HBR Guide to Executing Your Strategy

CHAPTER 10

The Problem with Learning Is Unlearning

by Mark Bonchek

Ever since the publication of Peter Senge’s The Fifth Discipline 25 years ago, companies have sought to become “learning organizations” that continually transform themselves. In our era of digital disruption, this goal is more important than ever. But even the best companies still struggle to make real progress in this area.

One problem is that they’ve been focused on the wrong thing. The problem isn’t learning: It’s unlearning. In every aspect of business, we are operating with mental models that have grown outdated or obsolete, from strategy to marketing to organization to leadership. To embrace the new logic of value creation, we have to unlearn the old one.

Unlearning is not ...