Creating a Culture of Learning.

Creating a Learning Organizational Culture

An organizational culture that values learning can be a key facilitator for continuous quality improvements, (Derrick-Mills et al. 2014). Such organizations possess employees who are interested in learning and aims to apply what they learned for the improvement of the organization and their individual development. The compliance culture of the organization can focus on the resources and inquire the compliance and helps analyzing data and to take more informed decisions on the operational improvements and the process or the program of this process.

The following figure (Winkler and Fyffe, 2016) describes the process of this transition of Learning Culture.

Figure 4.0 : Process of Cultivating a Learning Culture

                                                 (Source: Winkler and Fyffe,2016)

Reward strategy for the learning process

Organizational learning can be taken as the addition to or change of the shared common knowledge of the organization’s culture (Skinner,1957,1969 cited in Stephen et al, 2011). Therefore it can foster to develop self-rectifying mechanisms and practices using knowledge through examinations of weaknesses and failures and can be further encourage using reward systems as they remove the barriers for knowledge and achieving them (Mary et al Saunji, 2016). Recognizing and rewarding employees who engages in learning practices can reinforce the learning culture in the organization and brings motivation in the daily routine, (Milway et al Saxton, 2011).

Formal rewarding structure can encourage organization learning by affecting it’s culture and change, rather than influencing on individual basis. According to Duncan Brown (2001), the reward strategy is applicable for any reward issues within the organization, to see how it is possible to create value from it.

The following figure shows how a Learning Organization in Sri Lanka, practices a reward strategy system to create the learning culture. This is the organization I work for, and every employee is met with a monthly evaluation and are enlisted with a learning program online. The individuals who successfully complete their monthly learning programs are rewarded on incentive basis and are sponsored for extended education and career orientation programs.

                                            Example of a  monthly employee evaluation sheet

                                                                                   Picture 2

This has brought up a culture of continuous learning and innovation to the organization. As shown in the figure 4.0, under Barney's VRIO (1991, as cited in Rothaermel’s 2013), it's clear this strategic implementation of learning has gained the organization its unique culture and learning environment which is valuable, rare, costly to imitate resource which is organized to capture the value. Ultimately this resulted gaining a competitive advantage to the organization, and wining the majority market share in its business.

Figure 5.0 : Barney's VRIO Model

                              (Source: Barney 1991, as cited in Rothaermel’s 2013) 

Learning organization strategies

Organizations are continuous learning systems. They are coordinated processes of system changes with built in mechanisms for the individuals and groups to access, for the use of organizational memory, and for the culture to develop long term organizational capacity (Marsick,1994 as cited in Armstrong, 2006). Therefore, It is necessary for organizations to invest in people to enhance the human capital during this process, which will enhance its capabilities, skills and organizational knowledge.

Further, organizational learning strategies should set aiming to develop the resource base capabilities. The human capital theory indicates that the knowledge and the skills an employee possessed by training, education and experiences can create a productive capital (Ehrenberg and Smith 1994 as cited in Armstrong, 2006).