e-business and organizational learning: A case study of three globally operating companies

This paper analyzes how the web-based e-business solutions of three globally operating companies have served their organizational learning. The case companies represent metal and mining, pulp and paper machinery and pharmaceuticals industries. It can be concluded that while the e-business solutions may have been part of larger strategic development process, they were not originally designed to serve organizational learning. During the utilization phase, the learning opportunities had remained quite low or underutilized. However, all case companies had learned considerably as a by-product especially during the design and implementation phase. The study indicates that e-business solutions provide plenty of learning potential that should be taken into account in the design, implementation and utilization phases.