Strategic intent, organizational environment, and organizational learning mechanisms : A multiple-case study in the construction industry in Taiwan

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop different kinds of organizational learning mechanisms based on various types of strategic intents (proactive- and reactive-orientation) and organizational environments (stable and unstable). Design/methodology/approach – The authors utilized a grounded theory approach, and corroborated the results using multiple interviews and documents related to various cases. The authors determined the inter-judge agreement and performed a composite reliability analysis to ensure the robustness of the research. Findings – Successful organization learning is contingent upon managerial strategic intent and the organizational environment in which the organization operates. Proactive strategic intent will cultivate a group-oriented learning system, whereas reactive strategic intent emphasizes the effectiveness of personal learning. Firms in an environment marked by radical change utilize experiential learning mechanisms (participation- and experience-orientation), whereas firms in a stable environment use a specialist-knowledge-oriented approach to learning (benchmarking- and specializing-orientation). Originality/value – The authors offer a theoretical framework two-by-two matrix that has practical implications in providing managers with guidance in selecting the appropriate organizational learning mechanism to implement in their firms.