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Home Grown: Building a Learning Organization by

Cultivating a Growth Mindset
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
In this research brief you will learn why fostering a growth mindset culture can
help your employees reach their full potential and make your organization
more resilient to changing business needs.
Recent research on organizational psychology shows that one of the primary
factors that influences an individual employees ability to learn and adapt to
changing conditions is their mindset. People with a fixed mindset believe
that talent and intelligence are natural and inherent. People with this mindset
are less adaptable to changing circumstances because they are limited by a
fear of failure and a need to be perceived as naturally talented. People with
a growth mindset, on the other hand, believe that talent and intelligence can
be developed though practice and effort. These people are more resilient in
times of change and are better equipped to innovate and adapt.
Organizational culture can reinforce an individuals mindset. Typically,
organizations promote a fixed mindset by rewarding a superstar mentality
and discouraging candid conversations. This culture tends to limit innovation,
learning and collaboration. Conversely, learning organizations foster a
growth mindset by embedding expectations for learning and reflection in the
fabric of the organization. These organizations create a supportive learning
environment, including active leadership support, and establish formal
learning strategies to ensure that all employees have access to the training,
information and networks they need.
Because mindsets can be learned, organizations can actively influence their
employees mindsets by providing learning opportunities that promote
reflection and debate, providing safe harbors for practicing and failing, and
actively teaching employees how to learn. Supporting these developmental
opportunities with organizational structures that recognize and reward
collaboration and learning from failure helps perpetuate the growth mentality
outside the classroom by embedding it into the expectations for their daily work.
Organizations that actively develop the learning agility of their employees by
fostering a growth mindset will be better able to adapt to changing market
and customer needs. This increased agility serves as a key competitive
advantage for learning organizations.
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INTRODUCTION
In the face of quickly changing markets and customer needs, an
organizations ability to respond can be a key differentiator from their
competitors. However, in order to do this, organizations must be able to get
people across the company to quickly learn new priorities and processes.
Unfortunately, typical organizational cultures may actually inhibit this type
of change by setting up an organizational mindset of natural talent that
generates a fear of failure that can undermine learning, innovation and
strategic problem solving. In this brief we will explore how an organization
built on a growth mindset instead of a fixed mindset can encourage
organizational learning and growth.

WHATS WRONG WITH TALENT?

In her book, Mindsets, Carol Dweck explores why some people are
successful, while others, who seem to have similar capabilities dont live up
to their potential. According to her research, the answer lays in the ways in
which people think about their intelligence and talent. Dweck distinguishes
between two typical conceptualizations, or mindsets:
Fixed Mindset: People who tend to believe that intelligence and talents are
natural and inherent are said to have a fixed mindset. While talent can be
sharpened or dulled through experience, people with a fixed mindset believe
that it cant be substantially changed.
Growth Mindset: People who tend to believe that intelligence and talents
are developed traits are said to have a growth mindset. For these people,
intelligence and talents can be significantly changed through deliberative
practice and effort.
Because intelligence and talent are not directly measurable, our actions,
and feedback on our actions, serve as rough indicators of our underlying
abilities. For people with a fixed mindset, this can result in a hyper focus on
achievements, because these serve as outward evidence of ability. While an
achievement may seem like a positive trait, often, people with a fixed mindset
are easily thrown by failure because it makes them doubt their abilities. This
can be manifest in a reluctance to try new things that they might not be
immediately good at or a tendency to hide problems so that others dont
question their abilities.
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People with a
fixed mindset
hide failures
so that others
dont question
their ability.
People with
growth mindsets
view failures
as input for
consideration.

People with a growth mindset, on the other hand, tend to focus on learning
instead of achieving. While they still attend to the feedback they receive on
their actions, successes and failures are treated as equally important input
for consideration. People with a growth mindset are more likely to approach
something new as a challenge and view failures as a reflection of their effort
or context.
The willingness of people with a growth mindset to take on tasks outside
of their comfort zone can lead to what Malcom Gladwell calls the gift
of doubt. Gladwell describes how true innovation arises when a person
suddenly realizes that they are out of depth and they decide to press on
instead of give up. In those moments, the necessity of a solution can spur
creativity that couldnt occur within the safety of the status quo. People with
a fixed mindset are less likely to experience these revolutionary changes
because they are less likely to risk being out of their depth in the first place
and when faced with a challenge are more likely to retreat.
Because of these differences, employees with a growth mindset are likely
to be more resilient in the face of change and more likely to generate truly
innovative ideas compared to their peers with a fixed mindset.

CHANGING YOUR MINDSET

Discover your
mindset:
Carol Dwecks
Mindset
Assessment

Dwecks research suggests that our mindsets about intelligence and talent
are learned through school, culture and upbringing. As such, it is also
possible to change our perceptions, and in turn our behaviors. Her research
suggests that something as simple as priming a person with the idea that a
task can be learned through practice is enough to shift someone from a fixed
mindset to a growth mindset for that task.
In order to change from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset individuals must
learn and internalize several key concepts:
Mind is a muscle that can and should be exercised
Effort is not a signal of deficiency, but instead a signal of commitment
Learning is humbling. Being a learner requires being open to the
vulnerability of not knowing
Frustration and confusion are natural stages in learning
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Reflection is an important part of the learning journey. Action without

reflection provides only incremental value.
The idea that mindset can be learned is particularly important for
organizations because leaders and organizational culture can have
a profound impact on the perceptions of employees on their own
developmental potential. Expectations and processes at the organizational
level can create a culture that either promotes a growth mindset or reinforces
a fixed mindset.

HOW ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE PROMOTES

GROWTH AND FIXED MINDSETS

Learning
organizations
tend to be
more innovative
and agile.

Just as people tend to have fixed or growth mindsets, organizations do as

well. Research on organizational effectiveness shows that some organizations
are more effective at promoting employees ability to create, acquire and transfer
knowledge. These learning organizations tend to be more innovative and
agile, and therefore more responsive to changing business needs.
According to David Gavin of Harvard Business School, the three building
blocks of a learning organization are a supportive learning environment,
concrete learning processes and practices and leadership behavior that
reinforces learning.
A supportive learning environment is one in which it is ok to disagree with
peers or authority figures and it is ok to ask nave questions. Differences
of opinion are encouraged and appreciated and time is devoted to reflect
on what has been learned. A supportive learning environment doesnt
refer specifically to the classroom setting, instead it is a characteristic of all
interactions.
Concrete learning process and practices refers to both a formalization of
curriculum throughout the entire employee lifecycle for all employees as well
as processes, and structures supporting the dissemination of ideas. In learning
organizations, information sharing is facilitated and rewarded so that information
flows laterally as well as vertically within the organization.
Critical to sustaining a learning organization is leadership behavior that
reinforces learning through role modeling the type of dialogue and debate
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that is desired. Leaders of learning organizations actively shift their focus

from evaluating achievements to understanding processes that went into
achievement the so that the desired thinking patterns, relationships and
behaviors are rewarded.

Learning
organizations
promote
a growth
mindset among
employees by
creating a safe
environment to
share lessons
from both
successes and
failures

These characteristics parallel the strength areas of people with a growth

mindset. However, many organizations struggle to become learning
organizations because the building blocks described above require
significant structural changes. For example, the ability to openly and safely
share ideas across functional areas requires a permeable structure that is
quite different from most silos that exist on many organizational charts. Strict
functional boundaries and hierarchies are attractive to people with a fixed
mindset because it is easier to determine status and achievement when these
structures are in place. Similarly, more experienced employees with a fixed
mindset are often resistant to formalized training because it implies that they
arent naturally skilled. Therefore, shifting to a learning organization model
may be difficult unless senior leadership is ready to champion the change.
How do you know if your organization is cultivating a fixed mindset culture
instead of a growth mindset culture? Watch for some of the following
warning signs:
Shuffling the Deck Chairs: Many organizations with a fixed mindset end up
with very small talent pools because opportunities are rotated between the
same set of superstar employees. This creates the perception of innate
talent, and becomes self-fulfilling because other employees do not have
access to experiences that would stretch their capability.
Superstar Burnout: A related scenario is the early burnout of high potentials
who may feel overwhelming pressure to maintain their superstar status.
Within role, symptoms of burnout resulting from a fixed mindset may be
expressed as aggressive/defensive behavior designed to mask problems, or
errors in judgment made because of a perceived need move quickly. Total
burnout can result in losing the employee altogether.
One and Done: Where learning organizations take failures as opportunities
to learn about context, processes etc., fixed mindset organizations have a low
tolerance for failure. This may result in punitive actions taken against individuals
or groups (ex. Witch hunts, scapegoating). In growth mindset organizations
there is still personal accountability, but errors are considered part of the
developmental process.
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Project Churn: In a fixed mindset organization the push-pull between a

high need for perceived achievement and a fear of failure may incentivize a
revolving door of project initiation and abandonment. Projects are started
as a signal of productivity, but quickly pulled if initial measures suggest that
results wont be as strong as anticipated. This churn reduces the ability of
individual project owners to develop their own problem solving skills and
reduces the organizations ability to apply lessons learned to future projects.
Performance Goal Inflation: Many performance management systems
reinforce a fixed mindset by focusing on achievement based goals. Often
performance goals are either equivalent to an employees job role, allowing
employees to stay in their comfort zone, or they are initiative based goals
that promote the project churn mentioned above. In growth mindset
organizations performance management conversations focus on the
development aspect of the goals and periodic appraisals focus on ensuring that
the resources, training and relationships are in place to ensure success.
Organizations looking to foster a growth mindset among their employees can
begin by carefully evaluating their existing culture to determine what factors
encourage or discourage a growth mindset and then actively build growth
mindset culture instead.

CONCLUSION: DEVELOPING A GROWTH

MINDSET CULTURE
In order to respond to changing business needs, organizations must invest
in the ability of their employees to learn and adapt. However, as research
on organizational psychology shows, individual mindsets may hamper
employees ability to realize their full potential.
Luckily, mindset can be changed. However, because the fixed mindset is so
deeply ingrained in the US culture, developing a growth mindset among your
employees requires purposive action that helps individuals learn to learn
again. Some key activities that can build a growth mindset include:
1. Leadership Pipeline: Provide development experiences to mid-level
management to help them prepare for their next role. Use these
experiences to break down barriers to learning.

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2. Reflection and Debate: Incorporate opportunities for reflection and

candid discussion into learning opportunities to allow employees to
practice these key skills.
3. Knowledge Sharing: Recognize and reward knowledge sharing and
collaboration. Provide opportunities to connect people across the
organization.
4. Safe Harbors: Celebrate failures as lessons learned both at the project
level and at the individual development level.
5. Leadership Mindset: Provide mindset training to leaders so that they can
cultivate a growth culture on their teams.
By investing in developing a growth mindset, organizations can better
harness the potential of their employees and create a culture of innovation
and resilience.

Brought to you by Strayer@Work

Find us at Strayeratwork.com
Follow CEO, Kelly Bozarth, on Twitter @Kelly_Bozarth

Sources:
Dweck, C. S. (2006). Mindset: the new psychology of success. New York: Random
House.
Garvin, D. A. (1993). Building a learning organization. Harvard Business Review, 71(4),
78-91.
Gladwell, M. (2013, June 24). The Gift of Doubt. . Retrieved July 16, 2014, from http://
gladwell.com/
Heslin, P. (2009). Potential is in the Eye of the Beholder: The Role of Managers who
Spot Rising Stars. Industrial and Organizational Psychology, (2), 420-424.
Rock, D., Davis, J., & Jories, E. (2013). One Simple Idea That Can Transform Performance
Management. People and Strategy, VOLUME 36/ISSUE 2 , 16-19.
Spitzer, R. (2013). Lighting the Fire of Innovation. Journal For Quality & Participation,
36(3), 15-18.
Von Culin, K., Tsukayama, E., & Duckworth, A. L. (2014). Unpacking grit:
Motivational correlates of perseverance and passion for long-term goals.
Journal of Positive Psychology.
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