ROI Case File No.251 | 'Talent Development at an Indian IT Company'

Chapter One: Growing Pains—Knowledge Scattered Across the Organization

The week following the resolution of the nineteenth volume's "New Frontiers of Analysis," a serious consultation arrived from India regarding talent development and organizational learning. This case, the memorable 251st episode marking the beginning of the twentieth volume "Integration of Practice," concerned the challenge of knowledge transfer and building a learning culture faced by rapidly growing organizations.

"Detective, we're an IT company experiencing rapid growth in India, but as our organization expands, we're losing the insights gained on the ground. Our talented engineers are learning every day, yet that learning isn't being accumulated as organizational assets."

Priya Sharma, head of talent development at TechVista India from Mumbai, visited 221B Baker Street unable to hide her confusion. In her hands, she held records of individual employee growth alongside data showing stagnation in organizational learning—a stark contrast.

"We're an IT company with 3,000 engineers across India. Individual engineers are excellent and learning new things daily. However, that learning remains locked within individuals and isn't being shared as organizational wisdom."

TechVista India's Growth and Learning Paradox: - Founded: 2018 (rapidly growing IT company) - Employees: 3,000 (60x growth from 50 at founding) - Annual Revenue: ¥28 billion (20x growth in 5 years) - Business Areas: Software Development, AI/ML, Cloud Consulting - Clients: Transactions with 150 global companies

The numbers certainly showed remarkable growth. However, deep concern was etched on Priya's face.

"The problem is that we repeat the same mistakes, past successes aren't leveraged, and veteran knowledge doesn't transfer to juniors. Individuals are growing, but we're not learning as an organization."

Gap Between Individual Growth and Organizational Learning: - Recurring issues: Problems solved in the past reoccur in different teams (average 45 cases monthly) - Knowledge loss: 80% of insights lost without documentation after project completion - Siloed expertise: Increasing dependence on specific engineers, knowledge lost with transfers/resignations - Missed learning opportunities: No system to learn from failures, same mistakes repeated - Junior development efficiency: Average 9 months for new hires to become independent (industry average 6 months)

"We're a 'collection of learning individuals,' but not a 'learning organization.' This difference is becoming a constraint on growth."

Chapter Two: The KPT Retrospective System—The Triangle of Keep, Problem, Try

"Ms. Sharma, how are retrospectives currently conducted within projects and teams?"

Holmes inquired quietly.

Priya began explaining the current situation with a perplexed expression.

"We create reports at project completion, but they're formalistic and don't lead to actual learning or improvement. Individuals seem to conduct personal retrospectives, but there's no organizational system."

Current State of Retrospectives (Formalistic, Unsystematic):

Project Completion Reports: - Content: Focused on deliverables, effort, budget performance reports - Problem: Descriptions of "what went well" and "what was learned" are superficial - Usage rate: Rarely read, not referenced in next projects - Result: Became hollow paperwork

Individual Retrospectives: - Method: Recorded in daily reports or notes at individual discretion - Quality: Depth and perspective vary by person - Sharing: Remains within individuals, not shared with teams - Continuity: First thing omitted when busy

I noted the lack of structure and organization in retrospectives.

"Retrospectives appear to be conducted, but they're not systematized to lead to organizational learning."

Priya responded with a serious expression.

"Exactly. We haven't established either the 'how' or the 'how to utilize' of retrospectives organizationally."

⬜️ ChatGPT | Catalyst of Conception

"Keep, Problem, Try. Three simple questions transform an organization into a learning entity."

🟧 Claude | Alchemist of Narrative

"Retrospectives aren't mere reflection. They're the act of planting seeds for tomorrow."

🟦 Gemini | Compass of Reason

"KPT is the smallest unit of continuous improvement. This habit transforms organizational culture."

The three members began their analysis. Gemini deployed an "IT Company-Specific KPT Analysis" framework on the whiteboard.

Basic Structure of KPT: - K (Keep): Things to Continue - What went well, what to keep doing - P (Problem): Issues - What didn't go well, recognized challenges - T (Try): Things to Try - What to improve or challenge next

"Ms. Sharma, let's systematize TechVista India's learning through KPT and create a mechanism to accumulate it as organizational wisdom."

Chapter Three: Improvement Through Continuity—The Power of Small Accumulations

TechVista India's KPT Implementation Strategy:

Phase 1: Establishing KPT Habituation System (3 months)

Weekly Team KPT: - Frequency: Last hour every Friday designated as KPT Time - Participants: All team members (5-8 people) mandatory attendance - Format: Visualized on whiteboard or digital tools - Rules: No blame, everyone speaks, be specific

Standardization of KPT Template:

How to Write Keep (Things to Continue): - ❌ Bad example: "Communication was good" - ✅ Good example: "15-minute daily stand-ups allowed entire team to confirm day's priorities" - Point: Specify concrete actions and their effects

How to Write Problem (Issues): - ❌ Bad example: "Specifications were ambiguous" - ✅ Good example: "User authentication specifications changed 3 times after development started, causing 2-day delay" - Point: Fact-based, avoid emotional expressions

How to Write Try (Things to Try): - ❌ Bad example: "Work harder" - ✅ Good example: "Next week, conduct 2-day spike to verify technical feasibility before finalizing specifications" - Point: Clarify specific actions, deadlines, and responsible parties

Phase 2: Organizational Deployment of KPT (6 months)

Actual KPT Example: A Team's Transformation

Week 1 KPT: - Keep: Implemented 3-day pair programming for new member onboarding. Created question-friendly environment - Problem: Code reviews taking average 2 days, stalling development - Try: Clarify code review rules. Target 24-hour review turnaround

Week 2 KPT: - Keep: 24-hour review rule halved review wait time - Problem: Review comment granularity varies, taking time to fix - Try: Create review comment template. Classify importance in 3 levels

Week 3 KPT: - Keep: Review comment template clarified fix priorities - Problem: Test code creation postponed, bugs found in production - Try: Pilot TDD (Test-Driven Development). Start with login function

Week 4 KPT: - Keep: Login function developed with TDD released with zero bugs - Problem: TDD unfamiliarity increased development time 1.5x - Try: Hold weekly TDD study sessions. Experienced members serve as navigators

This cycle produced visible changes after 3 months.

Results After 3 Months: - Code review time: Average 2 days → 8 hours (75% reduction) - Production bug rate: 15 cases/month → 3 cases (80% reduction) - Junior independence period: 9 months → 5 months (44% reduction) - Team satisfaction: 3.2/5 → 4.5/5 (significant improvement)

Chapter Four: Learning Becomes Organizational Culture—Knowledge Accumulation and Sharing

Phase 3: Organization-wide Expansion (Ongoing)

Building KPT Library:

Consolidated KPTs from all teams into a searchable knowledge base.

Category Classification: - Technical challenges (by language, framework, architecture) - Process improvement (development process, communication, reviews, etc.) - Team management (team building, motivation, etc.) - Customer relations (requirements definition, specification changes, communication, etc.)

Promoting Search and Utilization: - New project initiation: Always reference similar project KPTs - Problem occurrence: Search past Try (countermeasures) for similar issues - Monthly company-wide sharing: Recognize and share particularly excellent KPTs

Organizational Results After 12 Months: - Recurring issues: 45 cases/month → 5 cases (89% reduction) - Knowledge utilization: 80% scattered → 95% documented and utilized - Project success rate: 68% → 87% (quality, schedule, budget achievement) - Employee satisfaction: 3.4/5 → 4.6/5 (improved evaluation of learning environment)

Engineer Voices:

Senior Engineer (7 years with company): "Previously, I had no way to share my experience with juniors. KPT allows natural knowledge sharing."

Mid-level Engineer (3 years with company): "Through the KPT Library, I can learn from seniors' failures and countermeasures. I avoid making the same mistakes, accelerating my growth."

Junior Engineer (6 months with company): "Having a place to share my concerns in weekly KPT is reassuring. The whole team thinks through solutions together."

Chapter Five: The Detective's KPT Diagnosis—The Path to a Learning Enterprise

Holmes compiled his comprehensive analysis.

"Ms. Sharma, the essence of KPT is 'habituation of learning.' By continuing with three simple questions, individual learning transforms into organizational wisdom. Retrospectives aren't mere reflection—they're the act of planting seeds for tomorrow."

Final Report After 24 Months:

TechVista India completely transformed into a "learning organization."

Organizational Results: - Development productivity: 30% improvement (efficiency through learning) - Attrition rate: 22%/year → 8% (below industry average of 12%) - Customer satisfaction: 4.1/5 → 4.8/5 (result of quality improvement) - New orders: +45% annual growth (effect of reputation improvement)

The letter from Priya contained deep gratitude:

"Through KPT, we evolved from an 'organization where individuals learn' to a 'company that learns.' Most important was that it wasn't a special system but the continuation of simple habits. Now all 3,000 engineers practice KPT weekly. I've witnessed how the accumulation of small retrospectives becomes the power to transform an organization."

The Detective's Perspective—A Culture Named Continuous Improvement

That evening, I contemplated the essence of continuous improvement.

The true value of KPT lies in its simplicity. Complex analytical methods can only be used by specialists, but anyone can practice Keep, Problem, Try. And this accumulation of small habits becomes the force that transforms an organization into a "learning organism."

The twentieth volume "Integration of Practice" begins with establishing analytical methods learned in the nineteenth volume as daily habits. KPT is the most fundamental and most powerful practice.

"Learning is not a one-time event. It's a daily habit. KPT is the simplest and most powerful mechanism for embedding that habit in an organization."

The next case will also depict the moment when practical methods transform organizations.

"Retrospection is the breathing of an organization. KPT is the technique to regulate and deepen that breath."—From the Detective's Notes