Chapter 15
Designing and Leading a Learning
Organization
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Ex. 15.1 Leadership Evolution
Micro
Scope
Stable
Chaotic
Era 2
Rational Management
Era 3
Team Leadership
•Behavior theories
•Contingency theories
Setting:
•Vertical hierarchy,
bureaucracy
•Management functions
Era 1
Great Man Leadership
•Trait theories
Setting:
•Pre-bureaucratic organization
•Administrative principles
Macro
•Confusion
•Empowerment
•Quality
Setting:
•Horizontal organization
•Cross-functional teams
•Downsizing
Era 4
Learning Leadership
•Shared vision, alignment,
relationships
•Facilitate change and
adaptation
Setting:
•Learning organization
•E-Business
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Learning
A change in behavior or
performance that occurs as a
result of experience
3
Adaptive Learning Cycle
A cycle of action, feedback, and
synthesis that all living organisms share
•The reason the average life-span of Fortune 500 companies is only about
50 years is because they focus so strongly on turning a profit that they shut
Down mechanisms that encourage learning and change.
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Ex. 15.2 The Adaptive Learning
Cycle
Action
Feedback
Synthesis
Learning
5
Governing
Values or
Assumptions
Actions
Mismatch
Or errors
Single-loop learning
Double-loop learning
Learning Organization
One in which everyone is
engaged in identifying
and solving problems
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Ex. 15.3 Two Models of Organization
Efficient Performance
(Hard, rational model)
Vertical
Structure
Rigid
culture
Routine tasks
Formal
systems
Competitive
strategy
Learning Organization
(Soft, intuitive model)
Horizontal
structure
Adaptive
culture
Empowered
roles
Personal
networks
Collaborative
strategy
Ex. 15.4 Evolution of Vertical to Horizontal Structure
A.
Vertical functional organization
B.
Functional organization with
process overlays
Ex. 15.4 (contd.)
C.
Horizontal organization based
on processes
Tasks Versus Roles
Task: a narrowly defined work assignment
Role: a part in a social system
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Ex. 15.5 An Organizational
Communication Network (adapted)
Marketing
Manufacturing
Engineering
David
Sharon
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Open book management

Sharing data about budgets, profits,
expenses, and other financial matters
with everyone in the organization.
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
Competitive vs. collaborative strategy



Strategy emerges from the bottom up as well as
the top down
Learning organizations have permeable
boundaries and are often linked with other
companies
Rigid vs. adaptive culture



The whole is more important than the parts, and
the boundaries between parts are minimized
Equality is a primary value
The culture encourages change, risk taking, and
improvement
Ambidextrous Organizations
Flexible organizations in which
leaders incorporate structures and
management processes that are
appropriate to innovation and
learning, as well as to the efficient
implementation of ideas
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Knowledge Management
The efforts to systematically gather
knowledge, make it widely available,
and foster a culture of collaboration
and learning
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