The use of a circle as both a format and a metaphor for people to meet together has been around as long as there has been fire. For centuries, people of all cultures gathered in a circle to pass down stories, share wisdom, discuss problems, and bring about change. The Stonehenge boulders stand in circles. King Arthur and his knights sat in a circle. So do the United Nations members. Sitting in a circle face-to-face promotes the feeling of respect and community by giving everyone an equal opportunity to be seen and heard. The circle format encourages quiet people to speak, talkative people to listen, and equal participation in making decisions.
The circle strategy has many different names and applications including: “wisdom circles,” “study circles,” “Socratic circles,” “literature circles,” “OpenAgile learning circles,” “quality circles,” “online learning circles,” “learning circles,” and “Lean in Circles.” Learning circles can take many forms. They can be a roundtable at home or at work, a brown bag series at work, or a virtual session with participants from around the world. Sessions can be ongoing or organized on an ad hoc basis to deal with a particular issue.
Learning Circles Within the LEAP Program
In 2013, SAP launched the pilot of a women’s leadership development program called LEAP (Leadership Excellence Acceleration Program), affecting approximately 50 women across North America. The success of this initial cohort was outstanding, and in 2014, the program expanded to include 141 additional women, approximately 50 in each cohort, from across the regions of North America, Latin America/Caribbean, and Asia-Pacific/Japan. In July 2015, the program expanded to include EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa), resulting in an additional 250 women enrolled in LEAP. The program is offered twice a year to cohorts of 50 to 100 in each major region. By the end of 2015, the program will have reached 400 women globally.
LEAP is a year-long targeted development journey focused on women who have the potential and desire to rise into people management positions or reach new levels of people leadership. LEAP provides women with the opportunity to build capabilities and a leadership mindset within a supportive community of their peers. Participants meet monthly via a virtual classroom, where they delve into the monthly topic, discuss assignments, and have an opportunity to ask questions and get direct feedback.
Each LEAP cohort is divided into smaller groups known as LEAP Learning Circles. Each learning circle is made up of diverse women coming from all areas of the SAP business who bond through the power of peer support. The bond the women experience is so impactful that many LEAP women refer to their learning circle as family. The women meet regularly to learn and grow together as they explore the monthly LEAP topic. Materials are available to assist in how to facilitate a learning circle meeting and how to align with the monthly topic.
The smaller group size allows members to share their experiences and broaden their perspectives by learning and considering the many other viewpoints of learning circle members. Participants rotate responsibility for facilitation of the monthly meeting throughout the program, giving them the opportunity to share leadership functions and enhance circle members’ learning.
Characteristics of Learning Circles
Characteristics of learning circles include diversity, respect, and reciprocity (Riel, M. (2004). Learning circles. In Encyclopedia of Distributed learning (pp. 281-286). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications). One of the benefits of learning circles is the opportunity to bring together people with diverse perspectives. However, that diversity can make it challenging, particularly in virtual learning circles, to build an environment of mutual trust and understanding. Trust builds when every participant’s perspective is shared and equally respected. The participants in every learning circle depend on others in the circle for information, creating a cooperative learning experience built on positive interdependence. The learning circle is also an example of participatory management as members take turns facilitating and sharing knowledge.
A learning circle typically comprises a small diverse group with no more than 15 members and sometimes as few as four. The group members determine the purpose and mission of the group and the number and frequency of meetings. LEAP women meet for the length of the 12-month program. The members establish a set of ground rules, and the group determines who the facilitator will be and if facilitator duties will be shared or rotated. The group selects a topic and learning objectives and agrees on how to achieve them. Participants in the LEAP program are provided with a monthly topic, pre-work, and discussion guide. The selected topic is explored from as many different points of view as possible. The process encourages growth, reflection, and action.
Benefits of Learning Circles
Learning circles have been found to be effective in supporting culture change. They provide an opportunity for everyone to be heard, creating a sense of equality and an environment in which everyone is involved in working to create the best possible outcome. Learning circles stimulate high involvement and mutual respect in all phases of culture change (Norton, L. (2003). The power of circles: Using a familiar technique to promote culture change. Journal of Social Work in Long-Term Care, 2(3-4), 285-292).
Learning circles facilitate learning by exposing participants to many other viewpoints. They encourage and promote “inner” shifts in participants’ values, aspirations, and behaviors. According to Peter Senge, the “inner: shifts combined with “outer” shifts in processes, strategies, practices, and systems are necessary to bring about profound change in an organization ((Senge P M 1994 fifth discipline: the art & practice of the learning organization)Senge, P. M. (1999). The dance of change: The challenges of sustaining momentum in learning organizations. New York: Currency/Doubleday).
Active participation in learning circle discussions enhances learning, and retention increases because of the powerful and vivid sharing of real-life experiences (Hiebert, J. (1996). Learning circles: A strategy for clinical practicum. Nurse Educator, 21(3) (May/June), 37-42). Storytelling is a common practice in learning circles.
Sheryl Sandberg, chief operating officer of Facebook and author of bestselling book “Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead,” founded a nonprofit women’s organization called LeanIn.Org. The purpose of Leanin.Org is to provide women with an active and supportive community, educational resources to provide women with practical skills, and Lean In Circles. Lean In Circles are small self-organizing groups that meet regularly to support and encourage each other. There are more than 22,700 Lean In Circles in 110 countries and on 350 college campuses. Participants in Lean In Circles say they are more likely to take on a new challenge or opportunity because of their Circles and 75 percent of members credit their Circle with a positive change in their life (Together we’re better: Through the power of peer support, circles are changing lives. (n.d.). In Leanin. Retrieved August 2, 2015, from http://leanincircles.org/).
Learning Organizations and Learning Circles
In “The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization,” Senge described a learning organization as a place where individuals can continually expand their knowledge, where innovative patterns of thinking are encouraged, where collective aspirations are freed, and where people are continually learning. According to Senge, all learning is action oriented and never occurs passively ((Senge P M 1994 fifth discipline: the art & practice of the learning organization)Senge, P. M. (1994). The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization. New York: Currency Doubleday).
Learning organizations promote a culture of lifelong learning, including the establishment of internal organizational mechanisms designed to promote organizational learning. Senge proposed that organizations are not able to learn if teams do not come together and learn.
Learning circles support adult learners by providing them the choice in what, how, with whom, and when they learn. Participants build incrementally on what they already know. They apply their knowledge to real-world challenges, receive feedback from peers, and learn new processes and approaches modeled by their peers. Learning circles are a mechanism for the knowledge expansion and action-oriented team collaboration described by Senge as necessary in learning organizations.
What LEAP Participants Say About Learning Circles
Participants in the LEAP program describe a rich experience of diverse women from different areas coming together to create an “instant family and network of support.” Each member brings unique experiences, insight, and compassion to the discussion. Connecting to others in different organizations helps participants develop their business acumen and understand the bigger picture. Participants describe learning as taking place through shared dialogue, resulting in greater learning than if it were only independent learning.
Other benefits include the opportunity to hear the perspective of women from different sides of the business and to discuss real-life experiences. One participant described how her learning circle helped support her mentees. “I am mentoring two young professional women who recently started at SAP. I reached out to my learning circle, and a number of them were willing to do informational interviews with my mentees. It was a great way to expand the process of mentoring and hugely beneficial for my mentees.”
One of the challenges identified by LEAP women was the difficulty in finding a convenient meeting time that worked for all participants. Suggestions included the desire to meet at least once in person; however, participants felt that the virtual sessions were very effective, particularly when Webcams were used to increase face time. Participants also indicated they wanted LEAP graduates to be able to continue the learning circle experience or at least to be able to reconnect periodically.
Some women in the LEAP Program have struggled with language issues, as English is not their native language. Learning circle participants are grouped by region to minimize time zone and language conflicts.
When asked how learning circles support their participation in LEAP, one participant revealed, “I almost feel like I get more out of the learning circles than any other part. That doesn’t mean the rest of the program is lacking in any way. It is just that by making the group smaller, it really personalizes all of the learnings, extended conversations, and subject matter we cover in the learning circle.” The LEAP women overwhelmingly find their learning circle time to be beneficial both personally and professionally and to enhance the overall LEAP experience.
Circling Back
Learning circles encourage high involvement of all stakeholders, build a sense of community, and support organizational and individual learning. Learning circles are peer-directed and built on the idea that all participants have something to contribute and all participants have something to learn. LEAP participants have the opportunity to be a part of a learning circle throughout their 12-month development journey. Some participants have identified their learning circle time as the most beneficial part of the LEAP experience. The learning circle is appropriate for practically any application, including teambuilding, networking, problem solving, culture change, and professional development. Organizations should recognize the value of learning circles and encourage their creation as a structure to support employee development and the creation of new individual and organizational knowledge.
Dr. Debby McNichols is an instructional designer at SAP. Her expertise includes e-learning design, leadership development, and intergenerational knowledge transfer strategies. She is particularly passionate about designing learning that is customizable for diverse learning audiences. Contact her at: cogdebby@gmail.com
Laura Whitaker is a senior learning strategist with SAP. For more than 10 years, she has been developing innovative learning solutions that engage learners, provoke thought, and promote behavior change. Most recently, she launched the Leadership Excellence Acceleration Program (LEAP) globally, a yearlong development journey targeting women in leadership. The program recently was recognized with the 2015 Gold Brandon Hall Group Excellence Award for the Best Unique or Innovative Leadership Development Program. Contact Whitaker at: laura.whitaker@sap.com
