Learning from Experience, for Experienced Staff

Business needs in multinational corporations call for courses that involve problem solving and creating and sharing new knowledge based on workplace situations. The courses also need to be engaging for the participants. Blended learning at Shell International Exploration and Production involves these kinds of outcomes in courses designed around a workplace-learning model. Employees use a Web-based system to make contributions based on their own work experiences in preparation for a face-to-face session. These contributions then feed into classroom sessions that involve collaborative learning where the workplace problems and experiences of the participants are the focus. In this presentation one course is highlighted that demonstrates a number of game-type activities based on the participants ' own workplace experiences. Implications for other courses outside of the Shell context are discussed. Introduction and Problem Statement In the workplaces of professionals in multinational corporations problems and challenges continually arise that involve creating new solutions and constructing new knowledge, and indirectly involve improving communication and understanding among colleagues who come from and work in different parts of the world. Key strategies involve capturing and sharing both the explicit and tacit knowledge of the experienced staff