Information technology as a fellow player in organizational learning

Issues about the relation between information technology (IT), knowledge and organizational learning appear more critical as IT becomes an increasingly integrated part of organizational life. We believe that in order to understand the role of IT in organizational learning, we need to focus on the relation between learning theories and understandings of technology. This relation is often based upon the assumption that organizational learning is a process of knowledge acquisition, storage, application and diffusion in which IT is a primary enabler. We propose organizational learning to derive from participation in social work practices and to involve human existence and development. This brings forward an understanding of the role of technology to be a facilitator of the formation and maintenance of communities of practice within organizations – and not to be reduced to its information processing capacities.