posted 03-16-2001 12:13               

Integrating Organizational Learning and Knowledge Management: From an Interview with Peter Senge
by Lauren Keller Johnson

In the business world, some observers claim that "knowledge management" is the wave of the future; others think that it's an idea whose time has passed. But there's been little discussion of how knowledge management may coordinate with and support existing corporate initiatives, such as organizational learning.

According to Peter Senge, author of "The Fifth Discipline," knowledge management historically consisted of capturing, storing, and retrieving information. But knowledge is less a thing than a process; it is "the capacity for effective action." Senge says that knowledge is "generated" when someone learns to do something better; when that person shares these new learnings with others, who then also improve their effectiveness, knowledge gets "diffused." These two processes occur most frequently in informal settings--through the interactions of people as they do their work. Thus, we can think of knowledge management as ways in which we enable and enhance the generation and diffusion of new learning, in other words, how working teams transform their capabilities in order to produce desired outcomes.

How does organizational learning fit in? Its emphasis on improving learning capabilities supports internal networks--where knowledge gets diffused--in functioning effectively. It also helps managers overcome impediments to knowledge management, such as cultural differences, competition, and information hoarding. Knowledge management, in turn, can expand the focus of organizational learning from small groups to larger networks. Integrated together, the two have the potential to support large-scale change in our organizations.

Read the complete article from LEVERAGE, No. 34, October 1999.