A design framework for ecosystems that facilitate continuous employee skill development: A theoretical integration of interorganisational skills learning communities, modern sociotechnical systems, and network theory

In today’s dynamic business landscape, the continuous development of employee skills is an important driver for innovation and performance in the workplace. However, employee skillsets are often inadequate, posing a challenge for organisational innovativeness and performance. Although concepts and instruments at the organisational level are helpful, organisations need additional methods to facilitate continuous skill development. Interorganisational skills learning communities (ISLCs) have recently emerged in Europe to address this need, presenting a promising approach to enhance employee skill development. Nevertheless, designers and employees face significant challenges in ensuring long-term skill development through ISLCs. Treating ISLCs as dynamic interorganisational ecosystems that must adapt to changing contexts is essential, but learning community literature currently lacks specification on how adaptive and effective ISLCs can be designed. In the present paper, we present a novel and comprehensive ISLC design framework underpinned by modern-sociotechnical systems theory (MSTS), network theory, and state-of-the-art literature on skills learning communities. Accordingly, an adaptable and effective ISLC can be achieved through (1) distinction of different design levels, (2) distinction between design of a learning structure and governance structure, (3) pursuit of a specific design sequence, (4) clusters of micro learning communities (LCs), and (5) an iterative, interactive and multi-level design of feedback loops. The resulting design framework breaks new ground for interorganisational learning community theory-building and offers a novel direction for researchers, HRD practitioners and policy makers to address HRD problems in today’s changing business environment. More research should be conducted on the validation of this conceptual design framework.