A Fire Hose or a Sprinkler?

This post was written by Jacob McNulty

Ever feel like this in training?  I’ve been noodling on this analogy for months – I need some data to really verify the point but the premise is there…

At a basic level, the purpose of a sprinkler and a fire hose is essentially the same: distribute water.  The manner in which each accomplishes this task, though, is vastly different.  Because of their respective designs it may take a sprinkler a month to distribute the same amount of water that a fire hose can unleash in an hour (this is where I need some data).

Training is often designed to function like a fire hose – expelling the maximum amount of information in a constrained amount of time.  The challenge with this design is that fire hoses are meant to douse…they are not intended for things that will absorb the water they distribute.

I feel that learning/development design needs to better align with the analogy of a sprinkler.  Choosing instead to distribute the same amount of information but over a longer period and in smaller chunks so that participants can truly absorb it.

This philosophy can be used to extend new-hire integration programs beyond one (or a few days), incorporate communities of practice in learning strategies or leveraging action learning for leadership development efforts.

I urge readers to take an unbiased looked at their learning portfolio and ask themselves if they more resemble a sprinkler or a fire hose…

Tags: Action learning, Blended Learning, collaboration, Communities of Practice, CoP, enterprise 2.0, informal learning, Leadership Development, learning, learning organization, learning strategies, new employee orientation, new employee orientation program, new hire orientation, New-Hire Integration, Organizational Learning