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An organization's collective mindset is its culture. And remember
- organizations pursuing sustainability are almost always learning
organizations. Organizations championing norms of sustainability
-- learning -- can adapt faster to changes in the environment,
giving them a natural competitive advantage over non-learning
-- unsustainable -- enterprises. Because disruptive change is,
ironically, a constant in organizational life, firms that nurture
learning cultures are more competitive.
So what does a learning culture look like? Following is a set
of typical norms that foster learning:
- Knowledge management; information sharing;
- A commitment to learning at individual, team, and organizational levels;
- Social architecture that cuts across hierarchies
- The tendency to ask questions rather than make assertions
- Participatory, inclusive processes;
- Systems thinking, and pursuit of root cause;
- Enriched jobs and freedom at the line (people whose hands are on the work have great latitude to create, decide, act);
- Courage and tenacity; and
- Celebration of diversity
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