CHANGING ORGANISATIONAL THINKING THROUGH LEARNING

Changing Organisational Thinking through Learning

Table of Contents

Abstract3

Chapter 1: Introduction4

Background4

Purpose of the Study6

Chapter 2: Literature Review7

Learning and Change7

The Faculty Member as Learner9

Discipline-Based Organizational Learning12

Program-Based Organizational Learning14

The Paradigm of Organizational Learning16

The Processes of Organizational Learning18

The Social Construction of Learning21

Generative or Transformational Learning23

Systems Thinking24

Personal Mastery24

Mental Models26

Building Shared Vision27

Team Learning29

A Traditional View of Management Development30

The Future of Management Development: Adult Learning - A Collaborative Endeavour32

A Strategic View33

Senior Managers as Role Models33

Sustained Support and Challenge34

The Mindset of Individuals34

Changing Organisation through Learning49

Chapter 3: Methodology62

Research Design62

Data Collection Method62

Keywords63

Reliability63

Validity63

Ethical Concerns64

Chapter 4: Findings and Discussion67

Chapter 5: Conclusion73

References75

Appendices81

Abstract

Organizational learning is currently a fashionable concept, and this is due to an attempt by many large organizations to develop structures and systems that are more adaptable and responsive to change. This paper reviews a framework for organizational learning and discusses the two main perspectives on the learning organization, that is, the focus on generative or transformational learning and the focus on incremental or adaptive learning. The basic rationale for such organizations is that in situations of rapid change only those that are flexible, adaptive and productive will excel. For this to happen, it is argued, organizations need to 'discover how to tap people's commitment and capacity to learn at all levels'. While all people have the capacity to learn, the structures in which they have to function are often not conducive to reflection and engagement. Furthermore, people may lack the tools and guiding ideas to make sense of the situations they face. Organizations that are continually expanding their capacity to create their future require a fundamental shift of mind among their members.

Chapter 1: Introduction

Background

In this article, we are discussing how organizational learning can take place as an integral part of the strategic development within a school. While some emphasis has been put on how the school can establish a learning partnership with a company, little or no emphasis has been put so far on how the school itself can be seen as a learning organization, although recent research on university administration is starting to focus on this. The case we shall focus on a school of IT Management.

As the school puts most of its emphasis on executive development, there is consequently a rather atypical one-dimensional academic value-creation focus at the school. Typically, most schools will have a much broader set of programme activities as a basis for their academic value-creation. This added complexity typically may mean diversity in subcultures, multiple disciplinary focuses, more sources of impulses from various types of students-cum-customers, etc. One might indeed expect that organizational learning would be much more difficult in such normal but more diverse settings. Certainly, the unifying perspective of the school's executive development focus is likely to be a factor that might facilitate organizational learning within the school.

A factor that might add complexity to the school's organizational learning, on the other hand, is the very fact that the school is perhaps the most international of any of the leading schools. This means that much organizational learning will have to integrate rather complex ...