Rich Berens

Rich Berens' 12 month goals for Root Learning are to continue to provide "blended" solutions to help its clients execute their strategies (download 5 and one half minute iPod compatible video, 28MB). Extending beyond 12 months, Rich sees some significant shifts for the company. First, he wants to increase the Root Learning's geographic reach. Currently, the firm has offices in Toledo, Chicago, and London. He would like to go to the coasts where many of Root Learning's clients are and expand the European presence.

Rich also notes that Root Learning's product footprint has evolved, and that he would like to highlight that evolution. Root used to be just about "learning maps", the company's best known tool that was featured in a Harvard Business Review article. Now, a large part of the business is based on developing digital interactive environments. Rich expects that the company's blog, increased conference attendance, and a book by Jim Haudan, one of Root Learning's founders, to help provide an expanded view of the company's capabilities footprint.

Root Learning's business is about enabling strategic change in organizations. What may not be immediately apparent is the central role of communication in this process, and communication is Root's core competency.

In this 8 minute segment (download iPod compatible video, 41MB), Rich Berens describes how Root Learning evolved from essentially a publishing business to one that has its feet firmly planted in interactive online learning environments. A key driver in this move has been customer needs. Initially customers were looking to move to online environments to drive down the cost of bringing people together to interact around a strategy. As customers became more proficient at online environments, they began to want to move toward simulation and most recently gaming.

Root's strategy has been to avoid the purely experimental and move into these delivery mechanisms as market demand makes itself apparent.

In this segment with Rich Berens, we learn more about how Root Learning uses their signature learning maps, the "secret sauce" in their ability to rapidly disseminate knowledge throughout an organization (download 9 minute iPod compatible video, 49MB). Learning maps are artistic renditions of a company's vision, ideally speaking to the world view of stakeholders ranging from associates to senior executives.

Facilitators use learning maps to guide conversations in groups of eight to ten people. During these conversations, the maps help address three issues that Root Learning has determined critical for companies' strategy execution:

• The case for changing a company's strategy.
• The connection between strategy and operating goals.
• The skills workers will need to successfully accomplish the operating goals.

Although it may take months or years to fully address all three issues, Root is typically able to address the critical issue of the case for change in a matter of a few weeks or months.

Companies can only execute strategies through their people. In this introductory segment (download 9 minute iPod compatible video, 50MB), Rich Berens explains how Root Learning helps minimize the canyons that exist between senior leadership, managers, and workers world views as they try to make their companies succeed.

One of Root's central tools in this quest is the learning map. Root interviews senior management and draws a picture of what they hear. They then bring it back to management and use it to start a discussion about what people really mean by the words and phrases they use to describe their company's business situation and strategy. Once senior management comes to agreement, then Root repeats the process with different stake holders. With this method, a consensus can start to emerge among potentially thousands of stakeholders in a very short time of weeks or months.

In future segments, we'll further explore Root's tools sets and methodology.