Knowledge sharing

Knowledge sharing is an activity through which knowledge (namely, information, skills, or expertise) is exchanged among people, friends, families, communities (for example, Wikipedia), or organizations.[1][2]

Organizations have recognized that knowledge constitutes a valuable intangible asset for creating and sustaining competitive advantages.[3] Knowledge sharing activities are generally supported by knowledge management systems.[4] However, technology constitutes only one of the many factors that affect the sharing of knowledge in organizations, such as organizational culture, trust, and incentives.[5] The sharing of knowledge constitutes a major challenge in the field of knowledge management because some employees tend to resist sharing their knowledge with the rest of the organization.[6][7]

Flow or transfer

Although knowledge is commonly treated as an object, Snowden has argued it is more appropriate to teach it as both a flow and a thing.[8] Knowledge as a flow can be related to the concept of tacit knowledge, discovered by Polanyi[9] which was later further explicated by Nonaka.[10][11] While the difficulty of sharing knowledge is in transferring knowledge from one entity to another,[12][13] it may prove profitable for organizations to acknowledge the difficulties of knowledge transfer and its paradoxicality, adopting new knowledge management strategies accordingly.[8]

Explicit knowledge

Explicit knowledge sharing occurs when explicit knowledge is made available to be shared between entities.[14] Explicit knowledge sharing can happen successfully when the following criteria are met:

Tacit knowledge

Tacit knowledge sharing occurs through different types of socialization.[14] Although tacit knowledge is difficult to identify and codify, relevant factors that influence tacit knowledge sharing include:

Embedded knowledge

Embedded knowledge sharing occurs when knowledge is shared through clearly delineated products, processes, routines, etc.[14] This knowledge can be shared in different ways, such as:

Importance to organizations

Knowledge constitutes a valuable, intangible asset for creating and sustaining competitive advantages within organizations.[3] Several factors affect knowledge sharing in organizations, such as organizational culture, trust, incentives, and technology.[17] Knowledge sharing activities are commonly supported by knowledge management systems, a form of information technology (IT) that facilitates and organizes information within a company or organization.[18]

Challenges

Knowledge sharing can sometimes constitute a major challenge in the field of knowledge management.[10][19] The difficulty of knowledge sharing resides in the transference of knowledge from one entity to another.[13][20] Some employees tend to resist sharing their knowledge[10][19] because of the notion that knowledge is property; ownership, therefore, becomes very important.[21] In order to counteract this, individuals must be reassured that they will receive some type of incentive for what they create.[21] However, Dalkir (2005) demonstrated that individuals are most commonly rewarded for what they know, not what they share.[21] Negative consequences, such as isolation and resistance to ideas, occur when knowledge sharing is impeded.[18] To promote knowledge sharing and remove knowledge sharing obstacles, the organizational culture of an entity should encourage discovery and innovation.[21]

Connection to information technology systems

Information technology (IT) systems are common tools that help facilitate knowledge sharing and knowledge management.[14][18] The main role of IT systems is to help people share knowledge through common platforms and electronic storage to help make access simpler, encouraging economic reuse of knowledge. IT systems can provide codification, personalization, electronic repositories for information and can help people locate each other to communicate directly. With appropriate training and education, IT systems can make it easier for organizations to acquire, store or disseminate knowledge.[18]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Bukowitz, Wendi R.; Williams, Ruth L. (1999). The Knowledge Management Fieldbook. FT Press. ISBN 978-0273638827.
  2. ↑ Serban, Andreea M.; Luan, Jing (2002). "An Overview of Knowledge Management" (PDF). University of Kentucky. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
  3. 1 2 Miller, D.; Shamsie, J. (1996). "The resource-based view of the firm in two environments: The Hollywood film studios from 1936 to 1965". Academy of Management Journal 39 (5): 519–543. doi:10.2307/256654. JSTOR 256654.
  4. ↑ "Bloomfire". CrunchBase. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
  5. ↑ Cabrera, A.; Cabrera, E. F. (2002). "Knowledge-sharing Dilemmas". Organization Studies 23 (5): 687–710. doi:10.1177/0170840602235001.
  6. ↑ Ciborra, C.U.; Patriota, G. (1998). "Groupware and teamwork in R&D: limits to learning and innovation". R&D Management 28 (1): 1–10.
  7. ↑ Bock, G. W.; Kim, Y. G. (2002). "Breaking the myths of rewards". Information Resources Management Journal 15 (2): 14–21. doi:10.4018/irmj.2002040102.
  8. 1 2 Snowden, D. (2002). "Complex acts of knowing: paradox and descriptive self-awareness". Journal of Knowledge Management 6 (2): 100–111. doi:10.1108/13673270210424639.
  9. ↑ Polanyi, M. (2003) [1958]. Personal Knowledge: Towards a Post-Critical Philosophy. CRC Press. p. 428. ISBN 0-203-44215-6.
  10. 1 2 3 Nonaka, I. (1994). "A dynamic theory of organizational knowledge creation". Organization Science 5 (1): 14–37. doi:10.1287/orsc.5.1.14. JSTOR 2635068.
  11. ↑ Nonaka, I. (2009). "Tacit Knowledge and Knowledge Conversion: Controversy and Advancement in Organizational Knowledge Creation Theory" (PDF). Organization Science 20 (3): 635–652. doi:10.1287/orsc.1080.0412.
  12. ↑ Argote, L.; Ingram, P. (2000). "Knowledge Transfer: A Basis for Competitive Advantage in Firms". Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes 82 (1): 150–169. doi:10.1006/obhd.2000.2893.
  13. 1 2 Fan, Y. (1998). "The Transfer of Western Management to China: Context, Content and Constraints". Management Learning 29 (2): 201–221. doi:10.1177/1350507698292005.
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Frost, Alan. "Knowledge Sharing". KMT. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
  15. 1 2 3 4 Prusak, Lawrence; Davenport, Thomas H. (2000). Working Knowledge: How Organizations Manage What They Know, 2nd Edition. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Business School Press. ISBN 1-57851-301-4.
  16. ↑ Serban, Andreea M.; Luan, Jing (2002). "Corporate Strategy Model: Scenario Planning" (PDF). University of Kentucky. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
  17. ↑ Cabrera, A.; Cabrera, C. (2002). "Knowledge-sharing Dilemmas". Organization Studies 23 (5): 687–710. doi:10.1177/0170840602235001.
  18. 1 2 3 4 Gurteen, David (February 1999). "Creating a knowledge sharing culture". Knowledge Management Magazine 2 (5).
  19. 1 2 Bock, G.; Kim, Y.G. (2002). "Breaking the myths of rewards". Information Resources Management Journal 15 (2): 14–21. doi:10.4018/irmj.2002040102.
  20. ↑ Argote, L.; Ingram, P. (2000). "Knowledge Transfer: A Basis for Competitive Advantage in Firms". Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes 82 (1): 150–169. doi:10.1006/obhd.2000.2893.
  21. 1 2 3 4 Dalkir, K. (2005). Knowledge Management In Theory And Practice. Oxford: Elsevier Inc: Jordan Hill. pp. 132–133.

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