How Organizations Learn

ANTHONY DIBELLA and EDWIN C. NEVIS are among the nation's leading organization development consultants. DiBella is a former visiting scholar at MIT, where he received his Ph.D. Nevis, a former professor at MIT's Sloan School and one of the founders of Cleveland's Gestalt Institute, is also coauthor of Intentional Revolutions (1996) and author of Organizational Consulting: A Gestalt Approach (1987).

?This work is a rare find in business literature: simultaneously highly readable, practical, and academic. For the involved manager who wants to help increase the long-term viability of his/her organization, this book will prove to be highly important and valuable.? (Herbert Rau, strategic marketing manager, Fairchild Semiconductor) ?The authors accomplish an amazing feat in providing an insightful synthesis of numerous theories of the learning organization, ranging from Argyris to Senge and then moving rapidly beyond them through case studies to identify a set of how-to tools for leaders and change managers. For those interested in transformation, a most valued addition.? (James J. Gannon, senior vice president, Human Resource Development, Royal Bank of Canada) ?How Organizations Learn gets to the practicalities and realities of organizational learning. This is not a fad, it's the outline of effectiveness for organizations of the future.? (Patrick Canavan, corporate vice president and director of global leadership and organization development, Motorola) ?This book should appeal to anyone looking for a single resource about the practice of assessing the learning capabilities of organizations. The authors provide an elegant and comprehensive approach that is based on theory yet grounded in actual learning organizations.? (Mark Van Buren, senior research officer, American Society for Training & Development) ?DiBella and Nevis provide a highly insightful framework for analyzing and transforming a company's learning style. Provocative and pragmatic!? (John Seely Brown, chief research scientist, Xerox Palo Alto Research Center) ?To understand and drive changes is difficult for everyone, both individuals and organizations. DiBella and Nevis supply CEOs and managers with a set of very useful tools to analyze and increase the learning capability of their organizations and to balance day-to-day decisions with the implementation of long-term strategies.? (Mauro Mastrogiacomo, manager of human resources and organizational development, Fiat Auto)

• A STRATEGIC LOOK AT ORGANIZATIONAL LEARNING. Developing Learning in Organizations: A Matter of Perspective. Foundations of an Integrated Strategy. HOW ORGANIZATIONS LEARN. Recognizing Your Organization's Learning Portfolio. Developing a Learning Strategy. Improving Organizational Learning Capability. Enhancing Effectiveness at Each Phase of the Learning Cycle. Assessing Learning Capability Over Time. ADAPTING AND ASSESSING THE LEARNING STRATEGY. Using an Integrated Strategy in Different Contexts. Conclusion: What is the Good of All This Learning? Assessing the Impact of Learning on Performance.