Learning organisation Part 1

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Learning OrganisationOrganisational Structure and Design - Second Assignment

Submitted ToDr. G. Muruganandham

Submitted ByRAMESH P L

Roll no : 215109008

Submitted On25th September 2009

DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

TIRUCHIRAPALLI


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Contents

Contents 1

1.INTRODUCTION 3

1.1 Definition of learning organisation 4Learni

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1.2 History 51.3 Organisational Learning and Learning

Organisation 6

2.BENEFITS OF LEARNING ORGANISATION 7

2.1 Peoples benefits 8

2.1.1 Greater motivation

2.1.2 The workforce is more flexible

2.1.3 People are more creative

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2.1.4 Improved social interaction

2.2 Teams benefits 9

2.2.1 Knowledge sharing " OpennessCreates Trust "

2.2.2 Interdependency

2.3 The Company Benefits 102.3.1 Breakdown of traditional communication

barriers

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2.3.2 Customer relations

2.3.3 Information resources

2.3.4 Innovation and creativity3.FIVE DISCIPLINES 12

3.1 Systems Thinking 12

3.2 Personal mastery 13

3.3 Mental models 14

3.4 Shared vision 14

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3.5 Team learning 15

3.6 The Fifth Discipline 16

3.7 The Laws of the Fifth Discipline 174. BUILDING A LEARNING ORGANISATION 19

4.1 Building Blocks 19

4.1.1 Awareness

4.1.2 Environment

4.1.3 Empowerment

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4.1.4 Learning

4.2 Leadership 21

4.2.1 Leader as designer.4.2.2 Leader as steward.

4.2.3 Leader as teacher.

4.3 Implementation Strategies 22

4.3.1 Accidental

4.3.2 Subversive

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4.3.3 Declared4.4 Problems that may be encountered in a

Learning Organisation 23

4.4.1 Organisational barriers to learning

4.4.2 Individual barriers to learning

5. CASE STUDIES ON ABN AMRO 25

5.1 Innovation & Creativity 255.1.1 Social and Environmental Innovative

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Sustainability5.1.2 Common Office Environment (COE)

Deployment Project

5.1.3 Pathlore Learning Management Solution

5.2 Culture 27

5.3 Continuous Improvement 28

5.4 Conclusion 29

6. CONCLUSION 30

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References 31

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1

INTRODUCTION

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Without learning, the wise become foolish; by learning, the foolish

become wise

- Confucius

You live to learn or you dont live long

- Lazarus Long

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Learning is knowledge acquired by study.The underlying cause for recent

emphasis on organisational learning is because of the increased pace of

change. The organizations that will truly excel in the future will be those that

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find how to tap peoples commitment and develop the capacity to learn at all

levels in an organization.

A Learning Organization is the term given to a company that facilitates thelearning of its members and continuously transforms itself. It is a concept

that is becoming an increasingly widespread philosophy in modern

companies, from the largest multinationals to the smallest ventures.

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1.1 Definition of learning organisation

There are varying definitions of a Learning Organization in published

literature, although the core concept between them all remains clear.

According to Peter Senge

Organizations where people continually expand their capacity to create the

results they truly desire, where new and expansive patterns of thinking are

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A learning organisation harnesses the full brainpower, knowledge and

experience available to it, in order to evolve continually for the benefit of all

its stakeholdersAccording to Nancy Dixon

An organisation that learns and encourages learning among its people. It

promotes exchange of information between employees hence creating a

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more knowledgeable workforce. This produces a very flexible organisation

where people will accept and adapt to new ideas and changes through a

shared visionTo summarize the learning organisation is one in which

Learns about internal and external environment

Learning is continues

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Easily adopts to change and new ideas

People learn together

Learning is also between employees

1.2 History

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Major research into `the art of learning' did not actually start until the

1900's. In the 1950's, the concept of Systems Thinking was introduced but

never implemented.One of the systems used was called Decision Support Systems (DSS). This

was for the use of corporate executives to help them make decisions for the

future. One benefit of DSS was that it made implicit knowledge explicit. This

makes extra knowledge available to the organisation and will tend to allow

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the organisation to learn better because explicit knowledge will tend to

spread faster through an organisation. In the 1970's, the same idea was

renamed to Organisational Learning. One of the early researchers in this fieldwas Chris Arygris from Harvard. He published a book on the subject in 1978.

Even with this published information the concept still wasn't physically taken

on by any companies.

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In the 1980's, companies discovered time as a new source of competitive

advantage. This lead to `capabilities-based competition' which included the

capability of learning. Many other people have continued along this line ofresearch, such as Peter Senge, M. Pedler, J. Burgoyne and Tom Boydell.

The term learning organisation was first keyed by Peter Senge in his book

The Fifth Discipline: The art and practice of the learning organization

published in 1990. Later the term was defined further by Pedler et all in the

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year 1991. Implementation of the learning organization has its origins in

companies like Shell, Toyoto, Abm AMRO. Nowadays many organisations are

turning out to learning organisation.

1.3 Organisational Learning and Learning Organisation

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Organizational learning is an area of knowledge within organizational theory

that studies models and theories about the way an organization learns and

adapts. While learning organisation uses the theoretical findings oforganizational learning (and other research in organisational development,

system theory, and cognitive science) in order to prescribe specific

recommendations about how to create organizations that continuously and

effectively learn.

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2

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BENEFITS OF LEARNING

ORGANISATION

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In the long run, the only sustainable source of competitive

advantage is your organization's ability to learn faster than itscompetitior

-Peter Senge

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Organizations do not organically develop into Learning Organizations; there

are usually factors prompting their change. It has been found that asorganizations grow, they lose their natural capacity to learn as company

structures and individual thinking becomes rigid.When problems arise in the

company, the solutions that are proposed often turn out to be only short

term and the problem re-emerge in the future. To remain competitive, many

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organizations have restructured, which has resulted in fewer people in the

company. This means those who remain need to work more effectively. To

create a competitive advantage, companies need to be able to learn fasterthan their competitors and also develop a customer responsive culture.

2.1 Peoples benefits

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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.

2.1.1 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

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importance in the whole organisation, the workers are more motivated 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.

2.1.2 The workforce is more flexible

People learn skills and acquire knowledge beyond their specific job

requirements. This enables them to appreciate or perform other roles and

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tasks. Flexibility allows workers to move freely within the organisation, whilst

at the same time it removes the barriers associated with a rigidly structured

company. It also ensures that any individual will be able to cope rapidly witha changing environment, such as those that exist in modern times.

2.1.3 People are more creative

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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 and new ideas are free toflourish.

2.1.4 Improved social interaction

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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 a result.

2.2 Teams benefits

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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 produce positive results.

2.2.1 Knowledge sharing " Openness Creates Trust "

A team is composed of highly specialised members who cannot and are not

expected to know everything about a job. In this case the sharing of common

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knowledge is quite important for the completion of a job. Within learning

organisations in general, and teams in particular, information and knowledge

flows around more freely. This makes for higher productivity within teamsand between teams as they build on each others strengths. Trust between

team members increases and hence they value each others opinions more.

2.2.2 Interdependency

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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 knowing more about otherpeople's roles, needs and tasks, members can manage their time better and

plan their work more efficiently. This dependency is decreased as learning is

enhanced, letting people get on with their own job better as they rely less on

others.

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2.3 The Company Benefits

An active learning organisation will have at its heart the concept of

continuous learning. Therefore it will always be improving in its techniques,

methods and technology.

2.3.1 Breakdown of traditional communication

barriers

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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 tobe highly motivated.

All workers have an increased awareness of the company's status, and all

that goes on in other departments. Communication between and across all

layers of the company gives a sense of coherence, making each individual a

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vital part of the whole system. Workers perform better as they feel more a

part of the company; they are not just pawns in a game.

2.3.2 Customer relations

A 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 customers requirements

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change, learning organisations can adapt faster and cope more efficiently

with this change.

2.3.3 Information resources

Over time a company builds up a pool of learning, in the form of libraries,

and human expertise. This pool of knowledge within learning organisations is

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larger than average. New problems and challenges can be met faster using

this increased resource.

2.3.4 Innovation and creativity

As more people in every level of a company engage in continual learning a

valid contribution can come from any member of the company, and from any

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part of the company. Being innovative and creative is the responsibility of

the whole workforce and allows learning organisations to adapt to changes in

the state of the market, technology and competition efficiently.Moreover, this creativity gives rise to an increased synergy. The interaction

between high performing teams produces a result which is higher than was

planned or expected of them.

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Documents

Learning organisation Part 1