Organizational Learning and Knowledge Management

Catalog description

Examination of the social processes through which organizations continuously develop, acquire, interpret, and apply information and knowledge for performance enhancement and continuous improvement. MGMT 466 Organizational Learning and Knowledge Management (3)The primary focus of this course is to examine critically the social structures and processes through which organizations continuously acquire, develop, organize interpret, distribute and apply information and knowledge for performance enhancement and continuous improvement. Topics such as single-loop learning, double loop learning, and deuterolearning (i.e., learning how to learn) are considered, particularly as they apply to self managed work teams, process-based and network structural design, employee involvement approaches, impact of organizational culture and leadership practices. A second focus of the course is to examine the social processes and structures through which the key outcome of the learning process -- organizational knowledge -- usually expressed in terms of improved core competencies, and intellectual capital, can be leveraged across products, functions, business units, geographical regions, and competitive environments to improve organizational performance and competitive advantage and provide added value for customers. Particular emphasis is placed on knowledge management in support of the organization's competitive strategy, with a focus on the exchange of tacit, person-to-person knowledge that is difficult to codify and store. Additional emphasis is placed on the mechanisms available for organizational members to gain access to needed knowledge.