Good LO Readings LO17342

Richard S. Webster (webster.1@osu.edu)
Sat, 7 Mar 1998 11:11:53 -0500 (EST)

Replying to LO17330 --

Esin Akay -

Greetings from Ohio, USA. Here are two useful pieces on LO, and Deming's
last book which speaks to many LO-related matters. Hope they are helpful
to you - and to the LO network as further postings on LO#??? on "favorite
books."

DiBella, Anthony J. & Edwin C. Nevis. "How organizations learn: An
integrated strategy for building learning capability." 1998, Jossey-Bass.
Describes organizational learning from three standpoints: normative
(necessary characteristics), developmental (moving toward normative) and
capability (using what you have to get better and move toward where you
want to be). Reports research that encourages a capability strategy for
any organization seeking improvement. Provides guidelines for making
useful improvements.

Garvin, David A. "Building a learning organization." Harvard Business
Review, July-August, 1993, pages 78-91. Presents sensible, actionable
guidelines, e.g. "continuous improvement requires a commitment to
learning...ideas are the trigger for organizational improvement (pages 78,
80). "A learning organization is...skilled at creating, acquiring, and
transferring knowledge, and at modifying its behavior to reflect new
knowledge and insights. ...New ideas are essential if learning is to take
place" (italics quoted, page 80). Proposes practical standards of
"meaning, management, and measurement" (pages 78-79) and illustrates them
with Xerox's problem-solving process, incentive systems to encourage
risk-taking and knowledge transfer, "enthusiastic borrowing" of ideas,
openness to criticism, improvement of listening skills, performance
tracking and learning forums that help all stakeholders "...wrestle with
new knowledge and consider its implications (page 91)." Emphasizes
linkage between learning and ideas.

Deming, W. Edwards. "New economics for industry, government, education,
The." Second edition - 1994, MIT. Presents a "system of profound
knowledge" as the basis for restructuring the management of enterprise,
thereby using more effectively the tools of quality and process
improvement. Proposes that "What we need is cooperation and transformation
to a new style of management" [from Frederick Taylor's "scientific
management" to the use of "scientific method" including hypothesis-testing]
and measurement to make improvements "based on fact" (page xv).

>... In order to write my thesis, I need some
>articals about Learning Organizations and Human Resource Management and
>Development. Would you help me?

-- 

"Richard S. Webster" <webster.1@osu.edu>

Dick Webster

Richard S. Webster, Ph.D. President - PRM Institute 709 Wesley Court - Worthington OH 43085-3558 e-mail <webster.1@osu.edu>, fax 614-433-71-88, tel 614-433-7144

*** PRMI is a 501(c)3 non-profit research & development (R&D) entity founded in 1978. Institute programs and projects relate to: 1) "Learning models," a key strategy for performance improvement and a paradigm shift from "training, instruction and teaching models" now being used. 2) The use of proven change practices for improving performance, processes, and other desired results. Change practices come from: creative ideas (CI), inclusive leadership (IL, from Greenleaf's servant leadership and Block's stewardship), knowledge management (KM), learning organizations (LO), organization development (OD) and quality improvement (QI).***

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