learning organization print takne

8/11/2019 Learning Organization Print Takne

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Introduction

"A Learning Organization is one in which people at all levels, individuals and collectively, are continually increasing theircapacity to produce results they really care about."

An organization that learns and encourages learning among its people. It promotes exchange of information betweenemployees hence creating a more knowledgeable workforce. This produces a very flexible organization where people willaccept and adapt to new ideas and changes through a shared vision.

Organizations do not organically develop into Learning Organizations; there are usually factors prompting their change. It

has been found that as organizations grow, they lose their natural capacity to learn as company structures and individualthinking becomes rigid. When problems arise in the company, the solutions that are proposed often turn out to be onlyshort term (single loop learning) and re-emerge in the future. In order to remain competitive, a lot of organizations havefaced restructurings which have resulted in fewer people in the company and this means that those who remain need to beused more effectively. To create a competitive advantage, companies need to be able to learn faster than their competitorsand also develop a customer responsive culture. Argyris identified that in light of these pressures, modern organizations

need to maintain knowledge about new products and processes, understand what is happening in the outside environmentand produce creative using the knowledge and skills of all employed within the organization. This requires co-operation

between individuals and groups, free and reliable communication, and a culture of trust. These needs can be met through

embracing the tenets of the Learning Organization.

Characteristics of a Learning Organization

A Learning Organization exhibits five main characteristics; systems thinking, personal mastery, mental models, a sharedvision and team learning.

Systems thinking :The idea of the Learning Organization originally developed from a body of work called systems

thinking. This is a conceptual framework that allows people to study businesses as bounded objects. LearningOrganizations employ this method of thinking when assessing their company and will have developed information

systems that measure the performance of the organization as a whole and of its various components. Systems thinking alsostates that all the characteristics listed need to be apparent at once in an organization in order to be a Learning

Organization. If one or more of these characteristics is missing then the organisation will fall short of its goal. HoweverOKeeffee believes that the characteristics of a Learning Organisation are factors that are gradually acquired, rather thandeveloped simultaneously.

Personal mastery: Personal mastery is the commitment by an individual to the process of learning. There is acompetitive

advantage for an organisation whose workforce can learn quicker than the workforce of other organisations. Individuallearning is acquired through staff training and development, however learning cannot be forced upon an individual if he or

she is not receptive to learning. Research has shown that most learning in the workplace is incidental, rather than theproduct of formal training, therefore it is important to develop a culture where personal mastery is practiced in daily lifeA Learning Organisation has been described as the sum of individual learning, but it is important for there to be

mechanisms by which individual learning is transferred into organisational learning.

Mental models:Mental models are the terms given to ingrained assumptions held by individuals and organisations. In

order to have become a Learning Organisation, these mental models will have been challenged. Individuals tend to haveespoused theories, which they intend to follow, and theories-in-use which is what they actually do. Similarly

organisations tend to have memories which preserve certain behaviours, norms and values. In the creation of a learningenvironment it is important to replace confrontational attitudes with an open culture that promotes inquiry and trust. Inorder to achieve this the Learning Organisation will have mechanisms for locating and assessing organisational theories ofaction. If there are unwanted values held by the organisation, these need to be discarded in a process called unlearningWang and Ahmed refer to this as triple loop learning.

Shared vision: The development of a shared vision is important in incentivising the workforce to learn as it creates acommon identity which can provide focus and energy for learning. The most successful visions build on the individual

visions of the employees at all levels of the organisation and the creation of a shared vision is likely to be hindered by
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traditional structures where a company vision is imposed from above. As a result, Learning Organisations tend to have

flat, decentralised organisational structures. The topic of shared vision is often to succeed against a competitor, howeverSenge states that these are transitory goals and suggests that there should also be long term goals that are intrinsic within

the company.

Team learning:Team learning is the accumulation of individual learning. The benefit of sharing individual learning isthat employees grow more quickly and the problem solving capacity of the organisation is improved through better access

to knowledge and expertise. Learning Organisations have structures that facilitate team learning with features such asboundary crossing and openness. Team learning requires individuals to engage in dialogue and discussion, therefore it isimportant that team members develop open communication, shared meaning and understanding. Learning Organisations

also have excellent knowledge management structures which allow the creation, acquisition, dissemination andimplementation of this knowledge throughout the organisation.

Benefits of being a Learning Organization

There are many benefits to improving learning capacity and knowledge sharing within an organization. The main benefitsare;

Maintaining levels of innovation and remaining competitive

Being better placed to respond to external pressures

Having the knowledge to better link resources to customer needs

Improving quality of outputs at all levels

Improving corporate image by becoming more people orientated

Increasing the pace of change within the organization

Why a Learning Organisation ?

A company that performs badly is easily recognisable. Can youspot the signs?

Do your employees seem unmotivatedor uninterestedin their work?Does your workforce lack the skilland knowledgeto adjust to new jobs?Do you seem to be the only oneto come up with all the ideas?

And does your workforcesimply follow orders?Do your teams argueconstantly and lack real productivity?

Or lack communicationbetween each other?And when the "guru" is off do things get put on hold?Are you always the last to hear about problems?Or worst still the first to hear about customer complaints?

And do the same problemsoccur over and over?

If any of these points sound familiar the answer for you could be a Learning Organisation.

How to Create a Learning Organisation

1)The Building BlocksBefore a Learning Organisations can be implemented , a solid foundation can be made by taking into account thefollowing :

Awareness

Environment

Leadership

Empowerment

Learning
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Awareness: Organisations must be aware that learning is necessary before they can develop into a Learning OrganisationThis may seem to be a strange statement but this learning must take place at all levels; not just the Management level.Once the company has excepted the need for change, it is then responsible for creating the appropriate environment for

this change to occur in.

Environment: Centralised, mechanistic structures do not create a good environment. Individuals do not have acomprehensive picture of the whole organisation and its goals. This causes political and parochial systems to be set up

which stifle the learning process. Therefore a more flexible, organic structure must be formed. By organic, we mean aflatter structure which encourages innovations. The flatter structure also promotes passing of information betweenworkers and so creating a more informed work force. It is necessary for management to take on a new philosophy; to

encourage openness, reflectivity and accept error and uncertainty. Members need to be able to question decisions withoutthe fear of reprimand. This questioning can often highlight problems at an early stage and reduce time consuming errorsOne way of over-coming this fear is to introduce anonymity so that questions can be asked or suggestions made but the

source is not necessarily known.

Leadership: Leaders should foster the Systems Thinking concept and encourage learning to help both the individual andorganisation in learning. It is the leader's responsibility to help restructure the individual views of team members. For

example, they need to help the teams understand that competition is a form of learning; not a hostile act. Managemenmust provide commitment for long-term learning in the form of resources. The amount of resources available (money,

personnel and time) determines the quantity and quality of learning. This means that the organisation must be prepared tosupport this.

Empowerment: The locus of control shifts from managers to workers. This is where the term Empowerment isintroduced. The workers become responsible for their actions; but the managers do not lose their involvement. They still

need to encourage, enthuse and co-ordinate the workers. Equal participation must be allowed at all levels so that memberscan learn from each other simultaneously. This is unlike traditionally learning that involves a top-down structure

(classroom-type example) which is time consuming.

Learning: Companies can learn to achieve these aims in Learning Labs. These are small-scale models of real-life settingswhere management teams learn how to learn together through simulation games. They need to find out what failure is like

so that they can learn from their mistakes in the future. These managers are then responsible for setting up an open,

flexible atmosphere in their organisations to encourage their workers to follow their learning example.

Anonymity has already been mentioned and can be achieved through electronic conferencing. This type of conferencingcan also encourage different sites to communicate and share knowledge, thus making a company truly a LearningOrganisation.

Implementation Strategies : Any organisation that wants to implement a learning organisation philosophy requires anoverall strategy with clear, well defined goals. Once these have been established, the tools needed to facilitate the strategymust be identified.

It is clear that everyone has their own interpretation of the "Learning Organisation" idea, so to produce an action plan thawill transform groups into Learning Organisations might seem impossible. However, it is possible to identify three

generic strategies that highlight possible routes to developing Learning Organisations. The specific tools required toimplement any of these depends on the strategy adopted, but the initiatives that they represent are generic throughoutThese initiatives are ably described using Peter Senge's Five Disciplines of Learning Organisations (Senge, 1990). The

three strategies are:

Accidental: For many companies, adopting a learning organisation philosophy is the secondstep to achieving this HolyGrail. They may already be taking steps to achieve their business goals that, in hindsight, fit the framework for

implementing a Learning Organisation. This is the accidental approach in that it was not initiated through awareness ofthe Learning Organisation concept.


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Subversive: Once an organisation has discovered the Learning Organisation philosophy, they must make a decision as to

how they want to proceed. This is a choice between a subversive and a declared strategy. The subversive strategy differsfrom an accidental one in the level of awareness; but it is not secretive! Thus, while not openly endorsing the Learning

Organisation ideal, they are able to exploit the ideas and techniques.

Declared: The other option is the declared approach. This is self explanatory. The principles of Learning Organisationsare adopted as part of the company ethos, become company "speak"and are manifest openly in all company initiatives.

There are five disciplines(as described by Peter Senge)which are essential to a learning organisation and should

be encouraged at all times. These are:

Team Learning

Shared Visions

Mental Models

Personal Mastery

Systems Thinking

Team Learning Virtually all important decisions occur in groups. Teams, not individuals, are the fundamental

learning units. Unless a team can learn, the organisation cannot learn. Team learning focusses on the learning

ability of the group. Adults learn best from each other, by reflecting on how they are addressing problemsquestioning assumptions, and receiving feedback from their team and from their results. With team learning, thelearning ability of the group becomes greater than the learning ability of any individual in the group.

Shared Visions To create a shared vision, large numbers of people within the organisation must draft it,

empowering them to create a single image of the future. All members of the organisation must understand, share

and contribute to the vision for it to become reality. With a shared vision, people will do things because they wantto, not because they have to.

Mental Models : Each individual has an internal image of the world, with deeply ingrained assumptions.

Individuals will act according to the true mental model that they subconsciously hold, not according to thetheories which they claim to believe. If team members can constructively challenge each others' ideas andassumptions, they can begin to perceive their mental models, and to change these to create a shared mental model

for the team. This is important as the individual's mental model will control what they think can or cannot be

done. Personal Mastery : Personal mastery is the process of continually clarifying and deepening an individual's

personal vision. This is a matter of personal choice for the individual and involves continually assessing the gap

between their current and desired proficiencies in an objective manner, and practising and refining skills until theyare internalised. This develops self esteem and creates the confidence to tackle new challenges.

Systems Thinking : The cornerstone of any learning organisation is the fifth discipline - systems thinking. This

is the ability to see the bigger picture, to look at the interrelationships of a system as opposed to simple cause-effect chains; allowing continuous processes to be studied rather than single snapshots. The fifth discipline showsus that the essential properties of a system are not determined by the sum of its parts but by the process of

interactions between those parts.

This is the reason systems thinking is fundamental to any learning organisation; it is the discipline used to implement the

disciplines. Without systems thinking each of the disciplines would be isolated and therefore not achieve their objective.The fifth discipline integrates them to form the whole system, a system whose properties exceed the sum of its parts.However, the converse is also true - systems thinking cannot be achieved without the other core disciplines: personalmastery, team learning, mental models and shared vision. All of these disciplines are needed to successfully implement

systems thinking, again illustrating the principal of the fifth discipline: systems should be viewed as interrelationshipsrather than isolated parts.

Why Learning Organisations Work
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A Learning Organisation encourages its members to improve their personal skills and qualities, so that they can learn and

develop. They benefit from their own and other people's experience, whether it be positive or negative.

Greater motivation People are appreciated for their own skills, values and work. All opinions are treated equally

and with respect. By being aware of their role and importance in the whole organisation, the workers are moremotivated to "add their bit". This encourages creativity and free-thinking, hence leading to novel solutions to

problems. All in all there is an increase in job satisfaction.The workforce is more flexible People learn skills and acquire knowledge beyond their specific job requirementsThis enables them to appreciate or perform other roles and tasks. Flexibility allows workers to move freely within the

organization, whilst at the same time it removes the barriers associated with a rigidly structured company. It alsoensures that any individual will be able to cope rapidly with a changing environment, such as those that exist inmodern times.People are more creative There are more opportunities to be creative in a learning organisation. There is also room

for trying out new ideas without having to worry about mistakes. Employees' creative contribution is recognised andnew ideas are free to flourish.Improved social interaction Learning requires social interaction and interpersonal communication skills. An

organisation based on learning will ensure members become better at these activities. Teams will work better as aresult.

Teams and Groups Work Better Learning Organisations provide the perfect environment for high performing teams

to learn, grow and develop. On the other hand these teams will perform efficiently for the organisation to producepositive results.Knowledge sharing " Openness Creates Trust " A team is composed of highly specialised members who can notand are not expected to know everything about a job. In this case the sharing of common knowledge is quite important

for the completion of a job. Within learning organisations in general, and teams in particular, information andknowledge flows around more freely. This makes for higher productivity within teams and between teams as they

build on each others strengths. Trust between team members increases and hence they value each others opinions

more.Interdependency: In any organisation people depend on each other for the completion of their jobs. Learning

Organisations will increase this awareness, and improve relations between people at a personal level. By knowingmore about other people's roles, needs and tasks, members can manage their time better and plan their work moreefficiently. This dependency is decreased as learning is enhanced, letting people get on with their own job better as

they rely less on others.The Company Benefits: An active learning organization will have at its heart the concept of continuous learning.Therefore it will always be improving in its techniques, methods and technology. Breakdown of traditional communication barriers: The old hierarchical communication barrier between manager-worker has devolved into more of a coach-team member scenario. Leaders support the team, not dictate to it. The

team appreciates this which in turn helps them to be highly motivated. All workers have an increased awareness of thecompany's status, and all that goes on in other departments. Communication between and across all layers of thecompany gives a sense of coherence, making each individual a vital part of the whole system. Workers perform betteras they feel more a part of the company; they are not just pawns in a game.Customer relationsA company's first priority is its customer's needs. A Learning Organisation cuts the excess

bureaucracy normally involved with customer relations allowing greater contact between the two. If the customersrequirements change, learning organisations can adapt faster and cope more efficiently with this change.

Information resources Over time a company builds up a pool of learning, in the form of libraries, and humanexpertice. This pool of knowledge within learning organisations is larger than average. New problems and challengescan be met faster using this increased resource.Innovation and creativity As more people in every level of a company engage in continual learning a validcontribution can come from any member of the company, and from any part of the company. Being innovative and

creative is the responsability of the whole workforce and allows learning organisations to adapt to changes in the stateof the market, technology and competition efficiently. Moreover, this creativity gives rise to an increasedsynergy.The interaction between high performing teams produces a result which is higher than was planned orexpected of them.


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Risk Analysis

Risks if You Implement the Changes

to be effective, the change must be drastic and not introduced slowly as time is money

not all employees want to learn and will resist the changethe openness created endangers the trust between employees

ignorance about learning; that is not following the proper learning cycle`Over the top': too much emphasis on learning and not enough on getting the job done

"To encourage the learning organisation as the `end' is an exercise in futility" anonymous too much freedom and information can create misunderstandingsinformation overload, too much to absorb at once "To love knowing and not learning: shallowness",Confuciusthe culture of the country may be a disadvantagethe perils of being a pioneer

Risks if You Don't Implement the Changes

survival of the fittest

overtaken by the competitors

become inefficientfail to embrace new ideas and increase productivity

The SCOPE

In the future the following areas will become increasingly more important:

Investment in LearningTechnology

Information HighwayKnowledge is the KeyUnemployment

Learning CultureCustomer - Client RelationshipsConclusionInvestment in Learning There will be more emphasis on learning and hence more investment in improvingindividuals, teams and the organisation. There will be more emphasis on the ability to learn and take on board new

ideas and methods. Training will be provided by people within the company who actually do the work. Training wilno longer be a separate activity but an integral part of the teams in the company.

Technology The price per performance ratio of technology will increase greatly. The value of technology comparedto labour will improve by an even greater amount. Technology will become more cross functional and transparent.Information Highway The increased access to the information highway will make information more available and to

a wider audience. Barriers to learning, such as lack of information and the availability of material will be reduced.Learning Organisation will harness this form of information and use it to their advantage. Employees regardless of

their status will have access to information that previously only their managers had. Knowledge is the Key In the future, organisation will be based on knowledge and not just physical assets such asland or products. The most important employee will be a `knowledge worker' and employees will be judged on their

ability to learn.UnemploymentThe increased use of technology and the increased efficiency of individuals will lead to some

necessary redundancies; whether this leads to an overall increase in unemployment is more debatable. The true`knowledge worker' will be able to adapt his/her skills to re-employment.Learning Culture Previous organisation cultures which are based on position or hierarchy will disappear. The culture

of an organisation will be based on learning and the skills of individuals.
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Customer - Client Relationships A learning culture will help customers and clients understand each other's needs

better. It will allow a greater degree of co-operation between customer and clients.

10.1MOTOROLA UNIVERSITYMotorola continues to grow at a significant rate, with 20000 associates hired each year. With this growth, Motorola has

the need to train people for their own hiring. Jeff Oberlin, director of MotorolaUniversity's Department of Emerging Technologies and Human Resource

Trends explained:"We can't keep using traditional classroom methods of instruction to spread themessage for Motorola. Our reach isn't far enough to get to everybody. We must

find creative ways to help new associates, world-wide, become productive members of a team and receive consistentmessages about how we do business; the core values of Motorola, and the tools and techniques we use."Jeff's charter is to closely re-examine MU's methods of spreading information, delivering training, and determining new

and better ways of providing Motorolans with the knowledge and skills required to meet the ever-changing demands ofthe industry.

He went on to say, "The use of CD-ROM, Internet applications, wireless data, and a host of other emerging technologiesmust be fully explored. Our intent is to find those situations where alternative training delivery is the best way to transfer

information."

Multimedia training would allow Motorola to:Get training to all Motorolans world-wide, including emerging marketsReduce training times and costs

Increase knowledge of the firmThe first step is to build a department of technology to research, develop, and eventually teach the how-to aspects ofmultimedia based learning."Once we determine how to use the various technologies available to us, we want to share that knowledge with thebusiness."Motorola is looking for associates with expertise in a number of areas:

Computer based trainingThe InternetSatellite and business television

Wireless communication

Corporate education departmentsSoftwareVideo

Motorola University was started in 1981 as the Motorola Training and Education Centre. It wascreated to provide

training needs and established itself as a corporate department.During the 1980s, Motorola University's original aim was to help its company build a quality culture which would thendevelop an internal training system. In addition, they set up corporate-wide training plans and training investment policiesBy 1990, Motorola University had expanded its operations in the United States, Eastern Europe, South America and theAsia-Pacific region. The Galvin Centre for Continuing Education was opened in 1986 while the Singapore Training

Design Centre was opened in 1989.Today, many mangers, supervisors and employees from all parts of Motorola have attended diversity training. This

training helps participants to have more opportunities to develop and achieve their full potential

Example Of Organizational Learning

Success stories from the industry

British Petroleum has often been cited as a model of the learning organisation. In BP, knowledge management is a

mainstream activity. The company has knowledge managers in every business unit, who identify and document best

practices to be adapted by the rest of the organisation. BP managers have attributed significant improvements in

refinery turnarounds, developing oilfields and business restructuring to the companys knowledge management

endeavours.
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Tata Steel has aunique programme, Aspire Knowledge Manthan, which facilitates knowledge sharing among

supervisors and workers. Its objective is to motivate workers to perform better and to enhance their capabilities.

Another Tata company, TCS, has a job rotation policy that exposes its employees to new responsibilities, functions or

geographies on a regular basis.

The legendary success of Sewa (Self-Employed Womens Association) stands testimony tothe empowerment potentia

of knowledge. Sewa is a union of poor rural women that aims to make them economically independent through self-

employment.

The Sewa Academy conducts vocational training and capacity-building programmes for union members the latter

focuses on interventions to hone their self-esteem and leadership skills. Senior members are given TOT (train the

trainer) training and inducted as faculty in the academy. Sewa continues to transform the lives of numerous women and

develop them into community leaders.

Conclusion:The ability to learn and adapt is a vital factor that determines the viability of an organisation. In order to

remain competitive in a continually evolving environment, the organisation needs to establish itself as a denizen on the

learning orbit.

Edward Deming, the pioneer of the total quality management (TQM) movement, once remarked, Learning is not

compulsory; neither is survival. That is one lesson no organisation can afford to skip.

Suresh Lulla is managing director of Qimpro Consultants, founder of the BestPrax Club, and chairman of the IMC Quality

Awards Committee. In 2005, he was awarded the distinguished alumnus award by the Indian Institute of Technology,

Bombay, in recognition of his achievements in quality management consultancy


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