SUMMARY - Analytical study of processes in SME's learning with ICT

The present paper reports on the analysis of ICT-based learning processes identified in empirical studies as well as literature reviews in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in seven different European countries. The aim of the studies was to identify major processes involved in data obtained from the Leonardi da Vinci project "Learning with ICT in SME" and analyse these mainly with respect to aspects of opportunities and barriers for SMEs learning with ICT. The data have been collected by and within seven different European countries through surveys, case studies, interviews with policy makers and literature reviews.

Learning is a common concept in most people's vocabulary. But learning is also a scientific concept, dealt with by researchers from various disciplines, such as education, psychology, computer science and economics. Since learning is a central concept in our project, it is one of the endeavours of this analytical study to provide a basis for interpretation of the part of our results dealing with learning. It is important to distinguish between formal and informal learning. Formal learning refers to learning taking place within an educational institution or training context. It is planned and goal oriented. Informal learning, on the other hand, refers to the kind of learning taking place in everyday- or working life. Informal learning may occur intentionally and may be planned. It may also be organised as a form of self controlled learning or through different forms of experienced based learning. Participation in networks, coaching, consultation and mentorship are examples intentional informal learning. Although some informal learning is intentional, most of it is spontaneous and unintentional. It usually occurs as a side effect of other activities. Such unintentional learning is an aspect of most human activity and we usually don't reflect upon it. Of course, this type of implicit learning may be made conscious, by being indicated to us and reflected upon afterwards. In this analytical study the given description of formal and informal learning processes is applied to the way the SMEs in our empirical studies use ICT to support the different types of learning processes. Issues relating to the outcome of the study are, to what extent data obtained by partners reflect formal and informal learning processes.

An examination of the literature review on learning in SMEs reveals a great amount of sources on learning in organisations in general. However, very little research has actually focused on learning in smaller enterprises (Floren and Tell, 2003). Research on SMEs and learning is in an early stage of growth. Research in the area is still built on primary empirical research and there are no obvious core groups of researchers publishing in the field that are frequently cited.

To identify and analyse major processes involved in SME's learning with ICT, a semi-structured method of analysis was undertaken. It consisted of three steps: 1) Each country's interpretation of results from their own data involving processes, 2) Identification of types of processes represented in the grid with interpretations from each country, and 3) analysis of opportunities and barriers regarding types of processes identified in 2.

Due to the lack of consistency between the partners in interpreting the obtained data from case studies, conclusions are difficult to draw. The findings may, however, be seen as an indication of the predominance of informal learning processes in SMEs. The lack of formal ICT-based formal methods for learning is striking. Still, employees seem to rely on informal ICT-based channels for learning, such as e-mail and Internet search. Interpretations of survey results provide us with information indicating that ICT is not much used for learning and training in SMEs. In general, the attitudes towards a culture encouraging problem solving in the companies are moderate. In Austria, the Netherlands and Spain, these attitudes are more positive than in the other countries. SMEs in all countries show positive attitudes towards sharing information and collective problem solving within the company. Sharing information with colleagues in the same profession, but outside the own company is valued less.