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Methodology to manage intra-organisational knowledge sharing


Type

Thesis

Change log

Authors

Yeung, Kwok-Tung Christopher 

Description

In the 1990s, the level of research into knowledge management increased greatly. Nowadays, knowledge is widely regarded as the key competitive resource, more significant even than traditional factors of production such as land, labour and capital. Hitherto there have been four main thrusts to knowledge research: (1) theoretical research: emphasising the epistemology of knowledge, (2) measurement-oriented research: measuring the stock of intellectual assets, (3) technology-oriented research: employing information management systems to increase the efficiency of knowledge workers, and ( 4) organisational research: investigating such knowledge processes in terms of organisational learning and knowledge flow. Organisational knowledge research centres on the investigation of two key problems: how knowledge is created and how knowledge is shared. This research focuses on knowledge sharing and specifically on identifying the most effective means for intraorganisational knowledge sharing. A management framework and methodology have been developed and embodied as tools for enabling companies to effectively leverage their critical knowledge resources across multiple organisational units with the aim of enhancing and sustaining their competitive advantage in the marketplace. This research is motivated by: (1) the fact that hitherto there has been no theoretically sound managerial frame ork that integrates the diverse and yet inter-related theories of knowledge, and more importantly, (2) the need for a practical conceptual tool to help practitioners put their knowledge-sharing strategies into operation in order to realise the benefits of managing knowledge. The novelties of this research are twofold. Firstly, a new holistic management framework- the Knowledge Sharing Management Framework (KSMF)- has been developed to integrate theories of organisational learning and cognition, communication and media selection, culture and motivation, organisational structure, information management and knowledge networks. This new holistic framework establishes knowledge-based competitive advantage as the conceptual foundation for justifying the value of a knowledge sharing initiative. It consists of a five-stage process model (adoption, adaptation, absorption, integration and dissemination) and four generic knowledge-sharing strategies (concentrating on sharing channels, organisational infrastructure, human factors and technology provision). Secondly, knowledge research has, on the whole, moved from investigating 'what' knowledge is to investigating 'why' and 'how' it should be shared. This work contributes to the next phase of knowledge management development by designing a new methodology _the Knowledge Sharing Management Methodology (KSMM)- as a practical 'howto' guide for practitioners. This novel methodology establishes the crucial link between strategic and operational level decision-making by examining an organisation's current knowledge sharing practice from a business process perspective. The KSMM provides a structured method of identifying areas of an organisation's knowledge sharing practice for improvement so that managers can have a tool for guiding them when putting knowledge strategies into practice. The application of the KSMM is demonstrated by means of two case studies. These take the form of collaborations with industrial partners in the manufacturing engineering sector. In these, the firms' current organisational knowledge sharing practices were systematically examined in order to investigate the enablers and blockers influencing knowledge sharing between organisational units, and t~ identify areas for improvement. These two case studies provided empirical evidence for researching the multi-faceted and 'sticky' nature of organisational knowledge sharing and for identifying the key factors for success in its management. Key words: Knowledge management, knowledge sharing, knowledge process, organisational learning, intellectual assets, methodology

Date

Advisors

Keywords

Qualification

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Awarding Institution

University of Cambridge