ABSTRACT Despite 50 years of theory development, definitions and conceptualizations of organizational learning remain divergent (Barker Scott, 2011). The systems-based approach to conceptualizing organizational learning has become influential (Senge, 1990; Yang, Watkins & Marsick, 2004). Organizational learning can be theoretically associated with concepts of efficiency and continuous improvement initiatives underway in higher educational institutions. This study was concerned with the learning experiences reported by leaders at the individual (micro), unit/departmental (meso) and organizational (macro) levels who had participated in efficiency (Lean) improvement projects. Based upon the perceptions of university unit/departmental leaders, the study’s research questions dealt with participant perceptions of the context and implementation of efficiency (Lean) initiatives at a university site. Further, the implications for organizational learning at the individual (micro), unit (meso) and institutional (macro) levels were explored. The study was developed and presented using a case study methodology. Saldana’s (2013) codes-to-theory model was used during data analysis, resulting in the development of the study’s categories, subcategories, themes and conclusions. Two phases of semi-structured interviews were conducted. Study categories and subcategories were presented as the study’s collected data in terms of the experiences of senior leaders and unit leaders. Where possible, voices of study participants were present via the direct presentation of interview responses by category or subcategory. Four themes emerged from the study: effective communication promoted learning and enhanced efficiency; conceptions of organizational learning focused predominantly on the unit; efficiency methodology was superordinate to efficiency method; and learning was conceptualized as an essential project resource. It was concluded from this study that efficiency initiatives served as an impetus for organizational learning and communication emerged as the most important factor to ease system limitations.

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published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

The contemporary information society demands efficient knowledge management and therefore, the transfer of knowledge becomes an important issue. The purpose of this research is to contribute to the understanding of how the knowledge transfer in Science Parks takes place and which knowledge transfer supporting conditions are offered within the Science Park environment. Through the conduction of several in depth interviews with the management of Science Parks as well as the representatives of their tenant companies it can be concluded that Science Parks seem to offer favourable conditions for knowledge transfer. This is facilitated by the established structural arrangements as well as the supporting activities of the Science Parks‟ management. An important assumption is made within the scope of this study that certain favourable conditions may as well be relevant for off Science Park firms and thus, presumably making the present study interesting and valuable for a larger audience.

This thesis focuses on investigating learning occurring in a web-based community of foodservice professionals, which is informally structured and based on voluntary participation, using concepts from the "communities of practice" (CoP) (Wenger, 1998) paradigm. As an informal learning environment, the web-based community was investigated based on three planes (Rogoff, 1998): Community (i.e., how does learning occur in the web-based community?), Interpersonal (i.e., how does learning occur between participants of the web-based community?), and Individual (i.e., how does individual learning occur through participating in the web-based community?). / Under the umbrella of the online ethnographic approach, I applied mixed-method research combining multiple data sources (i.e., discussion transcripts, online survey, online interviews, ethnographic observation, and other documents) and analytical methods (i.e., descriptive framework for CoP, content analysis, transcript analysis, and descriptive statistics). / In terms of the community plane, the web-based community was explored by applying the descriptive framework for communities of practice consisting of observable and measurable indicators in terms of organization, participation, and outcome. With regard to the interpersonal plane, I explored how learning occurs between participants of the WBC: How do participants interact with each other and what do they share through their interactions? To do that, the processes of interaction and learning were examined according to the size of threads (i.e., small, medium, and large sizes). For the individual plane, I examined (a) individuals' epistemological beliefs and (b) individuals' change of roles in relation to the degree of participation. Based on the results investigated in each plane, I discussed general characteristics of this web-based community as informal learning environment, effective features fostering interaction and learning in this web based community, and possible trajectories of the web-based community evolving for a community of practice. / The importance of this study lies in its contributions to the conceptual framework (i.e., descriptive framework for communities of practice) and the methodological approach (i.e., multi-layered analytical approach) developed and applied in this thesis. The descriptive framework enables us to identify some defining features that distinguish communities of practice from other structures and hence to establish guidelines for monitoring how communities of practice evolve and what makes them evolve in successful ways. In addition, this study offers useful implications for designing and supporting web-based communities even in formal and non-formal learning environments. Because this study employed an exploratory, interpretive approach and concentrated on the breadth of learning in a web-based community through different planes, the results offer broader aspects of learning rather than specific, intensive issues of learning in this web-based community. Therefore, further studies are suggested along with the issues derived from this thesis.

This dissertation examines the development and renewal of capabilities through acquisitions by drawing from absorptive capacity literature (Cohen and Levinthal, 1990; Zahra and George, 2002). This dissertation examines four interrelated questions concerning (1) the impact of acquisition experience on a firm’s absorptive capacity, (2) the role of absorptive capacity in the renewal of capabilities through acquisition, (3) the impact of capabilities renewal through acquisition on a firm’s choice of future growth mode, and (4) the impact of capabilities renewal through acquisition on post-acquisition performance. These questions are examined using FDIC data and surveys administered to top managers of banks that conducted acquisitions between October 2004 and October 2006. Results of this study suggest that a firm’s past experience with internal development and acquisition impacts the development of its absorptive capacity. Furthermore, results suggest that absorptive capacity has multiple dimensions and that the respective absorptive capacity dimensions have unique independent and joint effects on a firm’s ability to renew its capabilities through acquisition. Results also suggest that the impact of the change in capabilities on the firm’s choice of future growth mechanism largely depends on the nature of capability that changed through acquisition. When firms experience an improvement or decline in important revenue-generating capabilities that are fundamental to firm performance, the firm is more likely to pursue future acquisition to either compensate for its inability to grow by its own internal means or to exploit its improved capability in a new setting. However, when management capabilities or operational capabilities experience an improvement or a decline, the firms is less likely to pursue future acquisition in order to avoid taxing the already strained capability or to take time to fully internalize the improved capability. Results also suggest that the change in capabilities through acquisition is positively associated with a change in post-acquisition performance.

The practice of education planning across Canada is established for the manifest purpose of guiding school improvement. In Manitoba, the planning process is reportedly intended to improve linkages that will increase efficiency and enhance communication, thereby improving educational outcomes for all students (Manitoba Education, 2004, 2007). The problem arises in a practical sense, however, in determining whether the education planning process creates the necessary linkage between strategic intentions and activities, or whether the planning process exists simply as a bureaucratic requirement or condition (Meyer and Rowan, 1983). This research study was designed to determine whether there were systemic features of school division planning for Student Services, which would result in improved linkages between educational intentions and related actions, making the process more effective and functional. In order to respond to the questions posed in this study, I focused on a concrete aspect involved in planning for students with challenging learning behaviours. With the assistance of school divisions participating in the study, I collected data from structured interviews with key personnel, and from planning templates or other selected documentation. The information was compiled and examined through a conceptual framework, derived from the review of literature, which served to organize and analyze the school division data. A process of analytic abduction was used to define similarities and variances in planning practices, according to the conceptual framework. The information was summarized and a synthesis of effective planning practices was created as a result. The findings informed the development of a new framework detailing the archetypes of effective and functional planning practices for Student Services at the school division level, a process more likely to set the stage for organizational improvement and change.

This thesis presents a systematic review regarding the way technology supports adult learning in communities of practice. It presents the systematic review procedure that was developed, based on NBS CRD (2001) protocol, from publication sources relevant to the topic. It includes the identification of research from an initial question that is: how does technology support adult learning in communities of practice. In addition, it presents a search strategy, a study quality assessment, a data extraction strategy and a synthesis of findings. Because most of the pertinent research is qualitative, a typology of qualitative research and a critical appraisal checklist for quality assessment were designed and are presented. The results presented have synthesized evidence from studies that meet certain quality criteria and they are discussed in terms of (a) the kinds of technologies applied in communities of practice, and (b) successful features of the technology that seem to contribute to learning.

What is the role of frontline project leadership in organizational learning in incremental business process improvement (iBPI)? Current literature is sparse on the topic of contributions to organizational learning made by frontline employees leading iBPI projects. To bridge this gap, we use an embedded longitudinal multiple case to study the process of leadership of four frontline iBPI projects. The 4I model (intuiting, interpreting, integrating, and institutionalizing) of organizational learning serves as a theoretical lens to study how the insights originating from frontline employees unfold through group-level integration and organization-level institutionalization. Mapping the flow of key project events to the relevant social and psychological processes of the 4I model, we identify how organizational learning unfolds within and through the three levels of the model. The granularity of the 4I model creates a valuable foundation for informing the role of frontline project leadership in iBPI programs and the capacity to leverage insights originating from frontline employees into organizational learning. Practitioners and engaged scholars will find this level of granularity helpful for program design, evaluation, and learning interventions.

The practice of education planning across Canada is established for the manifest purpose of guiding school improvement. In Manitoba, the planning process is reportedly intended to improve linkages that will increase efficiency and enhance communication, thereby improving educational outcomes for all students (Manitoba Education, 2004, 2007). The problem arises in a practical sense, however, in determining whether the education planning process creates the necessary linkage between strategic intentions and activities, or whether the planning process exists simply as a bureaucratic requirement or condition (Meyer and Rowan, 1983). This research study was designed to determine whether there were systemic features of school division planning for Student Services, which would result in improved linkages between educational intentions and related actions, making the process more effective and functional. In order to respond to the questions posed in this study, I focused on a concrete aspect involved in planning for students with challenging learning behaviours. With the assistance of school divisions participating in the study, I collected data from structured interviews with key personnel, and from planning templates or other selected documentation. The information was compiled and examined through a conceptual framework, derived from the review of literature, which served to organize and analyze the school division data. A process of analytic abduction was used to define similarities and variances in planning practices, according to the conceptual framework. The information was summarized and a synthesis of effective planning practices was created as a result. The findings informed the development of a new framework detailing the archetypes of effective and functional planning practices for Student Services at the school division level, a process more likely to set the stage for organizational improvement and change.