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Open Access
Article
Publication date: 1 August 2023

Maarten Matheus van Houten

The purpose of this study is to gain insight into the dynamics and considerations of professionals regarding the sharing of tacit, personal knowledge in their practice.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to gain insight into the dynamics and considerations of professionals regarding the sharing of tacit, personal knowledge in their practice.

Design/methodology/approach

Adopting a social-constructivist ontology, the qualitative design deploys semi-structured interviews and focus groups. Data were coded, and analysed through interrelating and reasoning.

Findings

Personal knowledge is difficult to share precisely, but can be shared to some extent using reflection and stories. Knowledge also provides a position and professional agency, emphasising boundaries and impacting the decisions on interaction and sharing. As such, professional commitment is vulnerable and contextual and, by extension, material becomes part of this interplay of professional practice and collaborative development.

Research limitations/implications

Findings imply that exchange and use of knowledge and material present in organisations are impacted by individual professionals’ autonomy and decisions, which consequently impact on employees’ practice. This calls for research that focuses on individual factors such as autonomy, professionalism and attitudes in addition to organisational and facilitative matters.

Practical implications

Stimulating professional commitment and interpersonal learning is a matter of valuing personal knowledge and practice to avoid protectionism, boundaries and segregated agency. Management and professionals should consider how and why individuals exchange their personal knowledge, paying attention to social structures and individuals’ voices and objectives in forming communities.

Originality/value

This study combines the concept of tacit knowledge with the younger field of practice theory. By connecting personal knowledge to practice, it extends agency to the material world and offers a more individual perspective to knowledge sharing in and between entities.

Details

Journal of Workplace Learning, vol. 35 no. 9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1366-5626

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 16 October 2023

Sofi Perikangas, Harri Kostilainen and Sakari Kainulainen

The purpose of this article is to show (1) how social innovations are created through co-production in social enterprises in Finland and (2) how enabling ecosystems for the…

1017

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this article is to show (1) how social innovations are created through co-production in social enterprises in Finland and (2) how enabling ecosystems for the creation of social innovations can be enhanced by the government.

Design/methodology/approach

This study is a descriptive case study. The data comprises focus group interviews that were conducted during a research project in Finland in 2022. The interviewees represented different social enterprises, other non-profit organisations and national funding institutions.

Findings

Social enterprises create social innovations in Finland through co-production, where service innovation processes, activism and networking are central. Also, to build an enabling ecosystem, government must base the system upon certain elements: enabling characteristics of the stakeholders, co-production methods and tools and initiatives by the government.

Originality/value

The authors address an important challenge that social enterprises struggle with: The position of social enterprises in Finland is weak and entrepreneurs experience prejudice from both the direction of “traditional” businesses and the government which often does not recognise social enterprise as a potential partner for public service delivery. Nonetheless, social enterprises create public value by contributing to the co-production of public services. They work in interorganisational networks by nature and can succeed where the traditional public organisations and private businesses fail.

Details

International Journal of Public Sector Management, vol. 37 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3558

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 19 January 2023

Helén Anderson, Tomas Müllern and Mike Danilovic

The purpose is to identify and explore barriers to overcome for developing collaborative innovation between a global service supplier and two of its industrial customers in Sweden.

2190

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose is to identify and explore barriers to overcome for developing collaborative innovation between a global service supplier and two of its industrial customers in Sweden.

Design/methodology/approach

The research had an action-based research approach in which the researchers were interacting and collaborating with the practitioners in the companies. The empirical part includes primary data from multiple interviews, and two workshops with dialogues with participants from the involved companies. The use of complementary data collection methods gave rich input to understanding the context for collaborative innovation, and to uncovering barriers, to develop solutions for collaborative innovation. The empirical barriers were analysed using theoretically derived barriers from a literature review. The analysis generated four broad themes of barriers which were discussed and led to conclusions and theoretical and practical implications on: the customer's safety culture, the business model, the parties' understanding of innovation and the management of collaborative innovation in supply chains.

Findings

The thematic analysis generated four broad themes: the customer's safety culture, the business model, the parties' understanding of innovation and the management of collaborative innovation. These themes where analysed using theoretically derived barriers from a literature review. The industrial context, the understanding of innovation and its management created barriers.

Originality/value

The unique access to the service supplier and its two independent industrial customers adds a rich contextual framing to the process of identifying and exploring the barriers to collaborative innovation. The conclusion emphasizes the importance of an industrial business context, the business logic in terms of business models and for the understanding and management of collaborative innovation.

Details

Business Process Management Journal, vol. 29 no. 8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-7154

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 26 January 2023

Susanne Durst, Ingi Runar Edvardsson and Samuel Foli

The purpose of this paper is to structure existing research on knowledge management (KM) in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to offer a comprehensive overview of…

7026

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to structure existing research on knowledge management (KM) in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to offer a comprehensive overview of research strands and topics in KM in SMEs to determine their evolution over time.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper, which is considered a follow-up literature review, is based on a systematic literature review that covers 180 scientific papers that were published since the review paper by Durst and Edvardsson in 2012 that covered 36 papers.

Findings

The findings of this review and those of the aforementioned review are brought together in the form of an overview that structures research on KM in SMEs based on themes that, in turn, allow the derivation of promising research directions and research questions aimed at structuring future research on KM in SMEs.

Originality/value

By combining the findings of this review with the findings from the review published in this journal in 2012, this paper offers, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, the most comprehensive literature review on KM in SMEs produced to date.

Details

Journal of Knowledge Management, vol. 27 no. 11
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1367-3270

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 17 February 2023

Uni Sallnäs and Maria Björklund

Whilst green distribution alternatives for consumers have the potential to decrease environmental impact from logistics, retailers struggle to provide such alternatives. The…

2502

Abstract

Purpose

Whilst green distribution alternatives for consumers have the potential to decrease environmental impact from logistics, retailers struggle to provide such alternatives. The purpose of this paper is to increase the understanding of the factors that hinder retailers from offering green distribution alternatives to consumers.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper relies on a multiple case-study of three cases, with one retailer constituting each case. Semi-structured interviews with seven respondents and visits to the retailers' checkouts were used for data collection.

Findings

The offering of green distribution alternatives is a complex task for retailers, with barriers related to six categories (organisational, financial, retailer-logistic service provider (LSP) market, retailer-consumer market, governmental and technological barriers) obstructing the way forward. A process towards offering green distribution services, including barriers and potential mitigation strategies, is suggested.

Research limitations/implications

The study is limited to a Swedish context, and further research could consider how barriers would manifest themselves in countries with other characteristics.

Practical implications

A framework with barriers and mitigation strategies offers guidance for managers within e-commerce.

Social implications

The greening of logistics is an important quest towards world-wide sustainability goals, and this paper contributes with an increased understanding of how to decrease environmental impact from e-commerce distribution.

Originality/value

The paper is one of few that takes the consumer side of the greening of logistics into account, thus contributing with valuable perspectives to this scarce body of literature.

Details

The International Journal of Logistics Management, vol. 34 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0957-4093

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 5 January 2023

Aysu Göçer, Ceren Altuntas Vural and Frida Lind

This study aims to explore how a start-up entering maritime logistics networks (MLNs) in the container shipping industry integrates resources underlying value cocreation patterns…

1915

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to explore how a start-up entering maritime logistics networks (MLNs) in the container shipping industry integrates resources underlying value cocreation patterns in these networks.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper is based on a single case study of a technological start-up, providing tracking, tracing and other information services to MLN members using internet-based software. An interorganizational theory perspective informs the case study to unveil the resource integration for value cocreation in the network.

Findings

The start-up holds multiple resource interaction roles and the start-up’s involvement enables the creation of new knowledge resources, which facilitate new revenue streams and manage resource dependencies. Hence, the findings indicate that the start-up changes value cocreation patterns in the network by reconfiguring and integrating existing resources so that the service is customized for various customers, including shippers and freight forwarders.

Practical implications

The results provide insights about how technological start-ups can unlock resources within MLNs.

Originality/value

The study extends previous studies on resource roles in business networks and shows how start-ups can perform multiple roles simultaneously within these networks. In addition, the study contributes to the literature by studying information and knowledge as resources configured in different ways in a unique network setting.

Details

Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, vol. 38 no. 13
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0885-8624

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 25 April 2022

Vuyokazi Precious Camngca, Christopher Amoah and Emma Ayesu-Koranteng

The construction industry’s daily processes demand heavy data usage and communication between project participants to meet client requirements. Thus, the application of…

2196

Abstract

Purpose

The construction industry’s daily processes demand heavy data usage and communication between project participants to meet client requirements. Thus, the application of information technology in project implementation has been increasing in the construction sector (CS) lately. However, the same cannot be seen in public sectors responsible for implementing government projects in South Africa. This study aimed to investigate the causes and effects of the underutilisation of information communication technology (ICT) in the building section of a public sector in a municipality in South Africa.

Design/methodology/approach

A qualitative approach was adopted for the study, using a public sector in one of the municipalities as a case study. Face-to-face interviews were conducted among the building unit workers, using unstructured interview questions. The data collected were analysed using the ATLAS.ti software.

Findings

The findings indicate a lack of understanding of existing and newly available ICT software and hardware technology among staff within the building technology due to lack of digitalisation in construction projects implementation, inadequate system upgrades, lack of adequate ICT resources, lack of financial resources for internet and software application subscriptions and lack of ICT training leading. The issues mentioned above have led to the outsourcing of projects professionals, slow pace of electronic emails, untrained professionals, usage of different and unlicensed software, resulting in the underutilisation of ICT within the whole building section. This change also adversely affects all officials, especially the junior officials who have graduated using the most recent ICT technology during their studies.

Research limitations/implications

The building department of only one public sector was used for the study; therefore, the findings may not be generalisable. The case study public sector’s name is withheld for confidentiality purposes.

Practical implications

Adequate change management and continuous development, combined with the allocation of proper resources, would be necessary for all staff members. Enormous investments had to be made in the ICT equipment by providing a sufficient budget in the building section of the public sectors. The building section within public sectors should provide change management to all aged skills staff by attending seminars to learn new ICT technology applied within its work environment.

Originality/value

The study established the causes of the underutilisation of ICT in the CS, especially in the public work departments and municipalities, and how this contributes to service delivery.

Details

Journal of Facilities Management , vol. 22 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1472-5967

Keywords

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