This document discusses organizational learning theories. It defines organizational learning as the process by which organizations change and improve practices through learning. Traditional theories discussed include those of Argyris and Schon, which view organizational learning through the acquisition and storage of knowledge. More recent perspectives see it as ongoing "wayfinding" through experience. Organizational learning can take adaptive, generative, or zero forms. The document analyzes examples of informal organizational learning at the author's past workplace in Saudi Arabia and discusses the impacts of culture and gender on learning opportunities. It recommends identifying learners' varying initiative levels and making learning more applicable and engaging.

1. ORGANISATIONAL LEARNING
SHARIFAH AL RASHDI

2. WHAT IS ORGANISATIONAL LEARNING?
• CONSISTS OF THE ORGANISATION
• CONSISTS OF LEARNING
• ORGANISATION DEFINED AS A GROUP OR COLLECTION OF INDIVIDUALS WORKING TOGETHER FOR
SAME PURPOSE ALTHOUGH POSSESSING DIFFERENT ROLES
• ORGANISATIONAL LEARNING:
• MANY THEORIES HAVE EMERGED BOTH TRADITIONAL AND CONTEMPORARY
• THE PROCESS THAT ORGANISATIONS TAKE IN ORDER TO CHANGE OR MODIFY THEIR BEHAVIOUR TO
IMPROVE PRACTICES

3. TRADITIONAL OL THEORIES
• ARGYRIS AND SCHON: EARLIEST OL THEORY
• COGNITIVE BASED THEORY
• BASED ON INDIVIDUALS’ ACQUISITION OF KNOWLEDGE, STORING OF KNOWLEDGE, AND USE OF
KNOWLEDGE BY THE ORGANISATION AS A WHOLE
• GOOD BECAUSE IT WORKS AROUND NOTION OF STORING NEW AND PERCEIVED KNOWLEDGE IN THE
ORGANISATION TERMED “ORGANISATION MEMORY” WHICH MEANS IF INDIVIDUAL WERE NO LONGER
PART OF ORGANISATION, THE INFORMATION WOULD STILL BE AVAILABLE.
• PROCESS OF DETECTING AND CORRECTING ERROR .

4. OL AS “WAYFINDING”
• WORK OF CHIA (2017)
• KNOWN AS DOING AND LEARNING AT THE SAME TIME
• LEARNING THROUGH EXPERIENCE
• ALLOWS ORGANISATION INDIVIDUALS TO ENGAGE WITH THE DYNAMICS OF THEIR WORKPLACE
AND DAY TO DAY ENGAGEMENTS TO CONTINUE THEIR DEVELOPMENT
• ALLOWS INDIVIDUALS TO BUILD ON COGNITIVE KNOWLEDGE

5. ZERO, ADAPTIVE AND GENERATIVE LEARNING
• ADAPTIVE: IDENTIFYING WHERE THEY ARE AT, WHERE THEY WANT TO BE, AND PURSUING
KNOWLEDGE IN THAT REGARD TO CLOSE THE LEARNING GAP.
• GENERATIVE LEARNING: STIMULATION OF LEARNING THROUGH QUESTIONING PREDISPOSED
THOUGHTS AND ASSUMPTIONS
• ZERO LEARNING: PRESET BY ORGANISATION

6. OL AT MY WORKPLACE
• I AM CURRENTLY NOT EMPLOYED
• HOWEVER, WHEN I WAS IN SAUDI ARABIA I USED TO TEACH AT A HIGHSCHOOL
• REFLECTING ON THIS NOW, AFTER STUDYING THE THEORIES OF OL, I CAN SEE THAT THE ORGANISATION I WAS IN
EMPLOYED A VARIETY OF OL THEORIES, HOWEVER WITH UNINTENTIONAL APPLICATION.
• FOR EXAMPLE, AS A TEACHER, WE WERE ENCOURAGED TO DO EXTRA READING, AND ATTEND STAFF EDUCATIONAL
MEETINGS ONCE A MONTH. THIS COULD BE SEEN AS COGNITION BASED OL SUCH AS THE WORKS OF ARGYRIS AND
SCHON. SOME OF MY COLLEAGUES USED TO OCCASIONAL SHARE INFORMATION THAT THEY FOUND INTERESTING
AND RELEVANT WITH US AT STAFF MEETINGS OR OCCASIONAL LUNCH BREAKS, WHICH COULD BE SEEN AS A FORM
OF GENERATIVE LEARNING.

7. EXAMPLES OF OL SCENARIOS AT WORKPLACE
• MONTHLY STAFF MEETINGS
• ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REVIEWS FOR STAFF WITH HEAD COORDINATOR
• PEER REVIEWS OF CURRICULUM BASES AND TEACHING STRATEGIES
• CASUAL LEARNING THROUGH SHARING OF INFORMATION ABOUT MODERN TEACHING STRATEGIES
AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT DURING LUNCH BREAKS, AFTER SCHOOL HOURS AND SOCIAL
MEDIA PLATFORMS (E.G. FACEBOOK GROUP, WHATSAPP TEACHERS’ GROUP).

8. IMPACT OF CULTURE AND GENDER
• IN SAUDI ARABIA, CULTURALLY, MALES ARE DOMINANT PERSONAS OVER FEMALES AND THIS IS
REFLECTED IN ORGANISATIONAL LEARNING WHERE MUCH OF THE LEARNING IS SPEARHEADED BY
MALE DOMINANTS.
• IN ADDITION, CULTURE MAKES IT QUITE LIMITED TO EXPAND ON LEARNING. FOR EXAMPLE,
WOMEN ARE NOT ALLOWED TO TRAVEL ALONE OR FAR PLACES, THEREFORE MANY LEARNING
OPPORTUNITIES SUCH AS CONFERENCES, OR ABROAD LEARNING IS NOT ALWAYS POSSIBLE OR
SEEN AS CULTURALLY APPROPRIATE. NEVERTHELESS, ORGANISATIONS HAVE RESORTED TO ONLINE
MEDIUMS FOR LEARNING.

9. RECOMMENDATIONS
• NEED TO IDENTIFY THAT NOT EVERYONE TAKES INITIATIVE IN THE LEARNING PROCESS AND IS
COGNITIVELY AWARE
• NEED TO MAKE LEARNING MORE ENGAGING AND MORE APPLICABLE TO REAL LIFE SCENARIOS
• ALLOW MORE PARTICIPATION IN EXTERNAL LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES SO THAT NEW THOUGHTS
AND IDEAS ARE BROUGHT FORWARD TO THE ORGANISATION

10. REFERENCES
• ARGOTE, L. (2011). ORGANISATIONAL LEARNING: PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE. MANAGEMENT LEARNING, 42 (4), 439-446.
• BUNDERSON, J.S. & REAGANS, R. E. (2011). POWER, STATUS AND LEARNING IN ORGANISATIONS. ORGANISATION SCIENCE, 22(5), 1182-1194.
• CHIA, R. (2017). A PROCESS-PHILOSOPHICAL UNDERSTANDING OF ORGANISATIONAL LEARNING AS “WAYFINDING”. THE LEARNING ORGANISATION, 24(2), 107-118.
• CHIVA, R. & HABIB, R. (2015). A FRAMEWORK FOR ORGANISATIONAL LEARNING: ZERO, ADAPTIVE AND GENERATIVE LEARNING. JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT AND ORGANISATION,
21(3), 350-368.
• COOK, S.D.N & YANOW, D. (2011). CULTURE AND ORGANISATIONAL LEARNING. JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT INQUIRY, 20(4), 355-372.
• CROSSAN, M. (2003). CHRIS ARGYRIS AND DONALD SCHON’S ORGANISATIONAL LEARNING: THERE IS NO SILVER BULLET. ACADEMY OF MANAGEMENT EXECUTIVE, 17(3), 38.
• HAGER, P. (2008). LEARNING AND METAPHORS. MEDICAL TEACHER, 30(7), 679-686.
• MARSHALL, N. (2008). COGNITIVE AND PRACTICE-BASED THEORIES OF ORGANISATIONAL KNOWLEDGE AND LEARNING: INCOMPATIBLE OR COMPLEMENTARY? MANAGEMENT LEARNING,
39(4), 413-435.
• MRUK, C. J. (2013). SELF-ESTEEM, RELATIONSHIPS, AND POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY. POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY OF LOVE, 149-161.
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