From one to many : an exploration of the links between management development and organisational learning

In a climate of rapid change, a steady increase in expenditure on management development programs globally has been attributed to its perceived potential to address organisational needs for learning, adaptation and flexibility (Brown, 2003; Hayes, 2007). A key premise has been that management development programs enhance organisational learning and contribute to increased adaptability within organisations. Paradoxically, the literature indicates a lack of evidence to support claims that management development and organisational learning are linked in practice (Clarke, 1999; Mabey, 2002). In this study significant incongruities were identified between assumptions about learning held by researchers in the fields of management development and organisational learning. A conceptual framework was developed to guide a closer examination of the design and implementation of a specific management development intervention in situ. The aim was to identify whether the designers held beliefs about the nature of knowledge, and learning, which had impacted on their choices about the program intervention. Such an understanding was considered pivotal to identifying the influence of the designer's assumptions on the program design and any links to organisational learning in that context.