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Training transfers knowledge to individuals. Learning architecture embeds capability in structures. When individuals leave, training leaves with them.
Develop individual capability. Knowledge lives in trained people. When they leave, capability leaves too.
Average employee tenure: 4 years. Continuous retraining required.
Embed capability in structures. Knowledge lives in processes. Persists through personnel changes.
Institutional capability compounds over time.
| Dimension | Training | Structural Learning |
|---|---|---|
| Knowledge location | In individuals who received training | In institutional structures and processes |
| Persistence | Leaves when trained individuals leave | Persists through personnel changes |
| Scale | Limited by training capacity | Scales with institutional reach |
| Maintenance | Requires continuous retraining | Self-reinforcing through structure |
| Measurement | Training hours, completion rates | Institutional capability outcomes |
Training programs fail because they transfer knowledge to individuals, not institutions. When trained employees leave, their knowledge leaves with them. The organization must continuously retrain, never building cumulative capability.
Structural learning embeds capability into institutional architecture rather than individual heads. Decision processes, governance structures, and operational systems carry learning forward regardless of who operates them.
No—training develops individual capability, which matters. But training alone can't build institutional capability. The goal is structural learning that persists, supplemented by training that develops individuals to operate within those structures.