Sure, it sounds good. And it sounds scary...and dubious.
Collaborative learning is actually working in some places (like IBM, and companies I don't remember the name of, from discussions I've had with others). But the numbers are small, and it looks like a long learning curve ahead, to get it right. For instance, if collaborative space is too social, it will be a waste of company resources. If it is too burdened with employer expectations, it will just be more work, and the social fuel that could have kept the initiative alive will just evaporate.
The Yin And The Yang Of It
Social space...learning space...collaborative space. Multifunctional space...who owns it and what is is for? I would submit that to be a success, employees must take ownership of the space (once the company makes it available). And since it is ultimately a business space, the purpose must be to improve performance results. There is a Yin/Yang thing going on here, where everyone's competing interests must be served to create a healthy balance. Everyone must be able to answer, "What's in it for me?"
The company is ultimately served by an improvement in the bottom line...employee knowledge, satisfaction and effectiveness that leads to lowered costs and increased customer purchasing decisions. It's okay if some of this takes work on the part of the employee, as long as there are obvious benefits. For instance, employees who actually generate solid training content are recognized and rewarded. Employees helping other employees save time in finding day-to-day information and solutions save everyone time, and provide a sense of satisfaction and control. New solutions where none previously existed can make work life easier...even more fun.
Could we put an employee wiki in place to gather tacit knowledge? Sure. But if you build it, will they come? If you integrate the wiki into the overall training program so that it speeds the process, that's a start. But what about using the wiki as a place that employees can get answers on human resource questions, too? What if the wiki is also a mentor for advancing to the next level of employment? What if there is a section in the wiki where employees can post requests to other employees for swapping schedules? If you build it, you have to build value into it. The more value it provides, the more value it will ultimately generate (that's deep!).
A Human Foundation
We never stop being human. And as humans, we can be pretty predictable. For instance, if we don't see value in something, we lose interest. If something is fun, it gets our attention. Some of us like to compete. All of us like to win something. Most of us want to contribute and be important. We are curious about others. Everyone wants to be recognized and appreciated. And for most of us, money talks, or at least it whispers.
It may sound obvious but the more of these typically human things are built-in to any multifunctional space, the more collaboration, training and performance improvements will come back out of the effort. But it's a point I think is easy to miss. You can't look at elearning 2.0 as a trainer or instructional designer; you have to take on the perspective of a strategist. For unless you can use your wiki (or whatever it is) to solve business and human problems, you won't get very far on training problems.
I continue to be excited about elearning without courses. On top of that, I think the possibilities surrounding elearning 2.0 gives us a chance to truly integrate learning into business strategy, instead of just bolting it on separately and hoping it's effective.
