Supply chain management and Learning Organization: a merging of literatures

Purpose – This paper aims to examine the potential of applying the concept of the Learning Organization to the understanding of, and potentially the assessment of, an organization's supply chain collaboration capability. Collaborative supply chain management (SCM) literature was transposed against that of the literature of the Learning Organization to investigate overlapping themes to explore benefits of applying the framework of the Learning Organization to SCM. Design/methodology/approach – The author conducted an in-depth review of the collaborative SCM and Learning Organization literature. This allowed for a comparative analysis of the literature and identification of the extent of common themes. Themes were identified, future research questions were posed and implications were delineated. Findings – Findings indicate multiple themes in common between collaborative SCM and the Learning Organization. This serves as support for the suggestion to approach SCM with the framework of the Learning Organization to encourage those principles to drive behavior. This will be critical for gaining a competitive advantage in the supply chain. Research limitations/implications – This study is limited to conceptual analysis only. Findings suggest that empirical research should be conducted to investigate and quantify advantages of this approach/perspective. Practical implications – Implications are that SCM should include the practices of the Learning Organization to ensure that the supply chain is oriented toward learning and continuous growth. Originality/value – It indicates the value of the Learning Organization perspective in SCM and introduces the term “learning chain” to exemplify the approach.