Abstract

Purpose: The study aims to determine how the acceptance of mistakes is related to adaptability to change in a broad organizational context. Therefore it explores how knowledge, collaboration, and learning culture (including “acceptance of mistakes”) might help organizations overcome their resistance to change. Methodology: The study uses two sample groups: students aged 18–24 (330 cases) and employees aged >24 (326 cases) who work in knowledge-driven organizations. Structural equation models were developed, assessed, and compared. Findings: The effect of the “learning climate” on “adaptability to change” mediated by “acceptance of mistakes” has been detected for young students aged 18-24; however this relationship is not significant for business employees aged >24. This result suggests that organizations, unlike universities, do not use mistakes as a tool to support learning that is to lead to change. Limitations: Both samples used in the study come from Poland. The business sample is in the majority represented by small and medium-sized enterprises. Therefore the presented findings may only apply to Poland. Practical implications: Acceptance of mistakes is vital for developing a learning culture. Mistakes help employees adapt to change. Hence, a learning culture that excludes the acceptance of mistakes is somehow artificial and may be unproductive. Paradoxically, the findings reveal that the fact that employee intelligence (adaptability to change) improves via mistakes does not mean that organizational intelligence will also increase. Thus, organizations that do not develop mechanisms of learning from mistakes lose the learning potential of their employees. Scientific implications: The study presents mistakes as a valuable resource that enables the adaptation and development of intelligence. Hence, this study brings to attention a promising research area of “learning from organizational mistakes” in the context of adaptability to change. The study should be replicated for large Polish companies, international companies, and other countries to get a total picture of this phenomenon. Moreover, the acceptance of mistakes would be a significant step to advance learning technologies. Novelty: This study proposes a constant learning culture scale that includes the “acceptance of mistakes” and “learning climate” dimensions. Further, it empirically proves the value of mistakes for adaptability to change.

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