SOCIETAL INSTITUTIONS, LEARNING ORGANIZATIONS AND INNOVATION IN THE KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY

Abstract

This chapter seeks to explain how societal institutions, which may exist at the national or regional levels, shape the types of organizational learning predominating at the level of the firm. It focuses on education and training systems, and labour markets as key societal institutions shaping the micro-level processes of learning and knowledge creation within and between firms. The chapter argues that tacit knowledge, which is difficult to create and transfer in the absence of social interaction and labour mobility, constitutes a most important source of learning and sustainable competitive advantage in the knowledge economy. It looks at the cases of Japan, the high-technology clusters in the USA and U.K., and Denmark as illustrative examples.

Citation

Lam, A. (2004), "SOCIETAL INSTITUTIONS, LEARNING ORGANIZATIONS AND INNOVATION IN THE KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY", Christensen, J.L. and Lundvall, B.-A. (Ed.) Product Inovation, Interactive Learning and Economic Performance (Research on Technological Innovation, Management and Policy, Vol. 8), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 43-67. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0737-1071(04)08003-5