Abstract
Extant organizational learning theory conceptualizes organizational learning as an internal, member-based process, sometimes supported by, yet often independent of, IT. Recently, however, several organizations have begun to involve non-members systematically in their learning by using crowdsourcing, a form of open innovation enabled by state-of-the-art IT. We examine the phenomenon of IT-enabled organizational learning with crowdsourcing in a longitudinal revelatory case study of one such organization, LEGO (2010-14). We studied the LEGO Cuusoo crowdsourcing platform’s secret test in Japan, its widely recognized global launch, and its success in generating top-selling LEGO models. Based on an analysis of how crowdsourcing contributes to the organizational learning at LEGO, we propose the “ambient organizational learning” framework. The framework accommodates both traditional, member-based organizational learning and IT-enabled, non-member-based organizational learning with crowdsourcing.
Recommended Citation
Schlagwein, Daniel and Bjorn-Andersen, Niels
(2014)
"Organizational Learning with Crowdsourcing: The Revelatory Case of LEGO,"
Journal of the Association for Information Systems, 15(11), .
DOI: 10.17705/1jais.00380
Available at:
https://aisel.aisnet.org/jais/vol15/iss11/3
DOI
10.17705/1jais.00380
When commenting on articles, please be friendly, welcoming, respectful and abide by the AIS eLibrary Discussion Thread Code of Conduct posted here.