I think it very much depends on the company and culture. I always had jobs where learning and self improvement was encouraged and expected (also in Germany). With a budget for conferences and books and a fixed time frame (~20%) for that. These were all companies that primarily did software development -- either direct product development or project work for customers. On the other hand you have firms where software treated as an appendage. They might have other great products but an entirely different managerial background. A mindset like: "We need a software department, everyone else has one too" can easily lead to mismanagement -- and I think a lack of time and budget for self improvement is an aspect of mismanagement in the business of creating software.