19th Nordic Academy of Management Conference

in Bergen, August 9 – 11, 2007

Inga Jóna Jónsdóttir

Faculty of Economics and Business Administration
University of Iceland
ingajona@hi.is

Workplace learning in context

Abstract:
The nature of work and the contexts in which work is performed are
undergoing considerable and enduring changes. In the wake of these
changes, over the last fifteen years or so, the focus has been shifting from
education, teaching (Illeris, 2003) and training in organizations to a
consideration of learning and/or competence development at work
(Dymock, 2004). This is especially true for the field of pedagogic and
adult education where the focus is on the individuals as the learners and
social beings. However, in the field of organization and management
studies where the focus is on organizational learning and development
one could claim that the concept of learning has been taken for granted or
put in a “black box” and only rhetorically included in theory and practice.
There is a paucity of empirically based knowledge on learning at work in
interplay with contextual issues such as organisational culture,
organization of work, leadership and HRM practices.

The aim of this paper is twofold. Firstly, to discuss different perspectives

or approaches to learning and conditions affecting learning at work to
provide a theoretical background for investigating workplace learning in
small organizations. Secondly, the paper draws on and discusses data
from a case study which explores how workplace learning unfolds in
everyday work practice in a small service company and how the
organization of work and organizational culture affect learning at work.