This paper intends to show the theoretical links that justify why it is important to study, from an Economics point of view, the phenomenon of organizational learning - which is traditionally studied in Business Management. The first step shows the characteristics of Knowledge-Based Economies and their needs regarding organizational learning and the development of competencies. The second step criticizes the neoclassical assumptions about organizations and stresses the importance of the notion of strategy. The third step discusses the origins of the concept of competencies, in the Resource-Based View of the Firm, and its influence on organizational competencies and strategy. The fourth step points out the concepts of the field of organizational learning. Finally, the paper shows the links between organizational life and the economic approach, mainly as they relate the concepts of knowledge, organizational learning and economic development.
organizational learning; knowledge-based economy, organizational competencies
