Organizational Learning, Unlearning and Innovation Among Private Sector Firms in Hungary

Indiana University, Bloomington IN

Investigators

Abstract

Despite widespread acceptance that organizational learning consists of a process of understanding new external knowledge, assimilating it and applying it, little is known about the details associated with the stages or with transitions between them. This research proposes to crystallize the concepts of learning structures and processes within the transitional economy of Hungary, building on the researchers' prior work there and elsewhere to illuminate how learning develops over time. Phase 1 of the project will collect data from 400 private enterprises through structured interviews, building upon data collected in 1993 and 1996 that assessess organizational learning and absorptive capacity. In Phase 2, researchers will conduct in-depth interviews with 20 firms and develop comparative case studies of five firms. The focus of inquiry is to examine both differences in what is learned, and differences in the ways firms learn and construct their knowledge bases, anticipating that at different times, firms will have differing learning capabilities, intentions and structures that will affect their learnign experiences.