Focus on learning: thick reports do not improve efficiency!
The gist- We should shift our focus from producing long reports with unnecessary information and data to key and focused insights presentations. Thick reports and copious amounts of data may appear impressive, but they do not necessarily translate into improved efficiency and learning. In fact, they can overwhelm learners, hinder comprehension, and lead to information overload. True efficiency comes from relevant, concise, and actionable knowledge. We need to understand the target audience for a report and streamline the content of the reports. People are busy; only a few get time to read long reports. It is important to focus on key insights and present it in a way that helps readers to learn a few things quickly that eventually lead to tangible improvement in performance and problem-solving capabilities. There are many other tools to deliver key content to the staff; multimedia products are highly popular these days. Byte sized learning videos, interviews, animated infographics can do a better job than traditional text-based reports.
Have you ever heard that the staff in your organization loves reading those thick reports filled with text, charts, and reference notes? In reality, many only read the executive summary, skim through the chapters, focus on breakout boxes, and glance at the images. One reason why people tend to avoid reading reports is due to their dry and lengthy nature. While reports serve important purposes for auditors, board members (who might not delve into every detail), and strategists, for general staff, they often end up being shelved. This might sound sarcastic, but conducting a brief survey could potentially align with my observation.
Organizations invest significant time and resources, involving both internal staff and hired consultants, to produce these reports. While annual reports are a traditional requirement by shareholders, they don’t always contribute to the staff’s learning or development. But its not just the Annual Reports, companies produce many other types of reports- Back to Office report (after a business mission), Appraisal report (after a team come back from appraising a project), evaluation report (understanding impacts of a finance projects, mostly in the developing world), management and business reports, quarterly performance reports etc. How many of these reports are read by the staff and what do they learn from these? At present, many companies are producing reports online with some interactive features. Data are presented in virtual form- in dashboards, which staff can customize for specific views. Web-based interactive reports definitely increase the usage rate of the reports, but they might lack the clarity and conciseness needed for effective learning. Study needs to be done to gauge how much staff actually learn from these vast amounts of information and how much of this information is used in their day to day operations. Efficiency in learning isn’t about consuming abundant amounts of information; it’s about making the best use of the information available. It’s about distilling complex concepts into digestible bits that foster deep comprehension and practical application.
Approach to learning also differs between different generations. For example, Millennials are more tech savvy and therefore, their learning style is different than baby boomers or even Generation X.
Generation X staff, born between the early 1960s and early 1980s, often experienced more traditional educational approaches. They are known for being independent and self-reliant. They were likely exposed to conventional classroom teaching, textbooks, and face-to-face interactions without the pervasive influence of digital technology.
Following are some learning preferences of Gen-X individuals:
· Hands-on learning: They prefer experiential learning over traditional lecture-based or theoretical approaches.
· Real-world assignments: They respond well to case studies and assignments that are relevant to the real world.
· Traditional development methods: They tend to favor workshops, seminars, and training courses.
· Technology: They expect technology to be part of the learning process.
Millennials, on the other hand, influenced by the digital revolution and are generally more adaptive at leveraging technology for learning. They grew up during the rise of the Internet and the integration of digital tools in education. They prefer learning styles that are informal, collaborative, interactive and multi-media based.
Following are some learning preferences of Gen-X individuals:
· Micro-learning: Millennials prefer learning quickly with bite-sized content. They might turn to TikTok or YouTube to learn about a topic.
· Group-based learning: Millennials like group-based projects that involve collaboration with peers.
· Social learning environments: Millennials benefit from discussion boards, chat rooms, and open learning sessions.
· Informal learning: Millennials prefer learning that doesn’t seem structured or formal.
When teams design learning materials, it’s important to consider the specific generation they’re targeting, as learning patterns differ among different age groups. Is it feasible to create multiple versions of a report aimed at various generations? While this approach is possible, it would entail additional time and cost. However, if an organization is genuinely committed to the learning and development of its staff, investing that extra effort becomes imperative. It’s essential to acknowledge that individual learning preferences within each generation can vary significantly, and these generalizations merely represent broad trends rather than absolute characteristics.
Case Study: Long Back-To-Office Mission Reports
Staff write back-to-office reports upon completing a mission outside the office or abroad. These reports typically outline the mission’s plans, findings, and outcomes, providing valuable insights for future reference. They may also include contact information, images, and other relevant details.
Many staff members in this Organization A travel to different countries for work, referred to as ‘missions.’ These missions encompass various activities, such as project feasibility studies, project appraisals, implementations, as well as non-project-related engagements like attending conferences or events. Following each mission, individuals or teams participating in these endeavors are required to submit a “back-to-office” report before settling their financial obligations. It is important for the organization to monitor the progress, outcomes, and recommendations from these missions. Back-to-office reports hold significant valuable information and insights. However, often, these reports are stored in the information system or knowledge portal with limited access.
It has been observed that a significant number of these reports tend to be lengthy, containing excessive and unnecessary details. The essential insights, such as lessons learned or recommendations, are often buried within these extensive reports. Staff members might incline towards writing lengthier reports to demonstrate the mission’s productivity. However, these lengthy documents sacrifice readability and fail to effectively convey crucial lessons and future directions derived from a mission.
Writing lengthy reports is ingrained in the culture of this organization, and individuals may not recognize the time and effort wasted in their production. In many instances, it is observed that not only back-to-office reports but also emails are often longer than necessary.
Question is how to shift this culture of generating unnecessarily lengthy reports and redirect the effort toward more productive tasks and engagement. Rather than creating lengthy reports, staff could initiate post-mission knowledge-sharing sessions. These sessions would focus on sharing and discussing key lessons with relevant teams and stakeholders, fostering a more interactive and efficient exchange of information.
Practical Tips:
How to produce reports that foster learning?
A shift in mindset is imperative. Instead of writing exhaustive reports, adopting a targeted approach to learning can yield remarkable results.
· Focused Content Curation: Select materials that are pertinent to the subject matter at hand. Curate content based on the target audience. Provide key insights and avoid unnecessary redundancy.
· Allow Active Engagement: Design reports in a way that facilitate engagement with the materials. Reports can be developed or uploaded online or on the internal Intranet platform with questions by the readers, discussion topics and adding relevant contacts. This will allow readers to actively engage with the content.
· Application-Oriented Learning: Emphasize on practical application of the reports. Explain concepts, data and showcase how to apply them in real-world scenarios. Action oriented reports produces more engagements.
· Iterative Learning: Embrace the iterative process of learning, revisiting key concepts, and building upon previous knowledge. A few organizations even use Wiki platform to develop content together with the readers. The process is iterative and allows better engagement, acceptability and learning from the reports.
· Use new tools to share reports: Reports do not need to be produced in a word or PowerPoint based document. Many organizations use other tools like videos, infographics to share information. For example, many of the Back-To-Office reports could be produced as a short video reports, like the Vlog by travelers. Mind-maps, Infographics could also be used to report on a recent mission, trips etc.
Travel Tips in Guidebooks?
Travel guidebooks serve as valuable resources for travelers, offering a wealth of information about destinations, attractions, history, culture, and practical tips. Most of the guidebooks provide detailed descriptions of attractions, landmarks, and points of interest. Travelers learn about the historical significance, architectural details, and unique features of these places. Guidebooks also provide historical background, cultural insights, and stories related to the destinations, allowing tourists to understand the context and significance of what they’re experiencing. But how popular these guidebooks are now to general travelers. How many of us visit a bookstore before traveling to a destination and buy a guidebook?
Majority of the travelers use online resources to obtain information about a city or a country. A few years back I was planning to travel to Georgia, the country, to spend a week on holiday. I wanted to experience a new country, which is not very popular among the tourists. I had to gather some knowledge about the country before making the travel plan, one of which was to learn about how safe the main cities are for tourists. Instead of buying any travel book or guides, I had started my research on the Internet. After a few days of research I had learnt that Georgia was the sixth most secured country in the world for the tourists. Crime rates in main cities, i.e. Tbilisi and Batumi are very low. Local people are very friendly though there is an issue with language. A tourist might not find many people speaking in English. Food is great, a lot of nice natural places to visit, specially the mountainous areas, taxis do not use meters in most cases etc. Being a foodie, I like to explore local dishes and Khachapuri was the obvious choice. In the heart of Georgia’s culinary heritage lies Khachapuri, a traditional dish woven from the fabric of the nation. This savory delight features leavened bread meticulously shaped and filled at its core with a delectable blend of cheese, eggs, and a medley of other flavorful ingredients.
Websites like Tripadvisors, Lonely Planet, many YouTube videos and even Visit Georgia supported quite a lot in my research. Nowadays, the Generative AI tool integrated into Google Search serves as an incredibly useful resource, aggregating and condensing information from diverse internet sources into comprehensive summaries. YouTube, on the other hand, serves as a treasure trove of videos, with numerous travelers sharing invaluable insights and facts about the countries they explore. Gone are the days of toting around physical maps; now, with Google Maps, travelers can easily navigate cities and access the location information they need.
Physical guidebooks are losing value though they can be considered a great souvenir for some tourists.
Copyright: NaguibChowdhury@2023
