A Learning Organization is an ideal state, a vision. Click on the button below to assess your organization's progress toward becoming a Learning Organization.

	Rapid Change: Change in the workplace is occurring rapidly. Agencies are being forced to quickly adapt work processes. In a Learning Organization, change is seen as an opportunity to learn through problem solving. Interested in learning more? Click on the following related learning strategies: Action Learning, Work-Outs, and Cross-Functional Teams.
	Shifting Focus: Federal agencies are changing their focus from a role of ensuring compliance to one of serving customers. A Learning Organization can ensure that there is a strategic alignment between customer needs, organizational goals, individual learning, and resource allocations. Interested in learning more? Click on the following related learning strategies: Strategic Planning, Corporate Scorecard, and Benchmarking.
	Eroding Knowledge Bases: The recent attrition of Federal employees, reductions-in-force, and expected retirements are eroding the organizational knowledge bases. A Learning Organization fosters information exchange and captures expertise from all levels of personnel. And, technology is leverage to support information exchange. Interested in learning more? Click on the following related learning strategies: Parallel Learning Structures, Groupware, and Distance Conference.
	Limited Training Resources: Federal training budgets are shrinking while staff members have less time to attend formal training sessions. A Learning Organization can make use of alternative strategies that integrate learning into the workplace. These alternative methods cost less and are effective. Interested in learning more? Click on the following related learning strategies: Job Rotations, Special Assignments, Coaching, and Mentoring.
	Evolving Roles of Supervisors: Supervisors are assuming increasing responsibility for traditional human resource functions. In a Learning Organization, managers serve as teachers and each individual is empowered to be responsible for his or her own learning. Interested in learning more? Click on the following related learning strategies: Manager as Teacher and Self-Development.

	Create and communicate a shared vision for the organization.
	Make information in the organization accessible to all.
	Help employees manage change by anticipating change and creating the types of change desired by the organization.
	Empower employees to act.
	Acknowledge and support the need to take risks.
	Learn to manage the organization's knowledge by: Keeping information current. Maintaining historical knowledge. Addressing increasing volumes of information.
	Establish and use individual and organizational learning strategies.

Getting Results Through Learning Online Version Adobe Acrobat PDF File (744K File)

	Learning Organization Concepts
	Online Learning Organization Exchange
	Learning Organization Articles, Books, and Other Resources
	Learning Styles and Theories
	Information Technology, Knowledge Management, and Organizational Learning

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Learning Organization Concepts

	Ideas on the Learning Organization—The "What," "Why," "How," and "Who": A good overview of the learning organization from a paper presented at an IBM Leadership Development Conference.
	Exploring Organizational Learning: Some Observations on Resistance and Leadership: From the Rotterdam School of Management, an exploration of the complexity of organizational learning and the role leadership can play in removing barriers to learning.

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Online Learning Organization Exchange

The Learning-Org Homepage: This is an internet dialog among people interested in the Learning Organization concept.

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Learning Organization Articles, Books, and Other Resources

	The Learning Organizations Homepage: This site, sponsored by the State University of New York at Albany, features an explanation of learning organizations, links to online articles about learning organizations, an information archive, and list of related resources.
	The Fifth Discipline Fieldbook Homepage: This site supports the Fifth Discipline Fieldbook, by Peter Senge, a collaborative book of strategies and tools for building the learning organization.
	The Society for Organizational Learning Homepage: Sponsored by the MIT Organizational Learning Network and the Society for Organizational Learning, this site provides an evaluation of ideas; highlights projects, methods, and tools; lists activities and events within the Organizational Learning community; and describes current research studies.
	The Stanford Learning Organization Web (SLOW): This site is an informal network of Stanford researchers, staff, and students along with colleagues and friends from the corporate world interested in the nature and development of learning organizations. This web site lists articles, selected books, videos, recommended reading on Peter Senge's The Fifth Discipline, and sources of information via the internet.
	Learning Histories: Using Documentation to Assess and Facilitate Organizational Learning: This web site provides research on "learning histories," used in action research projects to enhance organizations' learning capabilities. Findings and progress in creating learning histories are described, as well as questions and issues regarding their future use in system-wide learning efforts.
	The Organizational Learning and Knowledge Management Homepage: From the University of Colorado at Denver, School of Education, a list of web sites and resources related to organizational learning and knowledge management.

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Learning Styles and Theory

	Learning Styles Homepage: Use this site to learn about your style of learning and how it may differ from others. This site includes learning styles profiles and exercises. There are links to many sites that teach about learning styles and the wide variety of styles people use.
	Learning Modalities, Styles, and Strategies: The introduction to this site states that "Nobody can teach you anything. You learn on your own, in your own particular, individual way. Learning depends upon many factors, many of them personal." Visit this site to learn more about personality and other factors that affect learning.
	Theory Into Practice (TIP) Database: TIP is a tool intended to make learning and instructional theory more accessible to educators. The database contains brief summaries of 50 major theories of learning and instruction.

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Information Technology, Knowledge Management, and Organizational Learning

The Knowledge Management and Organizational Learning Homepage: This site provides dozens of articles and links to web sites addressing knowledge management and learning organizations, all with its own search engine.