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Broken Learning Loop

Definition​

Broken Learning Loop refers to dynamics in which work continues without the relationship between trials and outcomes being observed or verified, resulting in situations where behavior is not updated being repeatedly observed.

Dynamics​

  • Situations continue where the outcomes of implemented changes or trials are not observed
  • Evaluation of outcomes depends not on measurement, but on impressions or sense of acceptance
  • Next actions are determined not by previous outcomes, but by recent problems or atmosphere

Observable Signals​

  • Similar issues are repeatedly raised in retrospectives
  • Solutions converge toward adding procedures or calling attention
  • Situations are observed where there is a sense of improvement, but the change cannot be explained

Amplifying Conditions​

This dynamic tends to strengthen when the following conditions overlap.

  • Due to Measurement Gap, outcomes cannot be compared or verified
  • Due to Decision Avoidance, the correspondence between trials and decisions becomes ambiguous

What This Is Not​

  • This does not aim to improve the format or operation of retrospectives
  • This does not treat it as a problem of learning motivation or posture
  • This does not deny short-term results

Consequences​

  • Situations continue where the same failures recur in changed forms, and ways of breaking become fixed
  • Organizational learning becomes difficult to sustain, and experience does not accumulate
  • Even when Failure Patterns manifest, states continue where they are not corrected

Connections​

Last updated on by Hiroshi Kurabayashi