Ecosystem Learning: An Integrated Learning Theory?

Market-relevant competence development and professional certifications are crucial for not only the Danish insurance sector but also for Danish insurance and pension customers. The Danish insurance sector consists of approximately 140 insurance companies and pension funds employing a total of 17500 employees. For all parties involved, competence development and certifications has been a major priority for the past 70 years.

For decades the Danish Insurance Academy (FOAK 2023) has developed and offered professional insurance educations and certifications to the entire Danish insurance sector, and each year FOAK welcomes 3800 students at the physical campus of the Insurance Academy.

However, over the past five years FOAK has increasingly invested in modern digital learning technology and has now implemented an ambitious and overarching new learning philosophy based on ecosystem learning (Simonsen 2019), ecosystem exchange systems (Adner 2012), digital ecosystem business models (Weill & Woerner 2018) and hybrid and scalable learning models (Simonsen & Walther 2021).

The research objective of this article is to discuss the concept of ecosystem learning (Simonsen 2019) and present an over-arching ecosystem learning model based on an industry focus combining and serving the needs of all ecosystem partners for the benefit of the entire insurance and pension fund industry.

The paper is based on an overall interpretivist research philosophy (Saunders et al. 2019) as the objective of the study being carried out is to create new insights and in-depth understandings of ecosystem learning implemented in a sector with 17500 employees. The study focusses on the pedagogical approach needed in an over-arching ecosystem learning model offering integrated learning experiences to students in all three learning spaces, i.e. the physical FOAK Campus, the digital campus FOAKlearn and the physical and digital learning spaces in the 139 associated tenant companies.

The preliminary data seem to show that the ecosystem learning philosophy is a rather successful approach. IT developers, educational experts, teachers, students and companies all seem to be quite satisfied with the learning philosophy and the way the ecosystem is being implemented in practice with Moodle Workplace.