Organisational Learning

Paper Summary:

The paper is an overview of organizational learning and how it links to competitive advantage. The paper addresses organizational learning in the context of small and medium sized firms (SMEs), and explains why it is different from large organizations. The paper continues by noting how organizational learning is linked to competitive advantage in SMEs. The paper focuses on the role of the owner-manager and attempts to address his problems.

From the Paper:

"It is a method of detecting and correcting errors. A learning organisation is not just an organisation which carries out extensive training, but also an organisation which facilitates the learning of all its members and continuously evolves itself, thus creating competitive advantage. Research on organisational learning suggests that knowledge may be a key source of competitive advantage for firms. "Knowledge-based competitive advantage is unique to each organisation and cannot be replicated by other firms". It can be argued that in the long term learning will only provide competitive advantage to organisations that learn faster and better than their competitors."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Boisot, M.H - " Knowledge assets: Securing competitive advantage in the Information Economy ", New York, Oxford University Press, 1998.
• Huysman, M.H. - "Balancing Biases, A Critical Review of the Literature on Organizational Learning", In: Easterby-Smith, M., J. Burgoyne, and L. Araujo (ed) "Learning Around Organizations: Developments of Theory and Practice", Sage Publications.1999
• Jones, O & Tilley, F (eds) - "Competitive Advantage in SMEs: Organising for innovation and change", Chichester John Wiley & Sons Ltd, 2003.
• Lyles, M. - "Learning among Joint Venture-Sophisticated Firms." In F. Contractor & P. Lorange (Eds.), Cooperative Strategies in International Business: 301-316. Lexington, MA: Lexington Books. 1988
• Macpherson, A & Wilson, A - "Supply Chain Management: Improving Competitive Advantage in SMEs", in Jones, O & Tilley, F (eds) "Competitive Advantage in SMEs: Organising for innovation and change", Chichester John Wiley & Sons Ltd, 2003

More papers on Organisational Learning:

• Research Paper # 64168 : "Organisational Learning and Knowledge Management"
• Research Paper # 52040 : "Origins and Principles of Organisational Learning"
• Essay # 52305 : "McDonald's Organisational Culture"

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