How to develop a learning organization?

Before we discuss how to develop a learning organization, let us take a look at what it is and why we need to develop such an organization.

What are learning organizations?

Learning organizations are good at adapting to external environment. They continuously enhance their existing capabilities and acquire new capabilities before it is too late. Individuals in such organizations and the organizations themselves learn all the times. Such organizations put to use what is learned and achieve better results.

Why is their a need to develop a learning organization?

We know that external environment is rapidly changing. Even successful organizations falter and at times collapse when faced with fast changes in markets and technologies. It is no longer enough to have few smart and talented people for sustainable success. A Learning organization is not just an ideal anymore, it is a goal that must be achieved.

Developing a learning organization

Lots of training programs cannot achieve a learning organization -at best, they will provide specific skills. To develop a learning organization, a culture of learning and teaching is a prerequisite. External trainers can impart some knowledge and skills, but they need to be assimilated and disseminated. Teaching a new skill or knowledge to others is the best way of retaining learning.

Secondly, newly learned skills must be tried out and captured for future reuse. This needs a process oriented culture as against a departmental or functional silo structure. Departments or functional silos tend to fragment and lock learning in inaccessible ways. A process culture ensures that there are efficient and supervised interfaces amongst individuals for interaction and learning. A process culture also makes it easy for new entrants to learn the current practices and influence changes based on what knowledge of value they bring.

Thirdly, there must a clearly articulated and practiced set of values. Values provide an assurance to learners to try and embed new things. Values also provide a useful framework and tests for learning and incorporating new things.

Fourthly, people and their organization must be willing to face reality and heed all kinds of signals. This requires openness and courage -another set of values that must be integral to an organization.

Fifthly, an organization must celebrate generation and championing of ideas. Ideas provide that excitement and energy needed for learning and teaching.

All above are in essence, leadership functions. A great leader develops more leaders and builds a learning organization. In order to build a learning organization, a sound leadership development process that starts at the top of the organization -at the board and CEO level – is essential.