How is your Organisation doing on this Meta Skill ?

A meta-skill is a high-order skill that allows you to engage with functional expertise more effectively. It’s a catalyst for learning and building new skills faster.

So which Meta skill are we talking about? And why?

The Meta skill we are talking about is Learning Agility.

Learning agility is a person’s ability to quickly understand the new situation or problem and decide what to do. It is the ability to quickly make sense of a new context; it is about pattern recognition.

Having learning agility means having the ability to continually and rapidly learn, unlearn and relearn from a variety of experiences, people and sources, and to apply that learning in new and changing contexts to achieve results. In short, learning agility is about knowing what to do when you don’t know what to do and it may be one of the strongest predictors of a person’s ability to succeed in today’s fast changing world.

The ROI for organizations and leaders is clear. Research shows that learning agile employees learn more, are rated more competent, are seen by supervisors as performing better, are recognized as having the most potential for advancement, get promoted faster and more often than their peers, and outperform their peers after a promotion.

Learning agility has five major components: (i) Mental agility; (ii) People agility; (iii) Change agility; (iv) Results agility and (v) Situational self-awareness

Mental Agility: Mental Agility is an individual’s tendency to be inquisitive and approach problems in novel ways. Individuals with high Mental Agility enthusiastically approach complex issues, new challenges, and unfamiliar situations with broad curiosity.

People Agility: People Agility involves skill in reading others and applying the insights gained when working with others. Individuals high in People Agility understand the value of getting work done with and through people, being attuned to individuals’ needs and motivations, and having an effective influencing style.

Change Agility: Change Agility involves embracing change and taking well-reasoned risks in the face of that change to promote new possibilities and to take ideas from vision to reality. Individuals with high Change Agility like change, continuously explore new options, and are interested in leading change efforts. They enjoy tinkering with tasks and processes, striving for continuous improvement. In contrast, individuals low on Change Agility prefer well-established approaches, stability, and routine.

Results Agility: Results Agility refers to an individual’s motivation to deliver outstanding results in new and tough situations. Individuals with high Results Agility are energized by novel, tough assignments. They enjoy overcoming obstacles and value accomplishing things against the odds. Situational Self-Awareness: Situational Self-Awareness is the ability to be aware of present experience in a non-judgmental way, pay attention to the importance of various demands, be aware of one’s expert intuitions, and able to improvise in a dynamic environment.