Organisational Learning and Development.

Starkey, Tempest and McKinlay (2004) state in the introduction to their book, How Organizations Learn that:

'The learning organisation is a metaphor with its roots in the vision of and the search for a strategy to promote individual self-development within a continuously self-transforming organization'.

Many theories have impacted on the way how organizations and individuals learn. Starkey, Tempest and McKinlay describes the process of learning organization as a metaphor, with its' roots in the vision and to search strategies which promotes individual self-development within a continuous self-transforming organization' (Starkey, K., 2004). This quote explains that organizations strive to implement continuous innovation towards learning as whole, as well as individuals. This essay covers four different learning methods and theorists; Chris Argyris and Donald Schon, covering the topic of single and double-loop learning; Ivan Pavlov, in regards to Classical Conditioning; Tsoukas and Vladimirou, which talks about learning in a social manner; and finally, Nonaka and Takeuchi; explaining the method of tacit and explicit knowledge.

Schon TPCAK Hattie slide 5

Das wird schon, Sibylle Berg

English: adaptation of the A & S Model

Each topic covered within the essay also contains my own personal experiences with a various organisations in relation towards the theory. Towards of the end of the essay, you should have a wider knowledge upon organisational learning.

One theory that I have found useful and rather easily simple to relate to an organisation context is with the use of Chris Argyris and Donald Schon's theory of 'Single and Double-learning'. For Argyris and Schon learning involves the detection and correction of error (Argyris, C. et al, 1978:2). Where something goes wrong, it is suggested, an initial port of call for many people is to look for another strategy that will address and work within the governing variables (Argyris, C. et al, 1974). In other words, when a problem occurs, an individual or group will seek to...