The organisational learning system within small UK manufacturing firms

Organisational learning is increasingly being mentioned in the literature as a mechanism for assisting the market performance of small firms. There exists, however, limited empirical evidence on the learning systems utilised to manage the process. A survey was undertaken to acquire data on whether a relationship exists between learning style and the nature of learning systems used by small UK manufacturing firms. The results suggest that as firms move from single towards double‐loop learning this is accompanied by the adoption of a more formalised learning system inside the organisation. The implications of these finding are discussed and proposals presented on the needs for further research.