Knowledge seeking practices of healthcare leaders in a learning organization

This qualitative action research discovers the knowledge seeking practices of four healthcare leaders in a learning organization. Leaders were interviewed individually using questions created through a review of Knowledge Management, Leadership and Learning Organization literature. Findings were that these leaders engaged in effective knowledge seeking practices, key knowledge individuals were their most important knowledge resource, and peers and executive leaders had most of the knowledge these leaders needed. Leaders' knowledge seeking practices focused on relationships, communication, and inquiry and dialogue. Coaching and mentoring were identified as opportunities, and a lack of time creates challenges to knowledge seeking. Most important, there was a gap between leaders' current knowledge seeking practices and learning organization oriented knowledge seeking practices. Recommendations related to addressing this gap included continuing to support competency based performance management systems, and increasing learning organization and experiential oriented learning opportunities for leaders, including self-management, and meeting-leadership learning opportunities.