A Typology of the Idea of Learning Organization

A topology of the idea of `learning organization' is developed and presented. The typology is inductively created and based on how the term `learning organization' is used in the literature and by practitioners. Four distinct types of understanding were found: `organizational learning', `learning at work', `learning climate' and `learning structure'. The same types of understanding seem to appear both in the literature and in accounts made by practitioners. Thus the term `learning organization' is probably not unduly confusing to the practitioners. Instead, the different versions of the idea in the literature seem to give companies the opportunity to choose a version suitable for their specific situation.