| This study explored and tested for the existence and relevance of learning organization disciplines (as per Senge, 1990) in a high-technology company. The study also examined how these learning disciplines, and possibly others, might affect the company's adaptive capacity. The action research study employed a series of focus groups with senior managers from a high-technology company in Western Canada.; The study found that the disciplines of mental models, shared vision, team learning, and systems thinking were legitimate and relevant practices that can contribute to a high-technology organization's adaptive capacity. The discipline of personal mastery was found to be ill-defined conceptually and practically, with no clear basis for institutionalizing the practice.; While Senge has provided a sound basis for four learning disciplines, I side with Schein (as cited in Coutu, 2002) in concluding that work is still needed to fully describe the disciplines of a learning organization. |
