Hi All
I continue to find this list extremely stimulating. It has caused me
to reconsider many times how I view things. I was beginning to write
some personal notes around "The Learning Organisation is a myth" and
it struck me how similar an organisation is to the brain.
In the brain we have neurons connected together and communicating -
giving rise to "intelligence". I was considering the "emergent" nature
of this intelligence and began to compare it to an organisation.
In the organisation, which operates at a different level to the brain
(thinking of fractals here), we don't have neurons, but people - which
act as neurons, communicating with each other.
In the brain we have two hemispheres - the left and the right. These
seem to give rise to our left brain functions - language, numeracy,
communication, computation and right brain functions - appreciation of
music, development of art, holistic views.
I began to compare these to the organisation and there are remarkable
similarities. But what I did notice was that the organisations right
brain functions are pretty weak, while, in this technological age, the
left brain functions are in ascendancy.
Do we see the same "pathologies" in the organisation that we see in a
person where there is a dysfunctional joint between the two
hemispheres (surgical or otherwise)?
Is this why we find it difficult to describe what learning
organisations are. Is this why we find it difficult to develop and/or
sustain learning organisations?
Are we concentrating too much on the organisations left brain
functions? What are the organisations right brain functions and how do
we develop them? I suspect At and Andrew Campnona will have some
thoughts here as their contributions are very holistic in nature (this
is not to say that everyone else's are not).
I am very probably rediscovering what someone else has already said,
so I'd appreciate any comments on the above thoughts and any
references. I can already see strong links in the works of De Geus,
Senge, Polanyi, Watslawick, Checkland, Nonaka and others.
Regards
Philip Keogh
Pathology Information Officer
(see our website at www.leedsteachinghospitals.com)
--"Philip Keogh" <Philip.Keogh@leedsth.nhs.uk>
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