Richard:
I agree that organizations learn if for no other reason than that they
contain at least some human beings that have an interest in doing what
they do better.
For me, what makes a learning organization (as opposed to an organization
that learns) is intentional action to sustain its learning. Many
organizations have groups or individuals that are very motivated to do
better. Often, this motivation dissipates because of perceived
organizational inertia.
Other organizations are different. Learning is highly valued and quickly
translated into sustained changes in how the organization works. People
see they make a difference and are motivated to learn more.
I spent most of my career working in or with organizations where I was
motivated to learn and became frustrated. I now work with a firm that
really lives the life and walks the walk of a learning organization. We
learn a lot in many different ways -- individually, among ourselves and
through partnerships with our clients. That learning pretty quickly
affects how we do business. We are effectively delivering services this
year that we only contemplated last year. We'd be pleased to have
visitors if you'd like to see what our learning organization looks like.
----------
Jason Smith
Quantum Solutions
Toronto, Canada
jsmith@quantumsolutions.on.ca (work)
pax@passport.ca (personal)
"It's tough to make predictions, especially about the future." - Yogi Berra
--"Jason Smith" <jsmith@quantumsolutions.on.ca>
Learning-org -- Hosted by Rick Karash <rkarash@karash.com> Public Dialog on Learning Organizations -- <http://www.learning-org.com>