Organisational Learning and Knowledge Management as HR Strategies in the Nigerian Telecommunications Sector

This study examines the application of organisational learning and knowledge management as human resource strategies in the Nigerian telecommunications sector, focusing on companies operating under the Nigerian Communications Commission's licensing framework. The telecom sector, characterised by rapid technological evolution and intense competitive pressure, depends on institutional knowledge accumulation and continuous learning to maintain operational excellence and innovation capacity. The study adopts a mixed-methods research design, combining survey data from 145 HR and knowledge management practitioners in four major telecoms with qualitative case data from two selected firms. The Nonaka and Takeuchi Knowledge Creation Model and Senge's Learning Organisation Framework jointly provide the theoretical foundation. Findings reveal that explicit knowledge management systems, including technical documentation platforms and internal wikis, are fairly well developed in the sector. However, tacit knowledge capture and transfer mechanisms, particularly those enabling experienced engineers to transfer specialised competencies to juniors, remain significantly underdeveloped. The study also documents a strong association between learning culture and employee innovation behaviour, with learning-oriented telecoms generating more new product and process innovations per employee annually. Recommendations include the formalisation of knowledge transfer as an HR responsibility within technical roles, the development of internal communities of practice, and the integration of learning metrics into HR scorecards. This research contributes HRM knowledge management evidence from Nigeria's high-technology sector. Keywords: Organisational Learning, Knowledge Management, Telecommunications, HR Strategy, Innovation.