From error to inclusion : the transformative potential of mistakes in organisations

In a context where the inclusion of young people distanced from employment represents a major societal and organisational challenge (recruitment difficulties, retention issues, retirements), this research explores the tensions at play within experimental schemes aimed at fostering their professional and organisational inclusion. It examines error as a potential lever for learning and organisational transformation. This study is grounded in a cross-disciplinary literature that combines perspectives on inclusive organisations (Shore et al., 2011, 2018; Randel, 2025), the paradoxical tensions inherent to inclusion (Ferdman, 2017), learning organisations (Argyris & Schön, 1978, 1986), and communities of practice (Pesqueux, 2022). Error is approached as both an indicator of structural tensions and a catalyst for invisible learning, paving the way for deep organisational learning. The central research question is: how can the mistakes of newcomers and organisational actors be mobilised as learning resources to support the inclusive transformation of organisations? Conducted as an action-research study within the "100% Inclusion" programme of the Compagnons du Devoir, the methodology combines 150 hours of observation and 161 semi- structured interviews, analysed through thematic coding. The findings identify five types of errors (orientation, learning, sanctioned, opportunity-driven, dysfunction-indicating) and five transformative practices (self-evaluation, delayed analysis, trial and error, formative feedback, resilience). This study advocates for a reappraisal of error as a tool for inclusive governance, proposing an innovative articulation between organisational learning and inclusive organisation.