There are various ways to conceptualize the relationship between knowledge management and organizational learning.
Easterby-Smith and Lyles ( 2003) consider OL to focus on the process, and KM to focus on the content, of the knowledge that an organization acquires, creates, processes and eventually uses.
Another way to conceptualize the relationship between the two areas is to view OL as the goal of KM. By motivating the creation, dissemination and application of knowledge, KM initia- tives pay off by helping the organization embed knowledge into organizational processes so that it can continuously improve its practices and behaviors and pursue the achievement of its goals. From this perspective, organizational learning is one of the important ways in which the organi- zation can sustainably improve its utilization of knowledge.
Indeed, Dixon (1994) , in describing an “organizational learning cycle,” suggested that “accumulated knowledge… is of less significance than the processes needed to continuously revise or create knowledge” (p. 6). These processes are closely related to the notion of “continu- ous improvement” through which an organization continuously identifies, implements and insti- tutionalizes improvements. The improvements are embedded in the organization through routines that may be written policies, prescribed machine settings, quality control limits or “best prac- tices” for dealing with frequently occurring circumstances.