76 • 100 GREAT BUSINESS IDEAS
Being a learning organization, however, means more than just
wanting to improve. Renowned business writer Peter Senge views
a learning organization as one “Where people continually expand
their capacity to create the results they truly desire, where new
and expansive patterns of thinking are nurtured, where collective
aspiration is set free, and where people are continually learning to
see the whole together.”
In practice
Senge believes that fi ve disciplines are central to learning
organizations. Consider which of these fi ve vital aspects of learning
could be improved within your business:
- Systems thinking is the ability to comprehend and address the
whole, understanding the interrelationship between the parts.
One of the key problems with many businesses is that they apply
simplistic frameworks to what are complex systems. We tend to
focus on the parts rather than seeing the whole, and fail to see
organization as a dynamic process. So a better appreciation of
systems will lead to more appropriate action. - Personal mastery is the ability to clarify our personal vision, focus
our energies, be patient, and display objectivity. People with a
high level of personal mastery are continually learning, they
are acutely aware of their ignorance and their growth areas, and
yet they are also deeply self-confi dent. This seems paradoxical,
but for people with personal mastery the journey is seen as
the reward. - Mental models are deeply ingrained views, assumptions, and
generalizations that infl uence how we understand the world
and how we act. Using mental models starts with looking in
the mirror: learning to unearth our internal pictures of the