Lies about Learning September 06, 2007 Leading Executives Separate Truth from Fiction In a $100 Billion Industry (ASTD Press, $27.95)
By Skip Corsini
I fear this refreshing book is going to get lost in the flood of business books that come out every year. It is an honest look at what really goes on in the training industry, both among the solo consultants and the major training outsource firms and in corporate training departments large and small. It is candid and provocative and should be read by anybody involved in learning and development.
The book is organized into 13 essays, by the editor and experts such as Elliott Masie, and each writer takes on a myth, examples of which are "Lies About Consultants and Vendors," "Lies About E-Learning," "Lies About Learning Organizations," and "Lies About Chief Learning Officers," followed by Larry Israelite's concluding essay on truths about learning.
Of particular interest is Chapter 10, Kerry Johnson's "Lies About Learning to Lead." One of the conclusions drawn about the question of talk versus action as evidence of leadership is that "conversation is the work. A core capability of leaders is the ability to communicate and converse. Whatever is accomplished in the modern organization gets done through conversations with one another."
ASTD is underrated as a publisher, and this book is an example of that myth.
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