The Significance of Formal, Informal and Non-Formal Learning for the Acquisition of the Change Management Competence

The purpose of the article is to learn how managers acquire change management competence. The paper is based on the concepts of organizational change management, management development and workplace learning. The empirical research is conducted to identify change management competence needed and the ways they are learned by the managers. The paper discloses what change management competence is needed to manage change in organisation as well as how do managers acquire them. The survey points out factors influencing managers learning during organisational change. Few research limitations can be defined. First, the results of the empirical research could be generalised for the managers of Lithuanian companies, intercultural aspects are not taken into account. Second, the impact of learning outcomes on change success is not analysed. The findings of the paper will complement to the further research on management development and change management. The information on how to improve management learning during the organizational change will help to improve the services of management training providers as well as quality of change management in the companies. The increasing rate of changes demands managers to adapt more quickly. The paper evaluates what kind of competence is required for the managers to cope with organizational change and how are they acquired. Also the relationship between formal, non-formal and informal management learning in the change process is defined