2012 Volume 22 Issue SPECIAL Pages 69-76
Organizational transformation requires double-loop learning that changes interpretative frameworks of the organization. From my gaming experience in Japan, I claim that the process of developing and implementing policy exercises can be one of the most effective approaches in enabling such organizational learning as to develop their ability to adapt to changes in their environment. Based on the well-proven theories of Polanyi and Argyris, we induced hypotheses about the reasons as to why policy exercises work for organizational learning. These assumed reasons were (1) enlargement of interpretative frameworks, (2) expansion of the learning horizon, (3) acceleration of the learning process, (4) provision of a risk-free environment for trial and error, and (5) facilitation of shared experience. To clarify these points further, I developed about twenty policy exercises for organizational learning. Several utility companies, a national agency, and several local governments in Japan used these policy exercises and found them effective in organizational transformation.
