Individual, project and organizational learning flows within a global project-based organization: exploring what, how and who

Abstract

Project learning is a function of individuals’ internal cognitive processes, interpretation and integration of learning at the team and project level, and the organization's ability to institutionalize learning into practices. However, understanding of how learning unfolds between these levels remains limited. Using a single in-depth case study, this paper reports on how learning occurs between levels in a global project-based organization (PBO). Six bridging mechanisms are identified: (1) networks, (2) organizational initiatives, (3) power and politics, (4) coaching and mentoring, (5) culture of empowerment, and (6) temporality. The temporal nature of the projects paired with the global context offers the opportunity for a stable workforce to be deployed across geographical regions to form formal and informal networks that offer a parallel organizational structure for multilevel learning. Project managers (PMs), senior leaders and the project management office (PMO) engage differently in the learning process, depending on their degree of connectivity and power within the global organization.