Från dum till klok? - en studie av mellanchefers lärande

We believe in managers and we believe in learning. Not least, we believe in managerial learning. Further, the dominant conception is that managers, through reflection on experience, develop an increasingly sophisticated understanding of their work, which in turn renders increasingly skillful managerial actions. Metaphorically, this learning trajectory can be described as a journey from stupidity to wisdom. This view is to some extent questioned in this dissertation. Based on an ethnographically inspired study of middle managers and their recurrent accounts about there being no answers to many of their questions and that their learning has resulted in both a maturity and a personal sense of leadership, I argue that the process of middle managerial learning can primarily be understood in terms of a struggle around identity work. The results of this process can be understood in terms of rules of thumb, socio-political knowing and identity constructions (of the managers themselves and others). The study also questions the notion of strongly associating middle managerial learning with progressive development. Finally, the importance of thick descriptions of middle managerial learning is highlighted