author

Professor Edward D. Hess spent more than 30 years in the business world. He began his career at Atlantic Richfield Corporation and was a senior executive at Warburg Paribas Becker, Boettcher & Company, the Robert M. Bass Group and Arthur Andersen. He is the author of ten books, over 60 practitioner articles, and over 60 Darden cases, etc. dealing with growth systems, managing growth and growth strategies. His books include Hess and Liedtka, The Physics of Business Growth: Mindsets, System and Processes (Stanford University Press, 2012); Grow to Greatness: Smart Growth for Entrepreneurial Businesses (Stanford University Press, 2012); Growing an Entrepreneurial Business: Concepts & Cases (Stanford University Press, February, 2011); Smart Growth: Building Enduring Businesses by Managing the Risks of Growth (Columbia Business School Publishing, 2010); Hess and Goetz, So You Want to Start A Business (FT Press, 2008); The Road To Organic Growth (McGraw-Hill, 2007); Hess and Cameron, eds., Leading with Values: Virtue, Positivity & High Performance (Cambridge University Press, 2006); Hess and Kazanjian, eds., The Search for Organic Growth (Cambridge University Press, 2006).

Smart Growth was named a Top 25 2010 business book for business owners by Inc. Magazine and was awarded the Wachovia Award for Research Excellence.

His current research focuses on the Darden Growth/Innovation Model, the challenges of managing private company growth, growth systems and behaviors. Hess has taught in Executive Education programs for Harris Corporation, Cigna, Timken, United Technologies, Genworth Financial, Pitney Bowes, Unilever Russia, Westinghouse Nuclear, Alpha Natural Resources, Alegco-Scotsman, FTI Consulting, Dover Corporation, Glen Raven Corporation as well as IESE (Barcelona) and the Indian School of Business.

Hess's work has appeared in Fortune magazine, JiJi Press, Washington Post, the Financial Times, Investor's Business Daily, CFO Review, Money magazine and in more than 300 other media publications as well as on CNBC, BusinessWeek.com, Fox Business News, Forbes.com, Big Think, Reuters.com., Inc.com, WSJ Radio, Bloomberg Radio, Dow Jones, MSNBC Radio, Huffington Post.com, Business Insider.com and Chief Learning Officer.com.

Prior to joining the faculty at Darden, he was Adjunct Professor and the Founder and Executive Director of both the Center for Entrepreneurship and Corporate Growth and the Values-Based Leadership Institute at Goizueta Business School, Emory University.

Reviews

[Darren · Rating 5 out of 5]

For decades businesses have been told that they need to get on-board with the latest technologies, yet this is no longer enough. Technology changes at a rapid pace, globalisation puts businesses under increasing pressures yet a core competency tends to be often forgotten – learning.

This speed of change creates volatility that demolishes typical competitive advantages, products, companies and often their leadership, requiring a dynamic, distributed, forward-thinking mindset to really ride the oncoming waves. Many companies talk the talk about their innovation, their continuous improvement processes and how they strive for excellence but most fail to truly walk the walk. This book is quite thought provoking and inspirational, looking at and combining some of the latest advances in neuroscience, psychology, behavioural economics, education and business operations to give, it is promised, an “actionable blueprint” for becoming a leading-edge learning organization.

Looking at the process and structure of learning for individuals and companies, the author starts by considering how our mind works and the power of emotions before revealing the methodology of learning and how a learning environment can be created and utilised in the most effective manner possible.

The book is more than capable of giving a few surprises. We are all inherently lazy, the author obliquely notes, with the brain routinely consuming a disproportionate amount of energy – the brain comprises of 2.5% of our body weight and consumes 20% of the body’s energy – so wherever possible we tend to operate in a so-called low gear or on autopilot to conserve energy. At times, we need to break that cycle and ramp things up to a higher gear. Our method of thinking, known as cognitive dissonance or our humanness, can work against us. We might need to work against the machine, harness its known weak spots and combine to a power of strength to maximise our collective knowledge.

Knowing how and why to do this might be the key, yet it can be hard to work around our default settings. We are conditioned to it and, as the author notes, it can be why smart people make bad decisions and it's why companies miss trends and new opportunities. We may need to get rid of our ego and its automatic defence mechanism as well as reduce our fears that inhibit learning. Our emotions can work for us but equally, if unchecked, they can work against us. This book explains this and much more in tremendous detail, parcelled up into accessible segments for digestion.

A ”glimpse behind the curtain” is made at a number of acclaimed companies where highly individualistic yet regimented learning styles are applied such as Bridgewater Associates, UPS and IDEO. Despite the author cutting to the chase, this is quite an intense, packed book that you really need to sit down and concentrate on. In reality, should you make a connection with it, you will be hooked and find it quite hard to put down.

All in all this was one of those great surprise books you might not ordinarily consider, yet you will probably be glad that you did. This book does not stop giving and should you want even more there is an extensive series of notes and a very detailed bibliography. It is presumed that the index will be similarly comprehensive although it was not present in this pre-release review copy.

A highly recommended, thoughtful and impactful read. Maybe you won’t delay your departure on this earth by reading this book, yet you might prolong your company’s and thus your own employment!

Learn or Die: Using Science to Build a Leading-Edge Learning Organization, written by Edward D. Hess and published by Columbia University Press. ISBN 9780231170246, 280 pages. YYYYY

[Muwaffaq Salti · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would love to give it more stars - I have been reading many books like this and this is a synthesis of many. The reason I have not rated it higher is his central case for a "learning culture" is not really empirically supported by the examples he gives. The sample set is too small - to use 6-8 examples of firms with the culture the author recommends. It is however an interesting read and worth doing even if just for the extreme examples that come out of Bridgewater !!

[Waldek Mastykarz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book. Some parts are hard to follow but nonetheless the contents are invaluable.

[Jay Hennessey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book, especially chapter 9 on Bridgewater. Although I am not fully convinced on all aspects of the Bridgewater methodology, specifically the radical transparency, I love the idea of routine and iterative feedback as a learning and development practice.

In the Bridgewater example, however, it appears that the desire to improve and provide feedback is at odds with trust and the “safety” that workers in High Performing organizations need to feel, in order to really be vulnerable and grow. I would love to hear Ray Dalio’s thoughts on Daniel Coyle’s Culture code, where Coyle looks at a multitude of High Performing Organizations and maps out the similarities - not surprising, “Safety” is one of the key themes.

Lastly, I enjoyed the references and interleaving of so many other fantastic reads - especially right in the beginning of the book when a reference is made to this work being the next “5th Discipline”, outlining how to create or reinforce learning organizations.

I think this is a worthwhile read for senior leaders who are focused on creating a learning organization and the development of their people.

[Lams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bridgewater-chapter is excellent and the book has quite a few interesting ideas and things to try out in your organization. I think it is a bit too long and a bit too short on the science given the title. 3/4 stars from me.

[Melisa Buie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting overview of a lot of the current theories and research related to learning organizations and high performance. Great examples of learning cultures with case studies of Gore, Bridgewater, Intuit and UPS. Very dense but fascinating.

[InvestingByTheBooks.com · Rating 3 out of 5]

What does it take for organizations to create a culture of learning that will make them prosper? The author’s viewpoint is that winning companies are those that outlearn others and that the formula to create a HPLO, a High Performing Learning Organization, equals the right people + the right environment + the right processes. The companies that don’t learn will neither improve nor have the ability to adapt to changes and will thus risk extinction. Edward Hess who is a professor in business administration has written this book both to try to show individuals how they can become better learners but predominantly to show companies how they can build an organization that outlearns their competitors.

Learn or Die is divided into two parts. In the first the author looks to what previous research and his own experiences say about learning. There is a genuine feeling in the writing especially when Hess describes how his own life events have changed how he approach learning and life in general. Still, I found this part disappointing. It is a cursory overview of what the interested reader probably will have read more specialized in-depth texts about previously. Carol Dweck’s excellent Mindset springs to mind. What the author brings forward makes perfect sense and it is an overview of a broad field, but there is very little new added.

I bought the book for its second part and specifically for its chapter on Bridgewater. The second part of the book focuses on Bridgewater, Intuit and UPS as case studies of learning. Bridgewater has developed a unique practice of what they call “radical transparency”. The firm’s critics would claim that the culture is slightly sectarian. The staff tries to stress test all their thinking by seeking second opinions. The company constantly performs what they call “drill downs” where people’s work is sometimes quite bluntly challenged, displaying personal weaknesses. All in the name of revealing the truth and getting employees to learn from feedback. All conversations in the entire firm are taped and open for everybody to listen to and learn from. A person’s one main weakness is listed on the summary page of his employee record – obviously also open for everybody to read.

Objectivity is sought after and thus egos must be suppressed as they give rise to biases that hinder the truth. The truth cannot be reached if people aren’t honest about their strengths and weaknesses and learning cannot happen if people aren’t open to feedback. Mistakes are acceptable if and only if they are identified, analyzed and learnt from. When a problem has occurred, a diagnose is made to determine if it is attributable to the processes or to the employee. If it’s the latter and the problem is deemed to be due to a lack of skill possible to remedy the employee will get education. If it’s deemed to be due to the character of the person, he’s moved to a position with better fit. In all this Bridgewater is very clear that one shouldn’t personalize mistakes but learn from them.

Bridgewater by the zero tolerance for anything but the detailed truth and focus on correcting personal biases has put learning and personal development in the company on “fast forward” and they also purposely reassign staff to their best fit with needed tasks. This is a type of brutal psychotherapy open for all to observe. Bridgewater is an extreme example of a “learning machine” and a large percent of newly hired at the firm leave within 18 months of hiring, as their egos cannot stand the bruising. However, those who last this first period often stay for very long and the firm has had unprecedented success.

The Bridgewater story is fascinating. I think the author could have done more with it. There is relatively little of critical reflection around what Hess experiences at his visit. Ray Dalio even requests him to give feedback on what he learns so that Bridgewater can improve. I’d love to know what constructive suggestions were made. Instead the reader gets the feeling that Hess is a bit too awestruck of what he sees. Still it’s an okay book if you want an overview of organizational learning or of Bridgewater’s culture.

[Mark Oppenlander · Rating 2 out of 5]

Edward Hess is a professor, writer, and former business executive, who has spent a number of years studying how organizations drive results by becoming high-performance learning organizations (or, as he abbreviates it, HPLO's). Learn or Die is his distillation of his findings.

The information in the book isn't bad and much of it could prove quite useful to business leaders. Unfortunately, the structure of the book feels clunky and the writing is uninspired.

The first half of the book reads like an academic literature review. Hess attempts to summarize what hundreds of other theorists, business consultants, and researchers have written about what makes organizations successful at learning and adapting. He concludes that to become an HPLO, one must get the right people, in the right environment, using the right processes, to be successful. Hess attempts to share what it takes to accomplish these three tasks, but because of the format, the content proves dense and unwieldy, like hacking through a thick jungle. It's a slog.

The second half of the book proves to be much more user-friendly. Hess offers case studies from three businesses he has identified as HPLO's: Bridgewater, Intuit, and UPS. These in-depth descriptions of how specific companies became HPLO's are much more vivid and useful than the dense jargon-filled summaries in the first half of the book. I really enjoyed these chapters.

Sandwiched between these two major sections is a chapter that feels completely out of place. It's an interview with Dr. Gary Klein, a subject matter expert on HPLO's. The chapter reads like a transcript from a podcast, and is fine for what it is, but it's an absolute departure of style from the chapters on either side. It feels like it belongs in another book (or format) entirely.

This book has some nice material in it, but the delivery of the content is horribly uneven. I'd probably recommend skimming or skipping the first part, and then picking up at Chapter Nine or thereabouts. As always, YMMV.

[Alexis Bauer Kolak · Rating 4 out of 5]

At one point, the author of Learn or Die points out that the rules of business aren't complicated or difficult to understand; they're just hard to follow. I had a similar experience as a reader. It's not hard to immediately see yourself in the "good" position of these situations, but it's tough to make it stand up under scrutiny. We are all trying to be better team members and leaders (except the sociopaths), but doing so consistently is pretty rare.

There are lots of great little nuggets in this book, and it contributed further to the nightmare that is my TBR pile, but I think this is one of the few "business" books I've read where I've wanted to pull out a page and give it to a co-worker. There is a section on Bridgewater has a culture of almost brutal honesty and assessment, and the analysis framework for evaluating an issue is something I really might be sharing in the future (and of course, using myself) to help people understand what it means to be accountable for your actions.

Overall, a quick, easy, and worthwhile read.

[Alexandra · Rating 2 out of 5]

The narration was so dry and the stuff in here was so much I already knew that I just couldn't bring myself to pick it up again and finish. It's not an awful book - it's just not for me as of now.

"...and in may ways resist learning if learning requires us to change our views of the world or our view of ourselves."

"If we behave in a teaching moment...in a way that creates negative emotions that person's ability to learn is in most cases diminished. If [others] witness that bad behavior then their ability to learn will also be negatively impacted."

"Learners are either masters or performers. Masters seek to develop competence through learning and improvement. While performers seek to demonstrate competence by showing others how smart they are or by outperforming others."

"We can cognitively process up to 600wpm while most people only speak at a rate of 100-150wpm - in other words we get bored while listening."

Stopped at 35%

[Zhaniya Sagimbayeva · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite the fact that I didn't necessarily like the name of the book and that the initial context of it does not relate to the "Die" part, I pushed myself to read it further and found out it really helpful to myself. First of all, I really liked the research approach how to learn in the business industry in the first part of the book as well as the providing the real world examples in the second part. Also, being a grad student in business school it helped to navigate which companies I should look for to start my career with and may be to build my own in a future. Moreover, all the principles that are precisely expressed in the book such as "Toyota's 5 why's", positive thinking, safe environment, having productive conversations, and more importantly defending oneself's ego and fears, will be definitely tested in the upcoming Spring semester. I'm glad to read it during the break though sometimes it was really hard to follow on the Miami beach.

[Anya Harkness · Rating 3 out of 5]

It has a lot of really good ideas to incorporate into ones daily life but it is subjectively written and there is a ton of fluff. There are very limited concrete, well thought out points and he seems to be summarizing other people’s ideas. There is not a whole lot of original thought and is clearly written from a male perspective that has just learned about mindfulness and reflection for the first time. That being said there are great take aways for everyone and it reminded me to shift my mindset when it comes to learning.

[Callum · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable, interesting and particularly worthwhile for the vignettes.

[Callum · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brilliantly simple, yet inspiring

[Balraj Mattu · Rating 1 out of 5]

A copy-paste of several other books, good ideas but nothing original offered.
Also, poorly written 1.5/5

[Sefi Keller · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book mostly quotes widely known researchers (such ash Kahenman) and doesn't add much value.

[Spire Metro · Rating 3 out of 5]

A discussion of organizations' policy and implementations of institutional learning strategies.

[Dave Bolton · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a pretty good outline of building a learning organisation. It synthesised something from material sourced from a variety of popular books (like Kahneman's Thinking Fast and Slow) and personal experience into a call to arms for the learning org.

I didn't find it as compelling as Senge's The Fifth Discipline, though it did include some newer thinking and examples. It won't be a game changer if you've read widely in management and leadership, but it would be a good starting point if you haven't.

[Brian Kight · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thorough research, disciplined execution

This book is an in-depth combination of academic research, study, and theory validated in real organizations, with real leaders, real people, and real results. Most leaders will read all of this and implement some of this and execute none of this. Those that do execute the principles in this book will see significant return on energy invested.

[Suhrob · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've picked it up just because my big interest with Bridgewater/Dalio, but this was generally very well put together collection overall. I've already knew much of the material, but even then this was a good read.

[Alex Devero · Rating 3 out of 5]

Individuals and organizations need to find a way to continuously learn and adapt or face professional obsolescence. But to learn well, individuals and organizations need to learn intelligently, and that means creating the conditions in which learning is easy and rewarded.

[Hristo Vassilev · Rating 5 out of 5]

Get it, if only for the chapter on Bridgewater

[Jeromy Peacock · Rating 3 out of 5]

5 stars = Yearly re-read
4 stars = Re-read eventually
3 stars = Very Good
2 stars = OK
1 stars = Pass on this one.
0 stars = Couldn't finish it.

[Ali Karahoda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think he could have written the same book in 50 pages...

[Mills College Library]

658.3124 H5862 2014

[Theodore Kinni · Rating 3 out of 5]

A solid overview of the literature and concepts related to learning orgs, and a handful of interesting case studies.

[Macvnboy]

This great inspire me so much. I love learning and obsess about how to build an organization can learn from its employee experience