Susana Pérez López

Organizational learning as a determining factor in business performance

Purpose – With the decline of some well‐established firms, the diminishing competitive power of many companies in an increasingly globalized market and the need for organizational renewal and transformation, interest in organizational learning has grown. Senior managers in many organizations are convinced of the importance of improving learning in their organizations. Therefore, it is necessary not only to clarify the concept of organizational learning, but also to establish the relationship between it and business performance. This paper aims to explore this relationship.Design/methodology/approach – The degree to which organizational learning influences business performance is investigated for 195 Spanish firms with more than 200 employees using the statistical technique of structural equation modeling.Findings – The results provide support for the view that organizational learning contributes positively both to innovation and competitiveness and to economic/financial results. Furthermore, the results s...

Managing knowledge: the link between culture and organizational learning

Aims to analyze how the organizational culture impacts knowledge management, organizational learning and ultimately the performance of the firm. The degree to which collaborative culture influences organizational learning and performance is investigated for 195 Spanish firms. The technique used was structural equation modeling (SEM). The results show, first of all, that collaborative culture encourages the development of organizational learning, which at the same time, has a significant effect on business performance. And, second, it is highlighted that collaborative culture does not constitute in itself a source of competitive advantages. Collaborative culture must modify, through learning, the organization’s guidelines and attitudes in order to improve competitive performance. Perhaps the most significant limitation of the study is associated with the use of cross‐sectional data. While we presented and tested models in which we assumed a causal flow from collaborative culture to organizational learning to organizational performance, there is the possibility that these relationships may occur in reverse order. In future researches it would be interesting to analyze the influence that other variables, such organizational structure, leadership and corporate strategy have on learning. The establishment of a knowledge strategy can be determined by a global approach, which affects all fields in organization. For knowledge management initiatives to be truly effective must take into account the social contexts in which learning take place. Culture need to be re‐examined in light of its role in managing the overall organizational learning infrastructure. This study provides empirical evidence for the hypothesis that collaborative culture influences organizational learning which in turn influences business performance. The current study provides some understanding of the manner in which collaborative culture influence organizational outcomes.

Human Resource Management as a Determining Factor in Organizational Learning

The role of human resource management in learning organizations has been discussed by a number of researchers. It is suggested that some of the more traditional personnel functions of HR practitioners may be tailored to encourage a focus on learning and thus to help achieve organizational goals. However, there is a lack of empirical studies that explore the relationship between human resource management and organizational learning. This article aims to address this shortcoming. More specifically, the purpose of this article is to analyse the relation between four human resources practices (hiring, training, compensation and decision-making) and organizational learning. The hypotheses proposed were tested on a sample of 195 Spanish companies using the structural equation modelling technique. The results support that selective hiring, strategic training and employee participation in decision-making positively influence organizational learning.

Information Technology as an Enabler Of Knowledge Management: An Empirical Analysis

The past two decades have seen growing interest in knowledge management and the use of information technologies. However, it is not clear how the relation between IT competency and knowledge management works. This study provides a better understanding of that relation. Through an empirical study of 162 Spanish firms, the work finds that IT competency has a direct effect on the processes of knowledge management: knowledge generation, knowledge transfer, and knowledge codification and storage. At the same time, IT competency also has an indirect effect on knowledge management by facilitating the development of organizational structures that favor the development and expansion of knowledge. These findings reinforce a field that is of increasing interest to researchers, and which has seen only a limited number of empirical studies to date.

The organisational context of learning: an empirical analysis

The factors that facilitate organisational learning have traditionally been analysed by the organisational learning and, in particular, the learning organisation literature. However, empirical work in this area is lacking. This paper aims to address this shortcoming. More specifically, the purpose of this paper is to identify through empirical research the factors that favour organisational learning. The hypotheses proposed are tested on a sample of 195 Spanish firms using the Structural Equation Modelling technique. The results show that decentralised strategic planning, collaborative culture, transformational leadership, selective hiring, strategic training and participation of employees in the decision making are positively related to the organisational learning.

Managing human resources towards achieving organisational learning

The role of human resource management in learning organisations has been discussed by a number of researchers. However, there is a lack of empirical studies that explore the relationship between human resource practices and organisational learning. This paper aims to address this shortcoming. More specifically, the purpose of this paper is to analyse the relation between four HR practices (hiring, training, compensation and decision-making) and organisational learning. The hypotheses proposed are tested on a sample of 195 Spanish companies using the structural equation modelling technique. The results support the view that selective hiring, strategic training, contingent rewards and employee participation in the decision-making positively influence organisational learning.