Garvin presents the learning process as something that should be well-thought-out and well-managed, not a random occurrence that some organizations are lucky enough to experience. His delineation of the steps for creating a learning organization is supplemented with descriptions of the conditions required for nourishing the organizational climate and the potential problems managers may encounter in attempting to make the changes he recommends.
Garvin's text is easy to read, free of jargon and technical terminology. His examples are well-written, interesting, and generously interspersed throughout the book. They come from both large organizations, such as Xerox, General Electric, and Motorola, and from smaller organizations or divisions, such as Serengeti Eyewear (a division of Corning), Harvard Business School Publishing, and L. L. Bean. By including examples of both successful and failed attempts, Garvin shows the reader how corrections can be made when an initial attempt does not work.