Purpose: This paper aims to illustrate the need for context-adapted models of military learning organizations (LOs), identify challenges to building LOs in the military and discuss how maturing as an LO provides military organizations a competitive advantage. Design/methodology/approach: This paper highlights the primarily industrial focus of existing literature, discusses a sample of nuanced challenges to building military LOs and posits potential benefits of military LOs future operational environment. Findings: Building military LOs is an area of research that remains underdeveloped. Advancing LO theory requires researchers to consider context and the challenges organizations may encounter during efforts to build LOs. Originality/value: This paper highlights gaps and alignment in LO theory to advance the argument that context-adapted approaches to building military LOs are needed.