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As teams are built around specialized and different knowledge, they need to regulate their knowledge boundaries to exchange their specialized knowledge with other teams and to protect the value of such specialized knowledge. However, prior studies focus primarily on boundary spanning and imply that boundaries are obstacles to sharing knowledge. To fill this research gap, this study aims to indicate the importance of knowledge protection regulation, an activity that sets an adequate boundary for protecting knowledge, and investigate the factors that facilitate knowledge protection regulation and its consequences.

This study collected empirical data from 196 teams in seven organizations. Through a validation of the measurement model, data from 138 teams are used for further analysis. The hypotheses effects are assessed using a structural equation model.

The analysis results indicate that both task uncertainty and task interdependency enhance knowledge protection regulation in teams, and that information technology support moderates the relationship between task uncertainty and knowledge protection regulation. The results also indicate that knowledge protection regulation improves inter-team coordination and team performance.

This study focuses on knowledge protection regulation by adopting communication privacy management theory at the team level. The findings imply that boundary management is the process of communication and depends on the role the teams play in accomplishing their tasks. The findings also provide a new way to understand knowledge flow of the teams as well as the entire organization.

Research on online user privacy shows that empirical evidence on how privacy literacy relates to users' information privacy empowerment is missing. To fill this gap, this paper investigated the respective influence of two primary dimensions of online privacy literacy – namely declarative and procedural knowledge – on online users' information privacy empowerment.

An empirical analysis is conducted using a dataset collected in Europe. This survey was conducted in 2019 among 27,524 representative respondents of the European population.

The main results show that users' procedural knowledge is positively linked to users' privacy empowerment. The relationship between users' declarative knowledge and users' privacy empowerment is partially supported. While greater awareness about firms and organizations practices in terms of data collections and further uses conditions was found to be significantly associated with increased users' privacy empowerment, unpredictably, results revealed that the awareness about the GDPR and user’s privacy empowerment are negatively associated. The empirical findings reveal also that greater online privacy literacy is associated with heightened users' information privacy empowerment.

While few advanced studies made systematic efforts to measure changes occurred on websites since the GDPR enforcement, it remains unclear, however, how individuals perceive, understand and apply the GDPR rights/guarantees and their likelihood to strengthen users' information privacy control. Therefore, this paper contributes empirically to understanding how online users' privacy literacy shaped by both users' declarative and procedural knowledge is likely to affect users' information privacy empowerment. The study empirically investigates the effectiveness of the GDPR in raising users' information privacy empowerment from user-based perspective. Results stress the importance of greater transparency of data tracking and processing decisions made by online businesses and services to strengthen users' control over information privacy. Study findings also put emphasis on the crucial need for more educational efforts to raise users' awareness about the GDPR rights/guarantees related to data protection. Empirical findings also show that users who are more likely to adopt self-protective approaches to reinforce personal data privacy are more likely to perceive greater control over personal data. A broad implication of this finding for practitioners and E-businesses stresses the need for empowering users with adequate privacy protection tools to ensure more confidential transactions.

Knowledge protection (KP) is one of the main knowledge management (KM) processes that aim to protect the organization’s knowledge from any inside and outside force leakage. In higher education institutions (HEIs), KP is rarely being discussed and covered in contrast to knowledge sharing (KS) in terms of its determinants. The purpose of this paper is to provide a deep analysis of previous research articles from 1980 to 2019 and examine the associated institutional factors on KP determinants within HEIs as a research objective.

The preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analysis was a well-established approach for analyzing the systematic literature review methodology. Several articles were published over the past decades collected from 5 different databases, but after the screening, 101 articles were reviewed and only 22 articles were relevant to the research objective.

The findings indicated that KP is under academic research topic in KM and has received minimal attention in HEIs compared to KS, which has been frequently studied in HEIs. The literature categorized KP determinants into four areas: technological, organizational structure, behavioral and ethics and organizational culture. It will open the door for academics to investigate further into the factors, theories and models of KP in general and HEIs from a particular perspective.

As evident from the paper finds, with few pieces of literature covered in this topic, HEIs have to protect the knowledge from any illegal usage or any expert’s knowledge loss after leaving the institutions. This study can help university leaders to understand how the different KP determinants can maximize KP without affecting the KS and develop the KP phenomenon for a strategic fit to enhance their institutions’ safe knowledge usage.

This is the first research of its type which has extensively examined the literature on KP related to HEIs. Also, this paper provides theoretical and practical insights through understanding the determinants that affect KP practices among academic staff.

This paper aims to clarify how organizations manage their participation in networks to share and jointly create knowledge but also risk unwanted knowledge spillovers at the same time. As formal governance, trust and observation are less applicable in informal networks, the authors need to understand how members address the need to protect knowledge by informal practices. The study aims to investigate how the application of knowledge protection practices affects knowledge sharing in networks. The insights are relevant for organizational and network management to control knowledge risks but harvest the benefits of network engagement.

The authors opted for an exploratory study based on 60 semi-structured interviews with members of 10 networks. In two rounds, network managers, representatives and members of the networks were interviewed. The second round of interviews was used to validate the intermediate findings. The data were complemented by documentary analysis, including network descriptions.

Through analyzing and building on the theory of psychological contracts, two informal practices of knowledge protection were found in networks of organizations: exclude crucial topics and share on selected topics and exclude details and share a selected level of detail. The authors explored how these two practices are enacted in networks of organizations with psychological contracts.

Counter to intuition that the protection of knowledge can be strengthened only at the expense of knowledge sharing and vice versa, networks benefitted from more focused and increased knowledge sharing while reducing the risk of losing competitive knowledge by performing these knowledge protection practices.

Drawing from boundary-spamming knowledge processes and knowledge-based theory, the purpose of this paper is to study enablers of the knowledge management (KM) process using robust multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) tools like interpretive structural modeling (ISM) and decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) method.

Drawing on the knowledge-based view and through the detailed literature review among different KM success, eight enablers were identified. By using the ISM-DEMATEL approach, a systematic framework was designed, and further cause–effect relationship diagram visualized a causal relationship among the enablers.

The combined approach of ISM-DEMATEL showcase that “knowledge creation” and “knowledge capture” are essential enablers. These two identified enablers have considered being pillars for KM implementation. On the other side, knowledge organization, knowledge application are dependent enablers.

From a practical viewpoint, the findings of this research work enable the industry consultants to identify the most prominent driving enablers for KM implementation. Additionally, it provides a clue for the effective implementation of KM in a systematic approach.

The integrated method depending on the hierarchical model and cause–effect relationship between enablers of the KM process is a novel approach that opens a new research area in this domain. Moreover, this is the first-ever attempt to combine ISM along with DEMATEL to identify enablers of the KM process.

This paper aims to report an interview study investigating knowledge protection practices in a collaborative research and innovation project centred around the semi-conductor industry. The authors explore which and how knowledge protection practices are applied and zoom in on a particular one to investigate the perspective of three stakeholders which collaborate: the SUPPLIER of a specialised machine, the APPLIER of this machine and a SCHOLAR who collaborates with both, in an effort to develop a grey-box model of the machine and its operation.

A total of 33 interviews have been conducted in two rounds: 30 interviews explore knowledge protection practices applied across a large project. Qualitative content analysis is applied to determine practices not well covered by the research community. A total of three follow-up interviews inspect one specific collaboration case of three partners. Quotes from all interviews are used to illustrate the participants’ viewpoints and motivation.

SCHOLAR and APPLIER communicate using a data-centric knowledge protection practice, in that concrete parameter values are sensitive and hidden by communicating data within a wider parameter range. This practice balances the benefit that all three stakeholders have from communicating about specifics of machine design and operations. The grey-box model combines engineering knowledge of both SUPPLIER and APPLIER.

The line of thought described in this study is applicable to comparable collaboration constellations of a SUPPLIER of a machine, an APPLIER of a machine and a SCHOLAR who analyses and draws insights out of data.

The paper fills a research gap by reporting on applied knowledge protection practices and characterising a data-centric knowledge protection practice around a grey-box model.

This study aims to examine direct effects of qualified team gatekeepers on absorptive capacity (AC), and the mediating roles of combinative capabilities – knowledge integration capability (KIC) and interteam coordination.

A social networking analysis was used to analyze a unique data set collected from all members of 32 Japanese research and development (R&D) teams to identify key individuals who perform daily gatekeeping functions. This study analyzed the data through partial least squares structural equation modeling with higher-order latent variables. Finally, cross-validation tests were used with holdout samples to test the model’s predictive validity.

Qualified gatekeepers directly contribute to teams’ realized AC but not to their potential AC. Furthermore, qualified gatekeepers can improve their teams’ capability to absorb and exploit external knowledge by facilitating their capability to consolidate knowledge, that is, its KIC and interteam coordination.

Unlike prior research that asks top managers to identify team gatekeepers, this study used social network analysis to identify these vital individuals. This study provides a new framework indicating how qualified gatekeepers impact the AC of R&D teams through the examination of both the direct and indirect paths of gatekeeping abilities, two combinative capabilities as mediators and team AC.

Due to importance of knowledge management (KM) strategies in successful implementation of KM processes and saving time and expense, selection of suitable KM strategies has been changed to be a major concern by many organizations. Therefore, this is necessary for organizations to move along KM processes in selection and establishment of their strategies at their first step. An influential factor in selection of KM strategies is measurement and identification of an organization’s condition of its knowledge maturity. Accordingly, this paper aims to select and prioritize KM strategies as proportionate with an organization’s level of maturity.

For that, the author-constructed questionnaire was designated based on the opinions made by experts acquainted with KM and KM strategies. According to experts’ opinions, the paradigm for suggestion of strategies was elucidated based on KM’s level of maturity. Afterwards, the standard questionnaire knowledge navigator model was used to evaluate the organization’s level of maturity, and KM strategies for the organization were proposed based on identified level of maturity. Finally, proposed KM strategies were ranked using the fuzzy TOPSIS technique.

In this study, a paradigm for selection of suitable KM strategies was proposed based on Hansen KM strategy as per maturity level of the organization’s KM. Then, knowledge conditions of a research organization were evaluated, and, after maturity level of that organization’s KM was assessed, different criteria of Hansen KM strategy were suggested for each level independently. Research results are indicative of the fact that the intended organization is placed at the second level of KM maturity. Therefore, personalization strategies are proposed for this organization based on the elucidated paradigm. Moreover, development of work communities and development of face-to-face interactions among staff through continuous meetings were chosen as the most significant KM strategies in this organization.

This paper is one of the leading studies carried out in the purview of codification of KM strategies according to different organizations’ level of maturity. Results of this study might be used as guidelines by different organizations, academic people and experts intending to codify KM strategies.

This paper concentrates on the antecedents of external knowledge acquisition of companies based on their inter-organizational relationships. Specifically, it considers social capital (i.e., the result of a firm’s inter-organizational relationships) as an essential precursor of knowledge identification capabilities and deliberated knowledge acquisition strategies. This study aims to propose that cognitive and relational dimensions of a firm’s inter-organizational social capital are mediating factors of the relationship between structural social capital and knowledge identification capabilities and the relationship between structural social capital and the deliberated acquisition of external knowledge, respectively. The relationship between knowledge identification capability and external knowledge acquisition is also analyzed.

This is a cross-sectional quantitative study with a sample of 87 firms from Spanish biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries. From an extensive literature review, we developed three hypotheses that were tested using the partial least squares technique and structural equations model.

The results only support a mediating effect of cognitive social capital in the relationship between structural social capital and knowledge identification capability and a partial mediation effect of relational social capital in the relationship between structural social capital and knowledge acquisition. In addition, the findings show that firms with more advanced abilities to identify and assess the value of external knowledge will be likely to develop optimal deliberated strategies to acquire effectively such knowledge from its network partners.

The limitations of this study are small sample size and the cross-sectional nature of the study. The study also focuses on only two specific and innovative industries.

Managers should understand that “good” management of inter-organizational social capital allows the firm to develop dynamic capabilities for the identification and acquisition of valuable knowledge. The results of the study show that managers should concentrate on building knowledge identification capabilities and should also be aware of the possibilities that social capital can provide to a firm to formulate and implement effective strategies for external knowledge acquisition.

To date, there are relatively few studies focussing on knowledge identification capability and its relationships with the dimensions of a company’s social capital as enablers of external knowledge acquisition. For managers, the identification of valuable knowledge by using inter-organizational relationships and networks is an essential issue, especially in innovative industries characterized by continuous change. Theoretically, this research highlights that social capital contributes to the development of dynamic capabilities, allowing the firm to sense and seize business opportunities based on external knowledge acquisition to achieve competitive advantages.

Building on the territoriality perspective and innovation process theory, to the purpose of this study is to investigate the mechanism of transmission and influence of knowledge territorial behavior congruence on innovation process, which provides theoretical implications for innovative teams to execute territoriality management and create a constructive knowledge sharing climate and platform for sustainable innovation of individuals and organizations.

The data were collected by the paired method from 311 creative R&D members. In addition, polynomial regressions and response surface method were adopted to test the hypotheses.

The more congruent the marking behavior and defensive behavior were, the higher the creative idea generation and idea implementation became. The congruence of “high marking high defensive behavior” was more conducive to triggering creative idea generation and promoting idea implementation. Compared with the incongruence of “low marking high defensive behavior,” the incongruence of “high marking low defensive behavior” was more conducive to stimulating creative idea generation. However, there was no significant difference in the incongruence effect of marking defensive behavior on idea implementation. In addition, creative idea generation mediated the relationship between knowledge territorial behavior congruence and idea implementation. Furthermore, team territorial climate moderated the relationship between knowledge territorial behavior congruence and creative idea generation.

The study highlights the theoretical research of territoriality and innovation process. By deconstructing the relationship between the territorial behavior congruence and the innovation process, this study establishes that the congruence and incongruence of the marking defensive behavior in knowledge territoriality exerts different effects on creative idea generation and idea implementation.