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This paper proposes defining a methodology of cultivation and integration of communities of practices (CoPs) and to create an evaluation model in organizations.

This research project was based on a qualitative case study design, with main units of analysis being CoPs. The objective was achieved developing an analysis model of CoPs based on the key dimensions created by R. McDermott and studying actual experiences in CoPs integration with this model. The reported research project involves 15 organization actual experiences of CoPs in very different kinds of organizations. Although the study analyzed different kinds of companies, the evaluation methodology is unique.

Based on the results of the study, a cultivation model of CoPs was created, which includes the detection analysis of CoPs in organization, the analysis of CoPs' necessity in organizations, the analysis of the appropriate CoPs in each organization and the evaluation model for the integrated CoPs.

All the actual experiences analyzed are documented cases. Therefore, it is difficult to find failure experiences and most of them are successful cases.

The cultivation model can help managers of any organization in the integration process of CoPs.

The main contribution of this project is the development of a valid and sustainable cultivation model of CoPs in any organization.

This research aims to measure the extent manufacturing companies from the Basque region (Spain), which place a greater emphasis on innovation, have adapted their management context in accordance with the middle‐up‐down management model put forward by Nonaka and Takeuchi and Nonaka et al. The study explores whether the degree of adoption of the aforementioned model is influenced by contingency factors such as company size or technological level.

An ad hoc questionnaire was addressed to the chief executive officers of the companies. Structural equation modelling based on partial least squares was used to test the main hypotheses of the research.

Firms which develop a higher organizational learning capacity put a greater emphasis on innovation. Additionally, the innovation focus of companies is positively related to the implementation of management systems which are more in accordance with the middle‐up‐down management model, and the degree of adoption of the aforementioned model is not influenced by company size or technological level.

The approach taken in the research serves the purpose of linking extremely abstract concepts from the middle‐up‐down model with specific elements from the management context. It also contributes to the development of empirical research in the domain of organizational learning, aimed at clarifying the relationship between organizational learning capacity and innovation orientation. The research contributes towards a better understanding of the degree of adoption of such a model in the Basque region, paving the way for future comparative studies which might take other regions of the world into consideration.

At a time when many companies in the Spanish and Basque manufacturing industries are attempting to embark on delocation movements (also commonplace in other countries), the increase in innovatory capacity is becoming an essential element in counteracting such movements and the downsizing that these involve. The study presented here seeks to measure the explicit emphasis given by manufacturing companies from the Basque Region (Spain) in the field of innovation, and the degree of adaptation of their management context to features of the middle‐up‐down model as put forward by Nonaka et al. to promote an effective knowledge generation process.

An ad hoc questionnaire has been addressed to Chief Executive Officers, within the framework of broader research into organizational learning and business performance started in 2002. This questionnaire is focused more on the “hard” elements of the management context than on the “soft” ones, which may limit its usefulness under certain circumstances.

Conceptually‐speaking, the methodology used has the value of linking extremely abstract concepts from the middle‐up‐down model (knowledge vision, articulation of this vision by means of concepts and images, “BA”, “information redundancy,” etc.) with specific elements from the management context.

The results of the study reveal that manufacturing companies from the Basque Region have improved their innovatory capacity to a great extent, adapting quite a lot of their management context to new requirements. However, a weak point is detected in them: the absence of an organizational structure that may favor the existence of areas in which knowledge is shared.

The aim of this paper is to test empirically the degree of influence of different knowledge‐sharing mechanisms on the innovation capability of firms, as well as to analyse the degree of relevance of each innovation capability dimension to value creation. Additionally, the role of technology intensity as a moderator variable of the aforementioned relationships is examined.

An ad hoc questionnaire was designed and addressed to the CEOs of the companies making up the target population of the research (Spanish manufacturing firms with more than 50 employees and R&D activities). Structural equation modeling (SEM) based on partial least squares (PLS) was then applied in order to test the main hypotheses of the research.

The results obtained show that knowledge sharing is a key issue in order to enhance the innovation capability of firms. Nevertheless, depending on the innovation capability dimension being considered and on the technology intensity of the firm, the type of knowledge sharing which appears to be more fruitful varies. On the other hand, technology intensity also moderates the degree of relevance of each innovation capability in value creation.

The main contribution of the paper is to provide empirical evidence about the impact of knowledge sharing on innovation. Moreover, it reveals what the most effective knowledge‐sharing mechanisms are for this purpose, and provides companies with a basic framework in order to shape their knowledge management strategies.

The purpose of this research is to analyze the relationship between the organizational learning capacity of manufacturing companies in the Spanish Basque Region and their management systems.

To this end, an ad hoc questionnaire was devised and addressed to the Chief Executive Officers of a representative sample of 200 companies from all manufacturing sectors of the Basque Country.

The results obtained show that the characteristics of the management system of a company (the strategy formulation process and organizational design) do not condition the learning level that can be attained as a result of an experience of concrete change. However, it is true that companies which have experienced changes in which a high level of learning has been achieved have adapted their management systems more according to what theorists deem appropriate to help future learning.

The research carried out allows a better practical knowledge of the existing relationship between management systems, change processes, and levels of organizational learning.

The objective of this contribution is to pinpoint the practices of users' interactions with sharing economy platforms in Russia, as well as explore the source of motivation to use such platforms on the three cases of sharing economy platforms in Russia: Darudar [Gift-to-gift] (sharing goods), Bank Vremeny [Timebank] (sharing time and services) and Couchsurfing (sharing accommodation and leisure).

Empirical data were gathered from 25 in-depth interviews conducted for active users of the platforms and ethnographic observations of users' offline meetings as well as digital observations.

The results reveal that participants of the platforms tend to establish their own rules and norms of interaction, thus, fostering social connection. Findings suggest that users of sharing economy platforms are driven by the potential of minimising transaction costs and intrinsic motivation, such as getting experiences which have no market alternatives, upcycling and disposal of belongings, self-promotion and self-realisation.

In this study, sharing as based in the sharing economy is conceptualised as a separate principle of resource allocation. The theory was applied to the empirical material of three Russian platforms, which has not been done previously in the paradigm of sharing. The current literature on the sharing economy is largely switched to the for-profit North American platforms, while case studies from other settings are lacking. This article aims to fill this gap by providing insights into non-profit platforms' operation in Russia.

The purpose of the study is regarding the development of eco-oriented technologies for obtaining the building gypsum materials with the involvement of industrial by-products or waste.

The scanning electron microscopy, X-ray microanalysis and IR spectral analysis were used to study the structure of gypsum matrix. The method of comparison of modified and unmodified gypsum matrix was used. Physical modeling of gypsum matrix crystallization is used to study changes in the morphology of hydration products.

The experimental results show that the addition of technical soot into a gypsum binder leads to a change in the morphology of crystalline hydrates of calcium sulfate dihydrate. Results of the scanning electron microscopy, X-ray microanalysis and IR spectral analysis confirm the change of physical and mechanical characteristics of the gypsum binder due to the structural modification of the gypsum matrix with ultrafine carbon soot. The achieved degree of the structural modification of the gypsum matrix is compatible with the results obtained when the gypsum binder was modified with dispersions of carbon nanotubes.

The morphology of the crystalline hydrates of the gypsum matrix with the addition of 0.04%, 0.06% and 1% of the carbon soot is characterized by the transition of the classical needle-like structure of gypsum dihydrate to the lamellar structure of increased density. One can observe the formation of intergrowths around ultrafine carbon soot particles. The studied carbon additive can improve strength characteristics of the gypsum matrix.