Learning Culture - Be a ‘Learning Maniac’

A colleague recently showed us a great article about an unlikely company renowned for its obsessive learning culture, WD-40. In many ways it was a company that mirrored the way a lot of individual’s careers go: learn a skillset, become an expert, and then hit a plateau.

In 1987, when Garry Ridge joined WD-40 as CEO, he endeavoured to buck this trend by instilling a ‘learning maniac’ culture, where every employee must pledge a solemn vow to be one! As much as driving learning, the initiative drove interest. Staff took on new ideas and broadened their horizons of what was possible for themselves, their teams and the entire organization.

Today, largely attributed to this learning maniac culture, WD-40 has grown from a one-product, one-country, one-trick pony to a billion-dollar organisation with a portfolio of products sold in 176 countries. And the learning point: a revitalized workforce can rejuvenate a brand.