The learning organization is a vital strategy for organizational survival and development, not a quick-fix solution. It can help create sustainable knowledge and make organizations more productive, profitable, and humane places. (SK)

Examines the concept of organizational leadership and its connection to inspiration, renewal, continuous improvement, and excellence. Leadership in relation to embracing and adapting to change is also discussed, followed by how the Association of Higher Education Facilities Officers used leadership to renew its association through revitalization…

Describes two initiatives developed by Sears that were designed to align career development with business goals: goal cascading, in which individual performance goals were used to determine needed skills and knowledge; and proactive career planning, a guide for career management developed when the corporation underwent significant organizational…

Describes a career development initiative that was an integral part of a major culture shift within Union Pacific Resources. Discusses how cross-functional change agent teams helped set employee expectations and build a culture within the organization. (JOW)

Suggests how training and human resource development professionals can play a pivotal role in helping shape and communicate an executive-driven change message and help employees understand the message from the beginning. (Author)

Appreciative inquiry is a form of organizational development based on principles of constructivism, poetics, anticipation, and simultaneity. The model has four phases: discovery, dream, design, and delivery. (SK)

A survey of 508 Canadian workers showed that moderate levels of high-performance work practices were associated with increased belonging, empowerment, job satisfaction, and organizational citizenship behavior. At higher levels, the association became negative. Work was more stressful with these practices. Team autonomy, just-in-time practices, and…

The Ford Motor Company invested in transformational leadership to change itself. Programs center around core principles: adopt a transformational mindset, use action learning, leverage the power of electronic tools, integrate work and life, and generate business impact. (JOW)

Managers in service and manufacturing organizations (n=433) identified top practices for improving their performance as focus, feedback, and learning from experience. There was a disparity between the management development they want and what organizations provide. (SK)

Transformative learning can be conceptualized in emancipatory, cognitive-rational, developmental, and spiritual approaches. Current research is examining transformative learning in groups and organizations, ways to foster it in learners, and ethical considerations for adult educators. (Contains 41 references.) (SK)

Appreciative Inquiry is a technique for organizational change that focuses on discovering what works well and why and determining how success can be extended throughout the organization. Its application to local government in Hampton, Virginia, revitalized the city work force. (SK)

Reviews the use of democratic models in the history of prison education. Identifies central principles of successful models: strong leadership, mediated learning experiences, high aims and expectations, and increased relative freedom. (SK)

An Irish company embarked on implementing a business excellence model and continuous improvement initiatives. Some employees' reluctance to participate impeded organizational learning, but the creation of a culture that encouraged, facilitated, and rewarded learning enabled movement toward excellence. (Contains 64 references.) (SK)

An organizational consulting model that uses the ancient concept of chakras and energy flows was used to guide a collaborative inquiry into workers' experience of the organization. The model enabled participants to describe their organizational experience, construct a narrative about it, formulate intended changes. (Contains 32 references.)…

Interviews with 42 bank managers considered learning in the context of new technological projects. Case studies of projects provide evidence that learning from past mistakes is the exception and, therefore, even successful projects had a limited impact on organizations. (Contains 22 references.) (JOW)