Handbook of Organizational Learning and Knowledge Management, Second Edition

Introduction

The imposing architecture of the Hotel Lutetia dominates the corner of Rue de Sevres and Rue de Babylone in Paris. The hotel has been renowned for more than a century for its beautifully decorated rooms, its impeccable service, and, not all that surprisingly for a Parisian luxury hotel, its gourmet restaurant. But this fine hotel has not always been simply a hotel. When the German Army entered the city during WWII, its commanders requisitioned the hotel to act as the Headquarters of the Abwehr Leitstelle, the French branch of the German Army’s secret service.a And, in order to keep the hotel operating, the German army kept a significant part of the hotel staff on in their usual jobs.

This created a number of conflicts of interest for the retained staff. One of the most critical problems centered on the restaurant’s impressive wine cellar that included some of the most prestigious and expensive French wines to be found in the city. The hotel staff took pride in the quality and variety of the cellar. So much pride, in fact, that when it became clear that the German Army would requisition the Lutetia, they decided they had to do something to protect the cellar. The decision was quickly made to eradicate all traces of the cellar, believing that if it were ‘forgotten’ it would survive the war. The staff proceeded to wall up the door that led to it and to hide or destroy all copies of the wine list. From an organizational point of view, the cellar was ‘forgotten’ by the ...