Organizational Learning
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[edit] Leading & Harnessing
[edit] Contributions by Discipline
[edit] The Treatment of Organizational Learning in Management Science
The concept of management science is best understood within the framework of post-modern learning theories. The post-modern notion that all existence is interrelated can be applied to organizational learning by way of management science - purposing toward a new awareness. Peter Pawlowsky defines this organizational learning approach as the:
- "...transformation of informational and knowledge resources in integrated work systems. [He adds that] innovation, growth, and productivity gains do not result from separating tasks in the workflow of a knowledge-intensive operation but rather from integrating and combining knowledge in order to develop new ideas and jointly develop solutions through problem-solving processes" (Dierkes, et al., 2003, p. 61).
Margaret Wheatley (1999) conceptualizes it in her book Leadership and the New Science as a "focus on holism" (p. 10) rather than reductionism. She recalls Donella Meadows' recitation of "an ancient Sufi teaching that captures this shift in focus: "You think because you understand one, you must understand two, because one and one makes two. But you must also understand and" (p. 10). It is the and that guides management science thinking into a new realm – with new perspective and learning gleaned through collective wisdom and realized in a dimension not solely supported by rational thought. - Debbie L. Philpott
[edit] Contribution of anthropology
It's hard to find a clear connection with anthroplogical studies and language concerning organizational learning. This is a direct result from writings "in the social sciences, the word 'organization' was traditionally understood not as a social unit but as a state, an attribute or an activity, and the relevant adjective was 'organized', not 'organizational'" (Czarniawska, 2001, p. 118). Anthropology began to use the term 'organizational learning' as it refers to the learning we do in context of social structures. This is an important delineation in terms as it crosses disciplines. Understanding the use or organizational learning in this light helps focus on how we learn in social structures, which is diffused differently than independent learning.
