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Article
Publication date: 5 March 2018

Inaam Altayeb Idrees, Ana Cristina Vasconcelos and David Ellis

The purpose of this study is to offer a theoretical and practical explanation for the nature and reasons for inter-organizational knowledge sharing across an informal clique of…

1040

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to offer a theoretical and practical explanation for the nature and reasons for inter-organizational knowledge sharing across an informal clique of competing five-star hotels in the Saudi Arabian religious tourism and hospitality industry.

Design/methodology/approach

The methodology is an adapted form of the grounded theory approach deploying a four-stage research design using qualitative interviews with key players in the industry to inform the analysis of the knowledge sharing approaches.

Findings

The findings illustrate the features of the knowledge sharing approaches across the five-star hotels studied. In particular, the findings highlight the existence of a cooperative-competitive tension in the relationships and knowledge sharing between the hotels. This illustrates the existence of a tacit strategy that cooperation can lead to long-term benefits for the competitor hotels.

Originality/value

The study is unique in its focus on the cooperative-competitive tension of five-star hotels in the Saudi Arabian religious tourism and hospitality industry and on this influence on the inter-organizational knowledge sharing across hotels within an oligopolistic market structure. The study also has value in using elements of oligopoly theory and of game theory, particularly, the prisoner’s dilemma, in explaining how inter-organizational knowledge sharing occurs within this market context.

Details

Journal of Knowledge Management, vol. 22 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1367-3270

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 March 2022

Shuyang Li, Jorge Tiago Martins, Ana Cristina Vasconcelos and Guochao Peng

This study aims to illuminate the currently poorly understood inflow of knowledge originating from project managers across the value chain of construction projects. The primary…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to illuminate the currently poorly understood inflow of knowledge originating from project managers across the value chain of construction projects. The primary purpose is to identify the domains of knowledge that project managers’ need to share in their management activities, the skills they need to develop in their sharing practices and how these relate to each other across different phases of a construction project.

Design/methodology/approach

Knowledge domains, skills and the relationships between them were identified following an inductive methodology, a combination of grounded theory and case study, and through the analysis of semi-structured interviews with 21 project managers and participants within a single construction project.

Findings

The outcome is a novel framework that theorizes the dynamic interplay between knowledge domains and the skills that facilitate knowledge sharing (KS) for successful project work throughout the construction project.

Originality/value

The combined effects of task heterogeneity, knowledge interdependencies and temporariness require paying increased attention to how knowledge domains and KS skills impact project performance. This paper addresses gaps in developing an integrative understanding of the nature of the domains of knowledge that need to be shared in a project context, the key skills contributing to KS and more importantly, how they evolve and are interpreted and reinterpreted throughout the project and assist KS practice in projects.

Details

Journal of Knowledge Management, vol. 27 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1367-3270

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 21 November 2016

Cristian Gherhes, Nick Williams, Tim Vorley and Ana Cristina Vasconcelos

Micro-businesses account for a large majority of small and medium enterprises (SMEs). However, they remain comparatively under-researched. The purpose of this paper is to take…

5208

Abstract

Purpose

Micro-businesses account for a large majority of small and medium enterprises (SMEs). However, they remain comparatively under-researched. The purpose of this paper is to take stock of the extant literature on growth challenges and to distinguish growth constraints facing micro-businesses as a specific subset of SMEs from those facing larger SMEs.

Design/methodology/approach

The study consists of a systematic review of 59 peer-reviewed articles on SME growth.

Findings

Micro-businesses distinguish themselves from larger SMEs by being owner-manager entrepreneur (OME) centric and are constrained by a tendency to be growth-averse, underdeveloped capabilities in key business areas, underdeveloped OME capabilities, and often inadequate business support provision.

Research limitations/implications

The use of keywords, search strings, and specific databases may have limited the number of papers identified as relevant by the review. However, the findings are valuable for understanding micro-businesses as a subset of SMEs, providing directions for future research and generating implications for policy to support the scaling up of micro-businesses.

Originality/value

The review provides a renewed foundation for academic analysis of micro-business growth, highlighting how micro-businesses are distinct from larger SMEs. At present, no literature review on this topic has previously been published and the study develops a number of theoretical and policy implications.

Details

Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, vol. 23 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1462-6004

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 22 March 2011

Inaam Idrees, Ana Cristina Vasconcelos and Andrew M. Cox

New PhD researchers sometimes face challenges when attempting to follow Grounded Theory principles to conduct their studies. These challenges may lead them to change its features…

3631

Abstract

Purpose

New PhD researchers sometimes face challenges when attempting to follow Grounded Theory principles to conduct their studies. These challenges may lead them to change its features or even prevent them from using the approach at all. This paper seeks to argue that, although challenging to implement, Grounded Theory is congruent with the nature of PhD research. It aims to provide an example of the application of Grounded Theory in a typically time‐limited PhD research project without the need to change any of its key features and principles.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper presents and discusses the research design adopted in ongoing PhD research which integrates the main guiding principles of Grounded Theory in a simplified four‐stage model of theory development.

Findings

The proposed model four‐stage research design includes: an uncertainty stage, where the primary focus is formed; an emergence stage, where the core categories, which are the foundations of the theory, emerge; an ambiguity resolution stage, where the grey areas in the emerging theory are clarified; and a maturity stage, when relationships between categories are defined and the theory is refined.

Originality/value

This research design can help new PhD researchers unfamiliar with Grounded Theory to develop a clear understanding of the process by simplifying and clarifying its main guiding principles, as well as guiding them to a clear, phased approach that takes into account the iterative and non‐linear nature of this methodology. It also places boundaries on the issues that should be dealt with within each of the phases of research adopting this methodology.

Details

Aslib Proceedings, vol. 63 no. 2/3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0001-253X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 13 July 2015

Alexander Schauer, Ana Cristina Vasconcelos and Barbara Sen

This paper aims to present a holistic framework, termed ShaRInK (Sharer, Relations, Institution, Knowledge), that depicts key categories of influences that shape individual…

1589

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to present a holistic framework, termed ShaRInK (Sharer, Relations, Institution, Knowledge), that depicts key categories of influences that shape individual perceptions of knowledge sharing within an organisational setting.

Design/methodology/approach

An exploratory and qualitative case study strategy in which empirical data were gathered from 24 interviewees that were based in four different branches (i.e. China, The Netherlands, the UK and the USA) of a single information technology services organisation.

Findings

The findings led to a holistic framework that depicts four key categories of influences that shape knowledge sharing from an individual perspective: attitudes and characteristics of the sharers, relations between the sharers, institutions which act as a united entity on sharer perceptions and knowledge itself. Furthermore, the four key influences not only shape knowledge sharing independently but are intertwined and have a synergistic effect. The ShaRInK framework is formed by combining these.

Originality/value

The findings indicate that knowledge sharing from an individual-level perspective is a more complex phenomenon than currently portrayed in the literature. All four key influences, each being fundamentally different in nature, and their relationships should be taken into account. Equally, the ShaRInK framework can be applied by organisations when developing a knowledge-sharing strategy or auditing existing strategies.

Details

Journal of Knowledge Management, vol. 19 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1367-3270

Keywords

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to describe six recovery-oriented peer support experiences and strategies implemented in different regions of Brazil in the past 12 years, and explore challenges to their development and potential for empowerment and citizenship.

Design/methodology/approach

In this paper, a group of stakeholders in mental health services involving people with lived experience of severe mental illness describe their experiences with services of peer support. These were all conducted in Brazil and in partnership with the International Recovery and Citizenship Collective (IRCC) and The Yale Program for Recovery and Community Health. The authors met monthly to exchange experiences, studies and practices, and six experiences were selected, described, analyzed and compared. A discussion of these experiences, their challenges, impact and potential followed.

Findings

The explored experiences emphasize that peer support, lived experience leadership and advocacy are feasible in the Brazilian mental health system and can help advance the Brazilian Psychiatric Reform.

Research limitations/implications

This paper is limited to the experience of researchers already engaged in peer support work in six cities in Brazil. Although they represent several different regions in Brazil, there are areas it has not reached. Further research should address and provide a broader view of peer support and recovery strategies spreading in the country.

Social implications

These experiences demonstrate the feasibility and acceptability of the recovering citizenship approach to reduce stigma, promote empowerment, autonomy, activism and advocacy, and increase a sense of belonging for those in recovery and marginalized by society. The Brazilian psychiatric reform can benefit from including peer supporters as mental health treatment providers.

Originality/value

This paper provides a novel view of the state of the art of peer support initiatives in Brazil and can inspire individuals, government and communities as they see and understand the breadth, depth and meanings of these peer support experiences.

Details

Journal of Public Mental Health, vol. 22 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1746-5729

Keywords

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to estimate the overall SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence and evaluate the accuracy of an antibody rapid test compared to a reference serological assay during a COVID-19 outbreak in a prison complex housing over 13,000 prisoners in Brasília.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors obtained a randomized, stratified representative sample of each prison unit and conducted a repeated serosurvey among prisoners between June and July 2020, using a lateral-flow immunochromatographic assay (LFIA). Samples were also retested using a chemiluminescence enzyme immunoassay (CLIA) to compare SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence and 21-days incidence, as well as to estimate the overall infection fatality rate (IFR) and determine the diagnostic accuracy of the LFIA test.

Findings

This study identified 485 eligible individuals and enrolled 460 participants. Baseline and 21-days follow-up seroprevalence were estimated at 52.0% (95% CI 44.9–59.0) and 56.7% (95% CI 48.2–65.3) with LFIA; and 80.7% (95% CI 74.1–87.3) and 81.1% (95% CI 74.4–87.8) with CLIA, with an overall IFR of 0.02%. There were 78.2% (95% CI 66.7–89.7) symptomatic individuals among the positive cases. Sensitivity and specificity of LFIA were estimated at 43.4% and 83.3% for IgM; 46.5% and 91.5% for IgG; and 59.1% and 77.3% for combined tests.

Originality/value

The authors found high seroprevalence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies within the prison complex. The occurrence of asymptomatic infection highlights the importance of periodic mass testing in addition to case-finding of symptomatic individuals; however, the field performance of LFIA tests should be validated. This study recommends that vaccination strategies consider the inclusion of prisoners and prison staff in priority groups.

Details

International Journal of Prisoner Health, vol. 19 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1744-9200

Keywords

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