The document discusses the concept of 'organizational learning,' highlighting the various theories and opinions of notable scholars on how organizations learn. It also raises questions about the distinction between 'organizational learning' and 'learning organizations,' and whether it is accurate to attribute learning capabilities to organizations themselves. Additionally, it prompts a discussion on Google Inc. as a potential learning organization, exploring how it learns and what mechanisms contribute to its learning process.

1. Part I
Please provide a definition of "organizational learning."There
are many, many, differing definitions of OL - and many
opinions on precisely how organizations learn (or if they can
even learn at all). Some notable theorists include Chris Argyris,
Peter Senge, Bente Elkjaer, James G. March, Herbert A. Simon,
Mark Easterbay-Smith, and Fiol & Lyles, among innumerable
others.
Is there a difference between the notion of "Organizational
Learning" (OL) and that of the "Learning Organization" (LO)?
Are we anthropomorphizing (great word!) organizations when
we say that they "learn"?
Part II
Please describe the extent to which you believe Google Inc is
also a "Learning Organization." If so, how does the organization
"learn"? What has the organization "learned," and through what
mechanism(s)?