Identifying Learning Organizations LO14909

Ray Evans Harrell (mcore@IDT.NET)
Tue, 09 Sep 1997 14:50:07 -0700

Replying to LO14891 --

Scott Ellliott wrote:

> I believe that all organizations are learning organizations. Some are
> much better at it than others, but i'm not sure anyone could define some
> threshhold beyond which you "are one".
>
> For profit-making orgs. in competitive industries, the metrics are fairly
> simple. Companies that continue to grow and profit for any extended
> length of time are better learning orgs than their competitors who do not
> do so well. The rules and playing field change continuously, so these
> companies must learn more and more effectively to survive. I'm not sure
> the metrics are so simple in less competitive environments, like a police
> department or a community orchestra.

Scott,

Don't you think this is a mixing of systems of goods (as in products)?
Companies are generally "private goods" and can function in various
forms of flat and hierarchical structures based upon the pure purpose of
profit.
Public Goods like Police, fire, professional orchestras, armies,
educators, have various versions of life and death or what constitutes
success rigidly built in. Their competitiveness is in many cases
extreme (as in stress tests on orchestras). The police are
individually life and death where most private companies are only
pass/fail. The life and death story in business is usually
metaphorical.

A better case could be made for private companies being improvisational
because of the high level of mixed values. Police, orchestras,
teachers, etc. all require a fundamental level of education and are
closed to most of the public who do not qualify. Business on the other
hand can be done from bottom to top by anyone who has the imagination,
courage and money, to do it. Witness the various peoples in NYCity who
do all kinds of business even though they were never trained to do it
specifically.

That is IMHO what the old saw "The business of America is Business"
means. Where people couldn't get into the professions, military, church
or government in Europe & were closed to women and minorities as well as
the low born, business became the first great equal opportunity
"profession." Today it has tied its philosophy (economics) to the very
roots of America's most cherished ideal. The ideal of freedom. I
happen to think that this is now nonsense, but I do understand the
historic roots of the belief.

Thanks for the opportunity to explore.

Regards,

Ray Evans Harrell
mcore@idt.net

-- 

Ray Evans Harrell <mcore@IDT.NET>

Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations For info: <rkarash@karash.com> -or- <http://world.std.com/~lo/>