Knowledge sharing

Sharing expertise: Easier said than done

by Peter Thor

Holmqvist, J., Wenngren, J., Ericson, Å., Johansson C., Thor P., (2011)

Functional thinking for value creation : Proceedings of the 3rd CIRP International Conference on Industrial Product Service Systems, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Germany, May 5th - 6th, 2011

An extension towards service provision takes place in manufacturing industry. Inclusion of softer service aspects... more An extension towards service provision takes place in manufacturing industry. Inclusion of softer service aspects indicates that the common view on knowledge management to control and monitor a technical process have limitations. Sharing expertise is an additional way of managing knowledge particularly with the intentions to make experience based knowledge organizational available. By studying product developers’ daily work, especially how they perceive that they apply and share knowledge, we problematize knowledge activities in product-service development to discuss the established knowledge management activities. The paper suggests some considerations to support the development of a knowledge base for product-service design.

Knowledge sharing approaches in method development

by Peter Thor

Thor, P., Wenngren, J., Ericson, Å. (2011)

Proceedings of the 18th International Conference on Engineering Design (ICED11) : Vol. 6: Design Information and Knowledge

Product-Service Systems (PSS) or, life-cycle offerings, is a challenge for knowledge sharing within manufacturing... more Product-Service Systems (PSS) or, life-cycle offerings, is a challenge for knowledge sharing within manufacturing industry due to an integration of intangible (tacit) and tangible (explicit) domains. One consequence is that the engineers’ have to make sense of abstract customer information in early development. For this, they need computer support. Method developers are employees that are responsible for in-house development of such support. There are similarities in their contemporary work practices and some aspects of the development of life-cycle offerings. The intent in this paper is to draw from the method developers’ experiences in managing acquisition of user information for the purpose to contribute to knowledge sharing in early development. We have found that the problem-setting approach applied by the method developers could help the identification, analysis and application of user needs, thus also could be applied to identify metrics/characteristics for intangibles.

Venting, joining and educating: Motivations for knowledge sharing in the UK police blogosphere

by Simon Burnett

Published in Business Information Review 2012 29: 57

This article examines motivations for knowledge sharing in blogs written by police officers. It draws on the findings... more This article examines motivations for knowledge sharing in blogs written by police officers. It draws on the findings of a
research project completed in 2011 based on content analysis of 63 blogs.

Does knowledge sharing and withholding of information in organizational committees affect quality of group decision-making?

by Caroline Kamau

Kamau, C. & Harorimana, D. (2008)

In today’s knowledge economy, there is an emphasis on group performance, such as in organizations’ committees, yet... more In today’s knowledge economy, there is an emphasis on group performance, such as in organizations’ committees, yet this performance is prone to productivity deficits. Like many other groups, organizational committees are prone to irrational decision-making in the form of groupthink and group polarization. We review evidence that groupthink involves avoidance of contradictory information, biased information sharing, self-censorship, reducing information on the outgroup and poor information pooling. For example, committee members’ conformity to the standards and expectations of an organization can lead them to withhold information that contradicts the organization’s “traditional” viewpoint. In other instances of groupthink, committee members may withhold information from their seniors in order to shield them from opposing views. Committee members undergoing groupthink may also display bias in their information search, such that they seek only that information which supports the committee’s prevailing opinion. We also review evidence showing that highly cohesive groups, those isolated from outside influence, and those with forthright leadership, are most at risk of groupthink. Improving the structure of a committee and having a leadership style that is process-directive, rather than outcome-directive, can reduce groupthink. We also review evidence on group polarization, which involves a shift by a group to an extremely risky or an extremely conservative viewpoint as a result of members influencing each other. We also discuss the impact of novel information on group polarization. We provide an analysis of the impact of faulty decision-making on the downfall of the bank Northern Rock. We consider the possible lack of objectivity in elements of the bank’s decision-making. The fact that Northern Rock did not receive a sufficient amount of outside regulation may have exacerbated groupthink. We discuss the likely role of risky shift in the bank’s attitude to risk and also consider the possible impact of forthright leadership on groupthink within Northern Rock. Groupthink and group polarization pose a danger to organizations that are required to continuously create, update and utilise knowledge in their decision-making, and to implement change in order to compete in shifting markets.

Faculty Research Portal for Knowledge Sharing among Faculty Members

by Shahrinaz Ismail

In Proceedings of the FMIT Symposium on Business Management and Information Technology, Kuala Lumpur, 2 November 2011

A Faculty Research Portal is an alternative support system designed and developed for knowledge sharing among lectures... more A Faculty Research Portal is an alternative support system designed and developed for knowledge sharing among lectures and students. The purpose of this study is to propose a prototype of research portal for a faculty in an institute of higher learning to enable knowledge sharing among faculty members in terms of research interests and projects. All the problems solved towards the objectives and a series of web site development processes was followed. In addition, a questionnaire survey was conducted to understand the faculty member’s knowledge sharing attitudes and requirements towards the research portal. The findings showed that the proposed system is indeed a suitable medium for students to interact and retrieve information from their lecturers according to their research areas. Moreover, online communication and management of research information are factors that should be taken into consideration when developing a research portal.

Social Constraints, Agency, Inter-organizational Tie Formation and Knowledge Diffusion

by Maria Christina Binz-Scharf

Co-authored with Jason Greenberg, David Lazer, and Ines Mergel

Social capital is currently one of social structure‘s most prominent and debated manifestations. However, we have a... more Social capital is currently one of social structure‘s most prominent and debated manifestations. However, we have a limited understanding of how social ties as the basis of social capital form in the first place. From one perspective social capital is viewed as: "investment in social relations with expected returns in the marketplace" (Lin 2001, p. 19). A second perspective on social capital formation stresses contextual and environmental features beyond the control of individuals that may yield benefits. Both perspectives are based on premises implicating various motives and structural constraints pertaining to relationship formation including: exchange, power, and dependency; legitimacy seeking or preferential attachment based on status or prestige; homogeneity or homophily and related selection processes; propinquity; or cultural or institutional forces. These categories of mechanisms do not, however, specify a model of how social relationships as social capital are formed in the first place.

If social capital results from "investment strategies," it is important to determine what these strategies are. If social capital originates from structural factors beyond individual control it is important to clarify what mechanisms lead to tie formation within social structures.

The objective of this research is to specify mechanisms of social tie formation and reinforcement by peering inside the black-box of foci (Feld 1981) in which social ties are formed. We do so by focusing on the structural contexts within which individual (micro-level) corporate actors form social relationships for knowledge acquisition that results in macro-level knowledge sharing. A mixed-method analytical approach is employed to this end. Findings illustrate how the subtleties of social structure define the parameters within which social relationships are (strategically) formed.

Searching for Answers: Networks of Practice Among Public Administrators

by Maria Christina Binz-Scharf

Co-authored with David Lazer and Ines Mergel, published in The American Review of Public Administration 2012 (42)202, pp.202-225

How do public administrators find information about the problems they confront at work? In particular, how and when do... more How do public administrators find information about the problems they confront at work? In particular, how and when do they reach across organizational boundaries to find answers? There are substantial potential obstacles to such searches for answers, especially in a system of decentralized governance such as the U.S. government. In this article, we examine the alternative mechanisms within the public sector that compensate for this dispersion of expertise, focusing on knowledge sharing across public DNA forensics laboratories. In particular, we propose that the emergence of informal interpersonal networks plays an important role in providing access to necessary expertise within a highly decentralized system. Our findings point both to the need for further research on knowledge sharing networks within the public sector as well as practical implications around the value of investments into facilitating the creation and maintenance of networks of practice.

Lending a Helping Hand: Voluntary Engagement In Knowledge Sharing

by Maria Christina Binz-Scharf

Co-authored with Ines Mergel and David Lazer, published 2008 in International Journal of Learning and Change 3(1), pp. 5-22

Knowledge is essential for the functioning of every social system, especially for professionals in knowledge-intensive... more Knowledge is essential for the functioning of every social system, especially for professionals in knowledge-intensive organisations. Since individuals do not possess all the work-related knowledge that they require, they turn to others in search for that knowledge. While prior research has mainly focused on antecedents and consequences of knowledge sharing and understanding why people do not share knowledge, less is known why people provide knowledge, and what conditions trigger voluntary engagement in knowledge sharing. Our article addresses this gap by proposing a multi-level framework for voluntary engagement in knowledge sharing: individual, relational, group, and informational. We provide illustrations from a particular knowledge-intensive community, DNA forensic scientists who work at public laboratories.

Qualities of Sharing and their Transformations in the Digital Age

by Andreas Wittel

special issue on sharing, published Sept 2011 in IRIE (International Journal of Information Ethics), eds by Felx Stalder and Wolfgang Suetzl

This article examines the social side of sharing. It is an attempt to work towards a sociological concept of sharing... more This article examines the social side of sharing. It is an attempt to work towards a sociological concept of sharing in the digital age. This is the hypothesis: different forms of sharing have different qualities with respect to the social. Digital technologies bring about new forms of sharing. In order to support this claim I will analyse the social qualities of sharing by focusing on the object, on what is being shared. Using an object-centred analysis it will be argued that digital forms of sharing introduce a new function of sharing. Whereas pre-digital sharing was about exchange, sharing with digital technologies is about exchange and about distribution.

Do Rumours Contribute To Knowledge Management – And Will We Ever Know?

by Martyn Brown

Organisational rumour mongering and informal knowledge transfer share common characteristics. They
both rely on... more Organisational rumour mongering and informal knowledge transfer share common characteristics. They
both rely on informal social groups for communication. Uncertainty caused from changing environments
leads to increased activity in both. The process of rumour mongering involves discussing content.
Implicit in the informal knowledge transfer process is the same. Although they share characteristics,
rumour and informal knowledge transfer are treated differently. The former is seen as negative and
destructive while the latter is a positive influence. This paper reports on an empirical pilot study carried
out at a university to see if organisational rumour contributes toward informal knowledge transfer. The
discussion focuses on the challenges encountered and limitations of researching a sensitive area such as
rumour.

KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER AND RUMOUR – HAVE WE MISSED SOMETHING?

by Martyn Brown

Knowledge Management places informal social networks in a positive light.
Established ties between people enable... more Knowledge Management places informal social networks in a positive light.
Established ties between people enable communication and knowledge transfer
to take place. Key Knowledge Management concepts such as Communities of
Practice and Social Network Analysis reinforce further the value placed in the
social networks. Yet disciplines such as psychology and sociology have been
examining rumour and gossip within the ‘grapevine’ since World War Two. This
work has often stressed the negative consequences of rumour and gossip.
Contrasting knowledge transfer and rumour provides the basis for a healthy
dialogue between the two areas of study.

ICT Enabled Knowledge Sharing in NorthSouth Partnerships: Lessons from the AfricaAdapt Network

by Blane Harvey

Efficacy and Adoption of Central Web 2.0 and Social Software Tools in the U.S. Intelligence Community

by Dave Schroeder

Over nearly the past decade, the United States Intelligence Community has struggled with how to effectively share... more Over nearly the past decade, the United States Intelligence Community has struggled with how to effectively share information and transform the intelligence production process to leverage the explosion of social software tools. Post–9/11 reports, recommendations, directives, and legislation uniformly point to the need for the IC to move from the existing “need to know” mode to one of “need to share” and “responsibility to provide.” Initiatives like Intellipedia and A-Space have been held out as successes, but they have not fundamentally changed the “finished report” model of intelligence production. Grassroots adoption of new tools by eager young analysts has only gone so far, and the IC is in danger of not achieving the agility it needs to respond to today’s threats. Perils like Wikileaks threaten to undo the progress that has been made. What can be done to transform intelligence into a “living” product?

Understanding knowledge sharing in organizations: Further questions of research through a social cognitive perspective

by Oscar Llopis Córcoles

A Passion for Giving, a Passion for Sharing. Understanding Knowledge Sharing as Gift Exchange in Academia

by Ariane Berthoin Antal

co-authored with Nathalie Richebé, published in Journal of Management Inquiry, Vol. 18, No. 1, 2009:78-95

This contribution explores knowledge-based interactions among academics through the lens of gift exchange theory.... more This contribution explores knowledge-based interactions among academics through the lens of gift exchange theory. Drawing from interviews conducted in France and Germany, it first reviews the diversity of contexts and reasons for knowledge sharing, then analyzes the processes and the implicit rules that govern them. The use of gift exchange theory brings to light several paradoxes inherent in interactions among members of the academic community, and it offers a fresh way of looking at power, status, and emotions in exchange processes.

BIONETS Economics and Business Simulation: An Alternative Approach to Quantifying the Added Value for Distributed Mobile Communications and Exchanges

by Silvia Elaluf-Calderwood

2010 Elaluf-Calderwood, S. and P. Dini. BIONETS Economics and Business Simulation: An Alternative Approach to Quantifying the Added Value for Distributed Mobile Communications and Exchanges. Bioinspired Models of Network, Information, and Computing Systems. Y. Hayel, E. Hart, R. El-Azouzi, I. Carrera and E. Altman. Berlin, Springer: 203.

Intellectual capital and knowledge sharing: the mediating role of organisational knowledge-sharing climate

by Matteo Mura

This paper has been published on Knowledge Management Research & Practice

Anonymous Knowledge Sharing In a Virtual Environment: a Preliminary Investigation

by Simon Burnett

Knowledge and Process Management Volume 15 Number 1 pp 1–11 (2008)

Wissen in der Wolke - Wissen gemeinsam in einer Cloud-Umgebung nutzen

by Dirk Langenberg

Langenberg, D.; Kind, C.: Wissen in der Wolke - Wissen gemeinsam in einer Cloud-Umgebung nutzen. In: 13. Kongress zum Wissensmanagement in Unternehmen und Organisationen (KnowTech 2011). Bad Homburg, 28.-29. September 2011, S. 281–290.

Eine gemeinsame Wissensbasis ist ein wichtiger Faktor für
den wirtschaftlichen Erfolg von... more Eine gemeinsame Wissensbasis ist ein wichtiger Faktor für
den wirtschaftlichen Erfolg von Unternehmenskooperationen. Jedoch steht bei einer projektorientierten Arbeitsweise oft keine Zeit zur Verfügung, hierfür geeignete Infrastrukturen aufzubauen. Vielmehr sind zunehmend sofort einsatzfähige Lösungen gefragt. Um dieser Herausforderung zu begegnen, entwickelt Pumacy Technologies im Projekt KnowledgeCloud einen Wissensmanagementdienst auf Basis des Cloud Computing.

Exploration of Knowledge Sharing Challenges In Value Networks: A Case Study In Finnish Grocery Industry

by Hanna Timonen

Co-authored with Jari Ylitalo. Published in Electronic Journal of Knowledge Management 5(4), 2007.