Building a learning organization the case of logigear vietnam

BỘGIÁO DỤCVÀĐÀOTẠOTRƯỜNGĐẠIHỌCKINHTẾTP.HỒCHÍMINH ---oo0oo---VƯƠNGBẢOLONG BUILDINGALEARNINGORGANIZATION –THECASEOFLOGIGEARVIETNAM LUẬNVĂNTHẠC SĨ KINHTẾ TP.HỒ CHÍMINH–NĂM2017... BỘGIÁO DỤ

BỘGIÁO DỤCVÀĐÀOTẠOTRƯỜNGĐẠIHỌCKINHTẾTP.

HỒCHÍMINH

-oo0oo -VƯƠNGBẢOLONG

BUILDINGALEARNINGORGANIZATION –THECASEOFLOGIGEARVIETNAM

LUẬNVĂNTHẠC SĨ KINHTẾ

TP.HỒ CHÍMINH–NĂM2017

BỘGIÁO DỤCVÀĐÀOTẠOTRƯỜNGĐẠIHỌCKINHTẾTP.

HỒCHÍMINH

-oo0oo -VƯƠNGBẢOLONG

BUILDINGALEARNINGORGANIZATION -THECASEOFLOGIGEARVIETNAM

Iherebydeclarethattheworkpresentedinthisthesisis,tothebestofmyknowledgeandbelief,original Theideasandquotestakenfromexternalsourcesare dulyacknowledgedinthe t e x t T h e material,ei the r i n fullori n part, has no tb e e n previouslysubmittedtoanyotherinstitution

HoChiMinhCity,March31,2017

(signed)

VuongBaoLong

SecondaryCoverPageStatement

ofAuthenticationTableofConten

t

TableofFiguresL i s t

ofTables

Abstract 1

ChapterI-INTRODUCTION 2

1.1 Rationale 2

1.2 ProblemStatement 6

1.3 ResearchQuestions 10

1.4 ResearchObjectives 10

1.5 AboutLogiGear 11

ChapterII-LITERATUREREVIEW 14

2.1 Whatis“Learning”? 14

2.2 Whatis a“LearningOrganization”? 17

2.3 KnowledgeandKnowledgeManagement 23

2.4 InnovationandInnovationCompetence 25

ChapterIII-RESEARCHMETHODOLOGY 30

3.1 DataCollection 32

3.2 ParticipantsinInterviews-KeyStakeholderGroups 32

3.3 DataAnalysis 38

3.4 ResearchModel 41

ChapterIV-FINDINGS&DISCUSSIONS 42

4.1 PersonalMastery 43

4.2 MentalModels 46

4.3 SharedVision 47

4.4 TeamLearning 49

4.5 SystemsThinking 52

4.6 Technology 56

4.7 SummaryofFindings&Discussions 60

4.8 FrameworkSuggestion 63

ChapterV-CONCLUDING REMARKS 74 ReferencesAppendice

s

Figure1 1 - ScopeofResearch 6

Figure1 2 - Transformingto aLearningOrganization 10

Figure1 3 - TestArchitect,theautomationtest toolofLogiGear 12

Figure2 1 - Single-LoopLearningandDouble-LoopLearning 15

Figure2 2 - Triple-looplearningbyAsianDevelopmentBank 15

Figure2 3 - Kolb'sExperientialLearningStyle 16

Figure2 4 - Three-legModel forLearningOrganization 19

Figure2 5 - Overallmodel ofalearningorganization 20

Figure2 6 - A Framework forUnderstandingTacitKnowing 24

Figure 3.1-Descriptionofdatacollectionanddataanalysis 40

Figure 3.2-ResearchModel:ElementsThatConstructLearningOrganization 41

Figure 4.1-Sarder’s Principle:TwoPercentofRevenuetoLearningandDevelopment55Figure 4.2-FrameworkforBuilding“Learning Organization” forLogiGearVN 64

Figure 4.3-Org.Chartofthe"Learning Organization"TaskForce 72

Figure 4.4-TheAction Plan toBuildA“LearningOrganization” 73

ListofTables Table1 1 - DiagnosisReport ofLogiGear’sLearningCulture 9

Table1 2 - RangesofServicesbyLogiGearVN 12

Table3 1 - FiveDisciplinesbyPeterSenge 31

Table3 2 - DataCollection-InterviewCoding &Demographics 35

Table3 3 - DataCollection-FocusGroupCoding &Demographics 37

Table4 1 - FactorsthatconstructLearningOrganization inLogiGear 61

Table4 2 - QualtricsforLearningOrganization 71

e s t a m o d e l t o b u i l d a “Learning Organization”,thecaseofLogiGearVietnam.

Keywords:learning,k n o w l e d g e , l e a r n i n g o r g a n i z a t i o n , i n n o v a t i o

n , i n f o r m a t i o n technology,LogiGearVietnam.

LogiGearVNisaninformationtechnologycompany,specializedinsoftwaretestingandsoftwaredevelopment.Doingbusinessina f a s t changing,fastd e v e l o p i n g industr

everyminute,ith a s nootherwaythantobecomemostadaptivetochangeandmostinnovativeinp r o v i d i n g solutionsandservicestocustomersinordertosucceed.LearningfromsuccessstoriesfromtechgiantsApple,Google,Amazon,Netflix,etc.theboardofm a n a g e m e n t o f LogiGearVN found outthat innovationisthekey.And,

innovations h o u l d notbeexpectedfromasinglegenius,happeningovernight,orappreaingina n “aha!”moment,butit’s“aresultfromhardandfocusedwork”(Drucker,2015).Nowadays,“innovationdisciplineisstillinitsinfancy,butcompetenciesthatincreasechancesofinnovationcannowbelearned.”(Bezerra,2005)

TheFourthIndustrialRevolution(4IR)-ofwhichtheemergingtechnologyb r e ak t h r o u g h s infieldssuchasAI,IoT,robotics,3Dprinting,andnanotechnologyp r e v a i l -

urgescompaniestolearnfaster,producefasteranddeliverfasterusingnewtechnologiesthataremergingthephysical,digitalandbiologicalworlds(Schwab,2 0 1 6 ) LogiGearVNisnotanexceptionandcannotbestayingoutofthecircleofinfluence,whenitisanIT/softwarecompanywithgoaltobeleading

initsindustry,s o f t w a r e t e s t i n g a n d d e v e l o p m e n t I n o r d e r t o p u r s u e t h e

v i s i o n a n d a c h i e v e i t s strategicgoaltobecomeatransformationalorganization,LogiGearVNneedstobeinnovativefirsthandanddeepdownitmustbecomea“learningorganization”

Ina seminaro n i n n o v a t i o n l e a de r s h i p i n H o C h i M i n h Cityin2 0 1 3, P r o f TonyWagnerofHarvardBusiness Schoolarticulatedthatif laborwas ac o m m o d i t

Planning&InvestmentofVietnamhavestressedthat“boostingthelearningandinnovationinordertomaintainahighandsustainablegrowthneedsaradicalreformprogram.”(

W B &MPI,2016)

Foracountrytothrive,enhancingproductivityusinginnovationcompetenceistheultimatesolution(Porter, 1990).Forfirms,innovationcompetence increasestheircompetitiveadvantage(Tidd&Bessant,2015)

NadeshwarandJayasimha(2010,p.182)wrote“whileallpeoplehavethecapacityt o learn,thestructures i n whichtheyhavetofunctionareoften notconducive toreflectiona n d e n g a g e m e n t F u r t h e r m o r e , p e o p l e m a y l a c k t h e t o o l s a n

d guidingi d e a s t o makes e n s e o f t h e s i t u a t i o n s theyf a c e ” A s t o S e n g

e ,

f o r a l e a r n i n g organization, ‘adaptivelearning’mustbejoinedby‘generativelearning’anddouble-

looplearningthatenhancesourcapacitytocreate.”(Senge,1990,p.13-14)

Indeed,tocompeteandwininthecontextofincreasingglobalization,integration,a n drapidlyevolvingtechnologies,individualsandorganizationshavenowayothert h a n buildingtheirabilitytolearn–

thecornerstoneforcontinuousimprovement,o p e r a t i o n a l e x c e l l e n c e , a n

d i n n o v a t i o n H e s s a g r e e d t h a t “ c o m p a n i e s t h a t l e a r n fastestandadaptwelltochangingenvironmentsperformthebestovertime.”(Hess,20 14 )

Bersin(2012)quotedinhisarticle“5KeystoBuildingaLearningOrganizatio

n”thattheworldwidecorporatetrainingindustryvaluedat135billionUSdollars,but“

companiesn o w r e a l i z e t h a t theysimplyc a n n o t f i n d t h e s k i l l s theyn e e d i n t h

e w o r k f o r c e andhavetoreinvest heavily incorporatetraining…

Shouldcompanies g o backtothe1980sandbuildacorporateuniversityagain?

Theanswerisn o Todaytheworldofcorporatetraininghasbeenrevolutionized.”(Bersin,2012)Hes u g g e s t e d 5 keyst o b u i l d a l e a r n i n g o r g a n i z a t i o n , w

h i c h a r e : ( 1 ) c o r p o r a t e learningis"informal"andHR doesn'townit,(2)Promoteandrewardexpertise,(3)U n l e a s h thepowerofexperts,

st o fullyreplacemeninlearning,thepossibilityitcomestrueisnotpetite

Innovativeorganizationshouldstartfrombeingalearningorganization.Thismeansasimultaneousvisionarytransformationandinvolvesall levels ofresources ( i n d i

vi d u al , team,a n d o r g a n i z a t i o n i t s e l f ) a l o n g th e p r o c es s o f theo r g a n i z a t i o

n ’ s d e v e lo p m e n t (Senge,1990)

1 AI

–ArtificialIntelligence

Asaninformationtechnologycompany,LogiGear’sworkforcecomprisesof99%k n o w l e d g e w o r k e r s w h o a r e s o f t w a r e e n g i n e e r s , a k i n d o f “ k n o w l e

d g e w o r k e r s ” wh o se maincapitalisknowledgeandwhosejobisto"thinkforaliving"(D av en p o r t , 2 0 0 5 ) C r a b t r e e e t a l

( 1 9 9 7 ) r e v e a l s t h a t k n o w l e d g e w o r k e r s s p e n d 3 8 %o f t h e i r times e a r c h

i n g f or in fo rm at io n L o o ( 2 0 1 7 ) s u g g e s t s a de f i n i t i o n o f c r e at i v e knowledgeworkfromfourspecificroles:copywriting,creativedirecting,s o f t w a r e p

r o g r a m m i n g , a n d s y s t e m s p r o g r a m m e m a n a g i n g i n a d v e r t i s i n g a n d I

T software.Hefindsout“Creativeknowledgeworkersuseacombinationofcreative

ap p l i c at io n s toperformtheirfunctions/

rolesintheknowledgeeconomyincludinga n t i c i p a t o r y imagination,problemsolving,problemseeking,andgeneratingideas a n d a e s t h e t i c s e n s i

b i l i t i e s ”( L o o , 2 0 1 7 , p 138).L o g i G e a r VNv a l u e s c o n t i n u a l learninga n d e n d l e s s l y encouragese m p l o y e e s tolearnf o r good,individuallyandcollectively

theCEOofLogiGearV N restatedandcommittedtomakeLogiGearVN“atransformationthroughinnovation”.Knowingthatinordertoreachthefameofinnovation,whichisb e l i e

v e d theconcretefoundationforshiftingittonewheights,LogiGearVNhastof i r st ofallbealearningorganization

d r i v e n w o r k f o r c e , andaccommodatesforasustainablebusinessdevelopme

nt.Inordertoen s u r e thesuccessofsuchatransformationalshift, thecompanyacknowledgesit

- Customers’satisfaction

- drivenworkforce

Innovative,self Sustainablebusiness growth

KnowledgeM anagement

cycles,newframeworkandm e t h o d o l o g i e s , etc),andinternaldynamicssuchasoptimizingworkforce,businessre-

model,corporateportfolioshift(Worley&Cummings,2009),LogiGearVNhasb e e n facingthedemandforatransformationalchange.AlthoughLogiGearVNsetsa n d carriesoutitsmission“toprovideleading-

edgesoftwaretestingtechnologiesa n d e x p e r t i s e t o c u s t o m e r s ”( L o g i

G e a r V N , 2 0 1 6 ) , i t c o u l d hardlyc o m p e t e w i t h other

rivalsintheindustry.Thenumberofsalesclosedhasdroppedsignificantlyinr e c en t years;customershavebeenlatelyleavingforotherproviderswhocouldoffermorea d v a n c e d t

e c h n o l o g i c a l s o l u t i o n s ( f a s t e r s p e e d , h i g h e r p e r f o r m a n c e , l o w e

r p r i c e ) Thenewcapabilitiesofworkforcearenotimproveduptothespeedofnewchangesintechnologyandcustomers’demands.Sinceitscommencementin2005,t

he r e wereinnovativeimprovementsinmethodologies,frameworks,processes,and

someinitiatives,butallwerecarriedoutinsuchasmallscalethatwasnotsufficiente n o u g h togenerateradicaltransformationinLogiGearVN.Thecompany

Figure1 2 - TechnologyChangesJobRole/Skill

Source:LogiGearVN’s trainingmaterials

2 ABT

–Action-basedTesting

PsychologicalS a f e t y : Theyr e m a i n u n c h a n g e d 6 2 9 a n d 6 2 9 int h e l

a t e s t t w o surveys,andlowerthanmedianscore,76

Appreciationo f differences:remainunchanged5 7 1 a n d 57.1,a n d l o w e r t h a nmedianscore,64

OpennesstoNewIdeas:althoughincreaseddoubleintherecentsurveyfrom32.1(Jun30,2016)to64.3(Dec 31,2016),butitisverymuchlowerthanmedianscore,

90.Thereisimprovementbutstillalongwaytogotoinnovation

TimeforReflection:65.7and42.9respectively.Itisnotverymuchfarbelowthemedian,50, bu t t h e r e w a s as ig ni fi can td ro p t h a t t h e m a n a g e m e n t s h o u l d c los

el ylookinto

Analysis:6 0 0 a n d 5 4 3 , p r e t t y l o w c o m p a r e d t o 7 1 median.T h e r e isalmostno

d e b a t e ,

argument,feedback,activeandmulti-aspectcommunication.Learningo rg an i z at i o ns reallyfearof“noconflict”anddisagreement.Theyfearofnofeedbackandidea

EducationandTraining:notverymuchlowerthanmedian,80;butdroppedfrom78.6to71.4.Thisisalarming

Leadershipthatreinforceslearning:40.0and47.5,significantlylowcomparedto74a s median.Thisisaseriousissuethatneedstobeurgentlyaddressed,whetheritisth e mindsetorcompetence,atthemanagerorleaderlevel

Postively,therearethreeelementsthatstandhigherthanaveragelevel:

Experimentation:Increasedfrom57.9 to 82.1,anextremejump overthemedian,71.

InformationC o l l e c t i o n : I n c r e a s e d f r o m 6 0 5 t o 8 1 0 , a s i g n i f i c a n t jumpo v

e r t h e median,80

InformationTransfer:Increasedfrom57.1to75.0,alittlehigherthanmedian,71

The7decliningelementsseriouslyimpacttothevalueof“learningorganization”.ItreleasesastrongwarningsirenthattheboardofdirectorsofLogiGearVNneedstoimmediatelytakeactiontoaddressthenearlyhappeningcatastrophebeforebeinglate

Table1 1 - DiagnosisReportofLogiGear’sLearning Culture

Source:Garvinetal.(2008)

Furthermore,softwaretechnologyischangingfastandLogiGearVNshouldnotbeleft

b e h i n d I t n e e d s t o b e t e c h n o l o g i c a l l y stayinga b r e a s t o f t r e n d s

T h e o t h e r ch alleng e istofindmoreinnovativewaystocreate“blueoceans”(Kim&Mauborgne,2005)inordertoleadandwin.Acknowledgingtherealityand

i n d u s t r i e s a n d t e c h n o l o g i e s T h e h e a d q u a r t e r c o n t i n u e s tob e i n S i l i c

o n Valley,Californiawith

amajorityofthesoftwaretestingandsoftwaredevelopments t a f f b a s e d i n H o C h i M

i n h Citya n d D a N a n g , V i e t n a m , e s t a b l i s h e d 2 0 0 4 a s “LogiGearVN”.ThetotalheadcountsofLogiGearVNis500asattheendof2016.LogiGearCorp.continuestogrowascompaniesrealizethebenefitsofoutsourcingt h eir softwaretestinganddevelopment.ItishonoredbyInc.500|

ProductsandServices

Products

LogiGearVN’sproductisthetestautomationtoolnamedTestArchitect®.Itisan ideal t e s t a u t o m a t i o n s o l u t i o n f o r high-

volumetesta u t o m a t i o n p r o d u c t i o n I t l e t s youquicklydevelopalargevolumeofeasytomaintainautomatedtests—usingthetool’sbuilt-inactionsthateliminatecoding

Figure1 3 - TestArchitect,the automationtesttoolofLogiGear

demandmanualtestingresourcesbyindividualtesterso r managedtestingserviceswherethecompanytakesfullr e sp o n si b i li ty fort es t i n g p

dedicatedteams,tofully-r o j ec t s T h e a u t o m a t i o n e x pe dedicatedteams,tofully-r t s c a n w o dedicatedteams,tofully-r k w i t h c l ie n t ’ s p dedicatedteams,tofully-r e f e dedicatedteams,tofully-r dedicatedteams,tofully-r e d automatedsoftwaretestingtool,orLogiGearVN’stoolTestArchitect,toc o n d u c t automatedtestingonalarge-scale

Table1.2-RangesofServicesbyLogiGearVN

Source:LogiGear VN’swebsite

NorthAmerica(US,Canada)istheprincipalmarketofLogiGear,where90%ofthec l i e n t s based.OtherclientsareinEurope,Japan,andAustralia.Sincecommencement,LogiGearVNhasbeencompletedmorethan3,000projectswithmillionsoftestcasesandsolutionsforarichvarietyrangeofindustries:aerospace,a u t o m o b i l e , o i l

& g a s , b a n k i n g , i n s u r a n c e , e d u c a t i o n , h e a l t h c a r e , games,mobileapplication,etc

Argyrisa n d S c h ö n ( 1 9 7 8 , p 2 )s u g g e s t e d “ l e a r n i n g i n v o l v e s t h e d

e t e c t i o n a n d c o r r e c t i o n oferror.Wheresomethinggoeswrong,itissuggested,aninitialportofc a l l f o r m a n y p e o p l e i s t o l o o k f o r a n o t h e r s t r a t e g y t h a t

w i l l a d d r e s s a n d w o r k w i t h i n thegoverningvariables.Inotherwords,givenorchosengoals,values,plansan dr u l e s a r e o p e r a t i o n a l i z e d r a t h e r t h a n q u e s t

-l o o p -l e a r n i n g o c c u r s w h e n e r r o r isd e t e c t e d a n d correctedi n wayst h a t

involvet h e modificationo f a n o r g a n i z a t i o n ’ s u n d e r l y i n g norms,policiesandobjectives

Governing Variable Action Strategy Consequen

-ces Context

Single Loop Learning (Are we doing things right?) Double Loop Learning

(Are we doing the right things?) Triple Loop Learning

Figure2 1 - Single-LoopLearningandDouble-LoopLearning

Source:ArgyrisandSchön(1974,1978),Argyris(1977)

Thef o c u s o f mucho f C h r i s A r g y r i s ’ r e s e a r c h h a s b e e n toe x p l o r e h o

w organizations canincrease

theircapacityfordouble-looplearning He

arguesthatdouble-loopl e a r n i n g isn e c e s s a r y i f p r a c t i t i o n e r s a n d o r g a n i z a t i o n s a r e t omakeinformedd e c i s i o n s i n r a p i d l y c h a n g i n g a n d o f t e n u n c e r t a i n c o n t e

x t s (Argyris&Schön,1974;Argyris1982,1990)

TheA s i a n D e v e l o p m e n t B a n k e v e n s u g g e s t s t h e t r i p l e

-l o o p -l e a r n i n g , w h i c h i s r e f -l e c t e d inthequestion“Howdowedecidewhatisright?”andmodeledbelow:

Triple-LoopLearning

(Howdowedecidewhatisright?)

Figure2 2 - Triple-looplearningby AsianDevelopmentBank

Source:ADB(2009)adaptedfrom Argyris&Schön(1974,1978)

KolbandFry(1974)viewslearningasanintegratedprocesswitheachstagebeingm u t

ua l l y supportiveofandfeedingintothenext.Itispossibletoenterthecycleata n y stagea n d follow itthrough i t s logical s e q u e n c e H o we v e r , e f f e c t i v e lea rn ingonlyoccurswhenalearnerisabletoexecuteallfourstagesofthemodel.Therefore,noonestageofthecycleisaneffectiveasalearningprocedureonitso w n Atindividuallevel,astoKolb,learningoccursbypassingthroughaseriesofstagesina‘learningcycle’,includingfourstages:

Figure2 3 - Kolb'sExperientialLearningStyle

Atteamlevel,“teamlearning”isaskilldevelopedforgroupproblemsolvingandlearning(Senge,1990).Isaboutenhancingateam’scapacitytothinkandactinacollectiveandcollaborativemanner,withfullinclusiveness

Atorganizationallevel,Garvin(1993:78-92)defined“Alearningorganizationisan o r g a n i z a t i o n s k i l l e d a t c r e a t i n g , a c

q u i r i n g , a n d t r a n s f e r r i n g k n o w l e d g e , a n d a t modifyingitsbehaviortoreflectnewknowledgeandinsights.”

A greatnotion isthat learningmaynotnecessarilyinvolve certain formal educationo r

itself.T h e learningorganizationthereforedoesnotnecessarilyrequireanenhancedinvestmentineducationandtraining(althoughorganizationscan rarelyresistthis

call),b u t c e r t a i n l y r e q u i r e s e f f o r t s t o e n s u r e t h a t l e a r n i n g i s c a p t u r e d a

s a v a l u e a d d e d resourceintheorganization.Todothis,itisimportanttoreviewthewaysinwhichindividualsandorganizationslearn

isaconceptwhichwasinventedthroughtheworkandresearchofPeterSengeandhiscolleaguessincetheearlyninetiesofthe20thcentury.

(2008)suggestedthreebuildingblocksofalearningorganizationthatare“ supportivel e a r n i n g e n v i r o n m e n t , c o n c r e t e l e a r n i n g p r o c e s s e s a n d p r a c t i c e s,

andl eade rs hi p t h a t r e i n f o r c e s lea rn in g” T h e y als os u g g e s t e d a t o o l to assess t h e dept h o f

l e a r n i n g inorganization(los.hbs.edu),w h i c h isherebye m p l o y e d f o r evaluatingLogiGearVN’slearningstatusquo.Thethreebuildingblocksare:

Asupportivelearningenvironment:Anenvironmentthatsupportslearninghasfourd i s t i n

g u i s h i n g c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s I t ’ s t h e e n v i r o n m e n t t h a t c r e a t e s a s

e n s e o f psy ch olog ical safety,appreciationofdifferences,opennesstonewideas,andtimef o r reflection.Supportivelearningenvironmentsallowtimeforapauseintheactiona n d encouragethoughtfulreviewoftheorganization’sprocesses

Concretelearningprocessesandpractices:Alearningorganizationisnotcultivatedeffortlessly.Itarisesfromaseriesofconcretestepsandwidelydistributedactivities,notunliketheworkingsofbusinessprocessessuchaslogistics,billing,o r d e r

f u l f i l l m e n t , a n d p r o d u c t d e v e l o p m e n t L e a r n i n g p r o c e s s e s i n v o l v

e t h e generation , c o l l e c t i o n , i n t e r p r e t a t i o n , a n d d i s s e m i n a t i o n o f i n f o r

m a t i o n Theyincludeexperimentationtodevelopandtestnewproductsandservices;intelligenceg a th e r i n g t o k e e p t r a c k o f competitive,customer,a n d t e c h n o l o g i c a l

t r e n d s ; d i s c i p l i n e d analysisandinterpretationtoidentifyandsolveproblems;andeducationand trainingtodevelopbothnewandestablishedemployees

Leadershipthatreinforceslearning:Organizationallearning isstronglyinfluencedbyt h e b e h a v i o r o f l e a d e r s W h e n l e a d e r s a c t i v e l y q u e s t i o n a n

d l i s t e n t o em p lo y e e s —andtherebypromptdialogueanddebate—

peopleintheinstitutionfeele n c o u r a g e d tolearn.Ifleaderssignaltheimportanceofspendingtimeonproblemidentification,k n o w l e d g e t r a n s f e r , a n d r e f l e c

levelsw h i c h a r e n o v i c e , a d v a n c e d b e g i n n e r , competent,p r o f i c i e n t , e x p e r t, a n d i t s t a n d s o n t h e t h r e e l e g s : a s p i r a t i o n , g e n e r a t i v e c o n v e r s a t

i o n , a n d u n d e r s t a n d i n g complexity.ThesethelegsareactuallybasedonthefivedisciplinessuggestedbyS e n g e

Figure2 4 - Three-legModelforLearningOrganization

Source:(Kim,2002)

Flood(1999)revisitedSenge’sfifthdiscipline,thesystemicthinking,whichrequiresorganizationstohaveanability

to“learntheunknowable”.Hepointedoutcruciald e v e l o p m e n t s i n s y s t e m i

c t h i n k i n g i n t h e c o n t e x t o f t h e l e a r n i n g organization, includingcreativityandorganizationaltransformation

MayoandLank(1994)concludedthatalearningorganizationintegratesfullb r a i n

p o w e r , knowledgeandexperienceavailableintoitforacontinualevolvementf o r t

h e b e n e f i t o f i t s s t a k e h o l d e r s T h e i r a p p r o a c h ismorep r a g m a t i c s i n c

e theyexaminepracticesandsynchronizethemtoanoverallmodelofthelearningorganization whichisbasedontheEuropeanQualityModel,whereEnablers and

E n v i r o n m en t meansthe “setting”whichensurefort h e success(ofbuilding a

Policy & Strategy Personal

learning Team learning & networks Organizational learning

A supportive culture &

e, a n d w h e r e p e o p l e a r e c o n t i n u a l l y l e a r n i n g h o w t o l e a r n t o g e t h

e r ” ( S e n g e , 1990,p 3 ) H e i n d i c a t e d f i v e k e y e le m e n t s t h a t a L e a r n i n g O

r g a n i z a t i o n s h o u l d h a v e a r e s h a r e d v i s i o n , mentalm o d e l s , p e r s o n a lmastery,s y s t e m s t h i n k i n g a n d t e a m w o r k 3Sengealsostressedthatinarapidlychangingworldonlyorganizationsthatarequicklearnersandfastadjustedthemselveswillstandoutandlead.And,o r g a n i z a t i o n s have t obe abl e tod isc over howc o n n e c t peo pl e’ s commitmentandc a p a ci t y tolearnateverylevelin theorganization(Senge, 1990).Inotherwords,in

ordertoadapttochangesandtrends,organizationsshouldbecompetentinlearning,fastlearning

3 Senge’s

'FifthDiscipline'isoneoftheveryfewapproachestomanagementthathasattainedpositionontheInternationalHallofFame h t t p : / / s e a r c h e b s c o h o s t c o m / l o g i n a s p x ? d i r e c t = t r u e & d b = n l e b k & A N = 6 0 5 4 5 & s i t e = e d s - l i v e

magesthatinfluence howweunderstand th e worldand howwetake action.”

O n e important value Sengedescribesis theo pen ness Andadominantfeatureofo penn ess istostop“powergames”andbetruthfulaboutwhatsaidanddone

Sharedvisionis“apracticeofunearthingsharedpicturesofthefuturethatfost

erg e n u i n e commitmentandenrollmentratherthancompliance.”Onlywhenthevisionisauthenticandshared,employeeswillparticipateinimprovementprocessestogett h e companyclosertoaccomplishingitsvision

Teamlearning“startswithdialogue,thecapacityofmembersofteamtosuspen

da s s u m p t i o n s andenterintogenuinethinkingtogether.”Teamlearningincludestheef f ect i v e teamworkthatleadstoresultswhichindividualscouldnothaveachievedifdoingontheirown,andmembersof

ateamlearnmoreandfasterthantheywouldhavewithouttheteam.However,togetsuccess,teammembershavetobewillingt o shifttheirmentalmodelsandbeopentolearnfromtheircolleagues

Systemst h i n k i n g is“ t h e f i f t h d i s c i p l i n e t h a t i n t e g r a t e s t h e o t h e r f o u

r ” I t i s t h e ab i l i t y

toseethewhole,perceivelong-termpatterns,understandinterdependencies,a n d betterrecognizethatconsequencesofouractions

Itwould

beabigshortcomingifwedisregardthe“learningdisabilities”outlinedbyS en ge.H e p o s

t u l a t e s s e v e r a l p e r c e i v e d d e l e t e r i o u s h a b i t s o r m i n d s e t s , w h i c h h eref ers toas"learningdisabilities”,comprisedinthefollowingnotes(Senge,1990):

e than thedisease.Faster isslower.

Causeandeffectare notcloselyrelated in timeandspace.

Smallchangescanproducebigresults buttheareasofhighestleverageareoftent h e le astobvious.

Youcanhave yourcakeandeatit too-but

notallatonce.Dividinganelephantin half does not producetwo

smallelephants.Thereis noblame.

Iti s n e c e s s a r y t o d i s t i n g u i s h “ L e a r n i n g O r g a n i z a t i o n ” w i t h “ O rganizationalL e a r n i n g ” and“LearningCulture.”

“Organizationallearning is a p r o c e s s of d e t e c t i n g a n d cor re ct in ge rr or Thein

e m offactorsthatmaybecalledanorganizationallearningsystem.”(Argyris,1977,p.117)

“Organizationall e a r n i n g o c c u r s t h r o u g h s h a r e d i n s i g h t s , k n o w l e d g e ,

a n d mentalmodels…[ a n d ] b u i l d s o n p a s t k n o w l e d g e a n d e x p e r i e n c e —thati s , o n memory.”( S t a t a R.,1989,p.65)

s knowledgeaschangesinanorganization'spracticesorroutinesthatincreaseefficiency.Otherresearchersbaseitonthenumberofpatentsanorganizationhas

Knowledgem a n a g e m e n t is t he pr ocess ofc o l l e c t i n g , de ve lo pi ng, a nd sp r

ead in g knowledgeassetstoenableorganizationallearning

Darroch(2005)throughhisstudyo n thecorrelationbetweenknowledgem anag emen

knowledgemanagementp o s i t i v e l y impactinnovationandbusinessoutcomes

Twodistinctformsofknowledge,explicitandtacit,aresignificantinthisrespect.Explicitknowledgeiscodified,systematic,formal,andeasytocommunicate.Tacitk n

o w l e d g e ispersonal,context-specific,subjectiveknowledge

Explicitknowledgeisknowledgethatiseasytotransfer.Unliketacitknowledge

,e x p l i c i t knowledgeisdeclarativeorfactual.Itistransferredthroughwritten,verbal,o rcodifiedmedia

Tacitknowledgeisknowledgethatisdifficulttotransfer.AsdescribedbyPolanyi(1966)

,t a c i t k n o w l e d g e i s t h e k n o w l e d g e o f p r o c e d u r e s Iti s a p e r s o n a l t y p e o f

knowledgethatcannotbesharedsimplythroughwrittenorverbalcommunication.Itislearnedmostlythroughexperienceovertime.Thisisatransferoftacitk n o w l e dg e s i

Regardlesso f w h o w e r e sayingw h a t , t h e s o c a l l e d “ t a c i t k n o w l e d g e ” e

x i s t s ino r g ani za ti o n s andeverybodyneedstohaveapersonallearningabilitytolearnitandmasteri t ( p e r s o n a l mastery).B e c a u s e , i n t h e c o r p o r a t e w o r l d , t h

a t i s w h a t t h e c o m p e t i t o r s can’tcopyfromtheothersunlessthey“steal”thetalents,theoneswhoownit

2.4 InnovationandInnovationCompetence

Innovationcanbedefinedasallthescientific,technological,organizational,financial, andcommercialactivitiesnecessarytocreate,implement,andmarketnewo r improvedproductsorprocesses(OECD,2010)

InnovationCompetency,referringtoHarvard’sCompetency

Dictionary,isthea b i l i t y to“generatinginnovativesolutionsinworksituations;tryingdifferentand n o v e l waystodealwithworkproblemsandopportunities.”Keyactionsofinnovationare:

Challengesparadigms

Identifiesimplicitassumptionsi n t h e wayp r o b l e m s o r situationsa r e definedorpresented;seesalternativewaystoviewordefineproblems;isnotconstrainedbyt h e thoughtsorapproachesofothers

h a t T Q M , i n t e r n a l h u m a n r e s o u r s e s , a b s o r p t i v e c a p a c i t y , c o l l a

b o r a t i o n n e t w o r k s , andgovernmentsupportpositively impacttoVietnamesebusiness innovationcapacity.Ofwhich,“developinghumanresourcesiselementarymeasuret o p r o m o t e i n n o v a t i o n c a p a c i t y ”,w h i l e a b s o r p t i v e c a p a c i t y isa

l s o c o n s i d e r e d animportantsolutionand“topmanagersmustunderstandthe urgencyofinnovationa n d howtom a n a ge innovative operations effectively ” Peopleandl eade rs hi p are amo ngthemostimportantfactorsinbuildinginnovationcompetenceofacompany

NguyenDi nh Tho( 2 0 1 6 ) reveals th at innovativeness ca pab il it y (andthree

ou tof f o u r componentsofmarketingcapability)impactstofirmperformance

TiddandBessant(2015)affirmthat“innovationdirectlycorrelateswithe n t r e p r e n e u

r s h i p ”

NguyenQuocDuy(2015)pointedoutgroupsofelementsthatinfluencecorporateinnovationcompetence,consistingofinternalfactorssuchascommonbusinesscharacteristics,corporatestrategy,organizationalstructure,cultureandleadership,humanresourcesandfunctionalstrategy;externalfactorsincluderelationship,R & D , technologyprogress,connectionwithprofessionalassociations,andnationalp o l i c i e s thatsupportinnovation

PhungXuanNhaandLeQuan(2013)studied innovationof583Vietnameseenterprisesi n f o u r d i m e n s i o n s ( p e r c e p t i o n a n d c u l t u r e o f i n n

o v a t i o n , i n n o v a t i o n r e s u l t s , formsofinnovation,andresourceallocationtoinnovation)andlearnedthatmostoftheenterprisesperceivedprettywellabouttheimportanceandbenefitsofinnovation,butnomanyofthemactuallyhadacomprehensiveprogramtopromoteinnovation

StrategicC o n t r a d i c t i ons:A T o p M a n a g e m e n t M o d e l f o r M a n a g i n g

I n n o v a t i o n S t r e a m s ” p roved thatcorporateperformancedependsontopmanagementteams’commitmentan dambidexterityonbalancingexplorationandexploitation.Theauthorsdeveloped“ a modelo f managings t r a t e g i c c o n tradictionsa s s o c i a t e d w i

t h p a r a d o x i c a l cognition-seniorleadersand/

ortheirteams(a)articulatingaparadoxicalframe,

(b)d i f f e r e n t i a t i n g b e t w e e n t h e s t r a t e g y a n d a r c h i t e c t u r e f o r t h e e x i s t

i n g p r o d u c t a n d thoseforinnovation,and(c)integratingbetweenthosestrategiesandarchitectures.”

O'ReillyandTushman(2004)inventedtheterm“AmbidextrousOrganization”foro r g a n i z a t i o n s thathaveabilitytoexploitthecurrentr e s o u r c e s (cash,talent,e x p e r t i s e , customers,andsoonsoforth)and

explorethepotentials,innovationsandf u t u r e t r e n ds i n o r d e r t o b e c o m e i n n o v a t i

ve “ T heymustc o n s t a n t l y pursueincrementalinnovations,smalli m p r o v e m e n

t s i n t h e i r e x i s t i n g p r o d u c t s a n d o p e r a t i o n s thatletthemoperatemoreefficientlyanddelivere v e r greatervaluetocu s t o m e r s Companiesalsohavetom

isch an g in g also.”Hetraceddevelopmentsindominantperceivedmodelofindustrialinnovationsincethesimplelinear“technologypush”and“ d e m a n d pull”ofthe1 9 6 0 s– 1 9 7 0 s , t o t h e “ c o u p l i n g m o d e l ” i n 1 9 7 0 s –

1 9 8 0 s ,a n d t h e “ i n t e g r a t e d model”in1980s–

1990s,andhepredictedthe2000swhereinnovationwasbecomingf a s t e r a n d i n v o

l v i n g i n t e r

-c o m p a n y n e t w o r k i n g a n d e m p l o y e d a n e w ele-ctroni-ctoolkit(expertsystemsandsimulationmodeling)

Schumpeteri n h i s TheoryofE c o n o m i c D e v e l o p m e n t

( 1 9 3 4 ) , B u s i n e s s Cycles( 1 9 3 9 ) , andCapitalism,SocialismandDemocracy(1942)describedtheimportanceofi n n o v a t i o n a n d e n t r e p r e n e u r s h i p t o economicd e v e l o p m e n t H e suggestedt h a t anyonew h o d o e s t h i n g s f o r p r o f i t smusti n n o v a t e Heb e l i e v e d i n n o v a t i o n isa c r i t i c a l d ri ve ro f c o m p e t i t i

v e n e s s a n d ec o n o m i c d y n a m i c s S l e d z i k ( 2 0 1 3 ) ag re ed withSchumpeterontheaspect:“…

t m e n t a n d a m b i d e x t e r i t y onb a l a n c i n g e x p l o r a t i o n a n d e x p l o i t a t i o n (

S m i t h andTushman, 2005) G a r c i a &C a la n t o n e (2002) focusedonl e a r n i

n g orientation

thata f f e c t e d f i r m i n n o v a t i v e n e s s D a r r o c h ( 2 0 0 5 ) r e v e a l e d t h a t

k n o w l e d g e m a n a g e m e n t positivelyimpactinnovation.AccordingtoSenge(1990),peoplearea g e n t s , abletoactuponthestructuresandsystemsofwhichtheyareapart.Allthed i s c i p l i n e s are,inthatlight,“concernedwithashiftofmindfromseeingpartstoseeingw h o l e s , f r o m s e e i n g p e o p l e ash e l p l e s s r e a c t o r

s t o s e e i n g thema s a c t i v e part icip ant s i n s h a p i n g t h e i r reality,fromr e a c t i

n g t o t h e p r e s e n t toc r e a t i n g t h e future”(Senge1990,reviseded.2006:69).Jamalietal

(2009),Jashapara(2003),Hejazi a n d V e i s i ( 2 0 0 7 ) , A b b a s i e t a l

( 2 0 1 5 )c o n f i r m e d t h a t S e n g e ’ s L e a r n i n g O r g a n i z a t i o n 5

-d i s c i p l i n e mo-delhas beenthebest fitfor the business an-deducationorganizations

Thequalitativeresearchisapttothetypesofquestionsraisedtotheintervieweesabout theirperceptionof“learningorganization”.Theselectionofresearchmethods

h o u l d r e f l e c t t h e r e s e a r c h t o p i c a n d t h e g e n e r a l r e s e a r c h s t r a t e g y

a s t h e met ho dolo gy dicideswhichmethodsareusedandhoweachmethodisused(Silverman,2 0 0 0 ) “ T h e o r e t i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e ” i s t a k e n t o m e a n “ t h e p h i l o s

o p h i c a l s t a n c e lyingbehindthemethodology”(Crotty,1998, p.66).Thetheoreticalp e r s p e c t i v e , accordingto Crotty(1998),provides acontext for theprocessinvolveda

Thea p p r o a c h t a k e n f o r t h i s s t u d y l i e s i n t h e a c c e p t a n c e o f t h e i

m p o r t a n c e o f u n d e rs t an di n g andanappreciationoftheinfluenceofsubjectiveinterpretationsandp e r c e p t i o n s intheconstructsofalearningorganization.Thisapproachfocusesonho wl e a r n i n g o r g a n i z a t i o n i s e x p e r i e n c e d i n t h e

e v e r y d a y w o r l d T h e p he n o m en o l o g i c al orientationis‘particularlyi n t e r e

s t e d inhowalearningo r g an i z a t i o n isconstructedbythosewhoparticipateinit”(Denscombe,2003,p.99).Whent h e s o c i a l w o r l d i s s o c i a l l y c o n s t r u c t e d , t h e

p o s s i b i l i t y o f s e e i n g t h i n g s d i f f e r e n t l y increases,thusgivingrisetomultipleperceptionsofreality,supportsap r e d o m i n a n t l y qualitativeresearchorientation,ratherthanaquantitativeone