Learning Organization

Definition of Learning Organization
Below are three definitions of learning organizations from three influential thinkers:

• Learning Organizations are organizations where people continually expand their capacity to create the results they truly desire, where new and expansive patterns of thinking are nurtured, where collective aspiration is set free, and where people are continually learning to see the whole together." - Peter Senge, The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization, page 3. Senge's definition of a learning organization (above) includes places where people "expand their capacity to create," but also organizations "where new and expansive patterns of thinking are nurtured [and]...collective aspiration is set free," and "where people are continually learning to see the whole together." So Senge's definition involves the learning by people, the conditions at the organization in which people learn, and a hint at learning that allows everyone at work to see a "whole together." That final point is a reference to systems thinking, which Senge argued is very important and which will come up again.
• "The Learning Company is a vision of what might be possible. It is not brought about simply by training individuals; it can only happen as a result of learning at the whole organization level. A Learning Company is an organization that facilitates the learning of all its members and continuously transforms itself." - Pedler, M.; Burgoyne, J.; and Boydell, T. The Learning Company. A Strategy for Sustainable Development, page 1. Pedler, Burgoyne, and Boydell use the phrase learning company instead of learning organization, but we're essentially talking about the same thing. Notice that their definition points out that being a learning organization is more than just providing training. According to Pedler, Burgoyne, and Boydell, learning companies/organizations facilitate "the learning of all its members," learning occurs "at the whole organization level," and the learning of all organization members causes the organization to "continuously [transform] itself." It's interesting that their definition suggests all individuals learn but the learning affects the entire organization and also that the learning causes the organization to change continuously in response to that learning.
• "Learning organizations are characterized by total employee involvement in a process of collaboratively conducted, collectively accountable change directed towards shared values or principles." - Watkins, K.; Marsick, V. Building the Learning Organization: A New Role for Human Resource Developers, Studies in Continuing Education, 14(2): pp 115-29. Watkins and Marsick's definition of a learning organization includes many of the same names: the involvement of employees in a collaborative effort that leads to change (they note the change is directed to shared values or principles).

How Learning Organizations Work
Senge explains that the learning organization framework creates an environment where “new and expansive patterns of thinking are nurtured, where collective aspiration is set free, and where people are continually learning how to learn together.” Adopting this type of culture is not only beneficial to employees but fostering a genuine desire for growth can help significantly improve the bottom line — mainly because an innovative, successful business thrives off the solutions its workforce creates.

But all too often, employees feel their only role is to show up, complete their tasks without having any real say, and go home. When no one gives merit to their ideas or acknowledges their concerns about ineffectual policies, they don’t see a point in sharing them. Companies rarely achieve success without engaged employees asking questions, gaining knowledge, and challenging themselves and their peers. Companies and their employees need to focus on learning to learn: a process that involves pairing different individuals, departments, and management styles together. And while the first two will always have their idiosyncrasies, consolidating management styles catalyzes the transition from traditional corporation to pioneer. Rather than restricting (i.e. following the old way simply because “that’s how it’s always been done”), learning organizations cultivate an atmosphere of open communication and evaluation. Why is that so important? Employees are the most valuable resource of an organization. And helping them realize it leads to a whole new realm of benefits.

Examples of Learning Organizations
Becoming and sustaining a true learning organization requires a lot of work and dedication, and it takes time, energy and resources. Many are thwarted in their attempts to become a learning organization by the press of daily work, inability to persevere, lack of support from the top or the unwillingness to fully commit to the idea. Yet, despite these obstacles, there are examples of organizations that have been true learning organizations for many years, if not decades. Their long-term success is testimony to the value of continuous learning. Examples include:

• General Electric: Its Crotonville learning center drives continuous learning by managers and other leaders, as they return to Crotonville to learn and teach at critical transitions in their careers.
• Goldman Sachs: Its Pine Street learning center provides essential learning to a large segment of its managerial population on an ongoing basis.
• Pizza Hut: It constantly invents and implements new technology and by recognizing the lifetime value of their customers, it treats them as long-term assets.
• Honeywell: By applying Six-Sigma approaches, quality is constantly improved, while costs are simultaneously decreased.
• Microsoft: It successfully made the massive shift in mindset from desktop to Internet when its marketplace changed.
• Johnson & Johnson: Driven by its famous credo, it constantly improves products and invents new ones, always with the user at the center of its focus.
• Apple: It perceives unrecognized marketplace needs and creates new products to fill them.
• Toyota Motor Co.: It uses lean manufacturing and continuous improvement to make small but never-ending improvements in products and processes.
• USA Today: It invented and kept reinventing publishing technology to move information colorfully and electronically, as well as to manage distribution.

What is common to all these successful companies is their foundation of solid basic principles and values, as well as their continuous learning to keep them thinking and acting ahead of their competition. They constantly create markets, market approaches, products and greater customer value constantly, and they never squander the market advantage they have worked so hard to acquire by letting their competition think or act ahead of them or faster than they can.