A review and case study on learning organizations

Abstract

Examines popular theories of learning in organizations to highlight their limitations for reform and change. Divides learning approaches into four general strategies ‐ organizational learning, learning organization, learning environment, and “learning space”. Examines how issues of power, diversity, indeterminacy and hierarchy are treated in each approach and the extent to which multi‐vocal strategies of learning are engendered. These issues have been central to concerns raised in the literature about organizational control. However, much of what is popularly promoted as prescriptions for learning in organizations ‐ on dimensions such as teamwork, leadership, and culture ‐ have significant elements in which there is little evidence of reflection on issues of control. Gives particular attention to Peter Senge’s book,The Fifth Discipline,which has become the blueprint for many organizational learning projects and other learning approaches. Also gives attention to a popular account of learning, an address by the CEO of the Australian telecommunications firm, Telstra. The analysis provides a basis for raising questions about popular learning strategies and underlines the need for managers to reflect on the complex, contextualized, and contentious nature of learning and its macro‐level constraints and its micro‐level impacts.

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