Applying Sense-Making and Narrative Techniques to Capture Lessons Learnt

Abstract

This case study demonstrates how we have designed a knowledge management project around story-telling ("narrative" feedback). The aim is to create a global virtual space for sharing of good and bad experiences from the commissioning pilot. This project is also designed to help senior managers understand the experiences of the pilot phase of a major change programme within the British Council. The change programme (referred to as commissioning change programme) is about introducing a new internal model/process to release funding to support new products and services' development and implementation.The research design is informed by Dervin's sense-making theory and Snowden's Cynefin framework and mass narrative representation tools. Telephone and face-to-face interviews were conducted with 30 colleagues in the UK and overseas. An initial indirect question was posed to respondents—"What was your experience with the commissioning pilot?"—to capture their stories. The stories told were transcribed and indexed and patterns were identified. The analysis helps to highlight the problematic areas as well as opportunities for improvement.This case study demonstrates the potential of using narratives to evaluate and capture learning points which can be viewed by managers and staff using multiple perspectives. This approach complements the traditional approach of producing an evaluation report which would be written for a specific group of audience, such as the senior management team.