Papers
Topics
Authors
Recent
Gemini 2.5 Flash
Gemini 2.5 Flash
158 tokens/sec
GPT-4o
7 tokens/sec
Gemini 2.5 Pro Pro
45 tokens/sec
o3 Pro
4 tokens/sec
GPT-4.1 Pro
38 tokens/sec
DeepSeek R1 via Azure Pro
28 tokens/sec
2000 character limit reached

Pitfalls in Effective Knowledge Management: Insights from an International Information Technology Organization (2304.07737v2)

Published 16 Apr 2023 in cs.CY

Abstract: Knowledge is considered an essential resource for organizations. For organizations to benefit from their possessed knowledge, knowledge needs to be managed effectively. Despite knowledge sharing and management being viewed as important by practitioners, organizations fail to benefit from their knowledge, leading to issues in cooperation and the loss of valuable knowledge with departing employees. This study aims to identify hindering factors that prevent individuals from effectively sharing and managing knowledge and understand how to eliminate these factors. Empirical data were collected through semi-structured group interviews from 50 individuals working in an international large IT organization. This study confirms the existence of a gap between the perceived importance of knowledge management and how little this importance is reflected in practice. Several hindering factors were identified, grouped into personal social topics, organizational social topics, technical topics, environmental topics, and interrelated social and technical topics. The presented recommendations for mitigating these hindering factors are focused on improving employees' actions, such as offering training and guidelines to follow. The findings of this study have implications for organizations in knowledge-intensive fields, as they can use this knowledge to create knowledge sharing and management strategies to improve their overall performance.

Definition Search Book Streamline Icon: https://streamlinehq.com
References (72)
  1. The role of effective factors on organizational knowledge sharing. Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences 2011;29:1701–6. doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2011.11.415.
  2. A framework for considering opportunities and threats in distributed software development. In: Proceedings of the International Workshop on Distributed Software Development. 2005. .
  3. Ahmed PK, Rafiq M. Internal Marketing: Tools and Concepts for Customer-Focused Management. Oxford: Butterworth-Heineman, 2006. doi:10.4324/9780080509037.
  4. Alavi M, Leidner D. Knowledge Management Systems: Issues, Challenges, and Benefits. Communications of the Association for Information Systems 1999;1. doi:10.17705/1CAIS.00107.
  5. Alavi M, Leidner DE. Knowledge management and knowledge management systems: Conceptual foundations and research issues. MIS quarterly 2001;:107–36doi:10.2307/3250961.
  6. Alavi M, Tiwana A. Knowledge integration in virtual teams: The potential role of KMS. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology 2002;53(12):1029–37. doi:10.1002/asi.10107.
  7. Almeida MV, Soares AL. Knowledge sharing in project-based organizations: Overcoming the informational limbo. International Journal of Information Management 2014;34(6):770–9. doi:10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2014.07.003.
  8. Andreeva T, Kianto A. Does knowledge management really matter? linking knowledge management practices, competitiveness and economic performance. Journal of knowledge management 2012;16(4):617–36. doi:10.1108/13673271211246185.
  9. Challenges in geographically distributed information system development: A case study. In: 2021 IEEE 45th Annual Computers, Software, and Applications Conference (COMPSAC). 2021. p. 452–8. doi:10.1109/COMPSAC51774.2021.00069.
  10. Investigating knowledge management practices in software development organisations–an australian experience. Information and Software Technology 2008;50(6):511–33. doi:10.1016/j.infsof.2007.05.005.
  11. Bailey C, Clarke M. Managing knowledge for personal and organisational benefit. Journal of Knowledge Management 2001;doi:10.1108/13673270110384400.
  12. Bartol KM, Srivastava A. Encouraging knowledge sharing: The role of organizational reward systems. Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies 2002;9(1):64–76. doi:10.1177/107179190200900105.
  13. Leveraging resources in global software development. IEEE Software 2001;18(2):70–7. doi:10.1109/52.914750.
  14. Manifesto for agile software development. Retrieved from https://www.agilemanifesto.org; 2001.
  15. Behavioral intention formation in knowledge sharing: Examining the roles of extrinsic motivators, social-psychological forces, and organizational climate. MIS quarterly 2005;29(1):87–111. doi:10.2307/25148669.
  16. Bock GW, Kim YG. Breaking the myths of rewards: An exploratory study of attitudes about knowledge sharing. Information Resources Management Journal (IRMJ) 2002;15(2):14–21. doi:10.4018/irmj.2002040102.
  17. Braganza A. Rethinking the data–information–knowledge hierarchy: Towards a case-based model. International Journal of Information Management 2004;24(4):347–56. doi:10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2004.04.007.
  18. The impact of information technology and transactive memory systems on knowledge sharing, application, and team performance: A field study. MIS Quarterly 2010;34(4):855–70. doi:10.2307/25750708.
  19. Connelly CE, Kelloway EK. Predictors of employees’ perceptions of knowledge sharing cultures. Leadership & Organization Development Journal 2003;doi:10.1108/01437730310485815.
  20. Organizational social capital, formalization, and internal knowledge sharing in entrepreneurial orientation formation. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice 2013;37(3):505–37. doi:10.1111/etap.12021.
  21. De Gooijer J. Designing a knowledge management performance framework. Journal of knowledge management 2000;doi:10.1108/13673270010379858.
  22. Managing knowledge in global software development efforts: Issues and practices. IEEE Software 2006;23(5):30–7. doi:10.1109/ms.2006.135.
  23. What do we know about knowledge management? practical implications for software engineering. IEEE software 2009;26(3):100–3. doi:10.1109/ms.2009.82.
  24. Dingsøyr T, Smite D. Managing knowledge in global software development projects. IT Professional 2013;16(1):22–9.
  25. Knowledge management in distributed agile software development. In: 2012 Agile Conference. IEEE; 2012. p. 64–73. doi:10.1109/agile.2012.17.
  26. Ebert C, De Neve P. Surviving global software development. IEEE software 2001;18(2):62–9.
  27. Faraj S, Sproull L. Coordinating expertise in software development teams. Management science 2000;46(12):1554–68. doi:10.1287/mnsc.46.12.1554.12072.
  28. Fischer G, Otswald J. Knowledge management: problems, promises, realities, and challenges. IEEE Intelligent Systems 2001;16(1):60–72. doi:10.1109/5254.912386.
  29. Foress B, Camison C. Does incremental and radical innovation performance depend on different types of knowledge accumulation capabilities and organizational size? Journal of business research 2016;69(2):831–48. doi:10.1016/j.jbusres.2015.07.006.
  30. Knowledge management: an organizational capabilities perspective. Journal of Management Information Systems 2001;18(1):185–214. doi:10.1080/07421222.2001.11045669.
  31. Gressgard LJ. Antecedents of knowledge exchange systems usage: Motivational and work environment factors. Knowledge and Process Management 2015;22(2):112–25. doi:10.1002/kpm.1471.
  32. Virtualness and knowledge in teams: managing the love triangle of organizations, individuals, and information technology. MIS Quarterly 2003;27(2):265–87. doi:10.2307/30036531.
  33. Gunnlaugsdottir J. Seek and you will find, share and you will benefit: organising knowledge using groupware systems. International Journal of Information Management 2003;23(5):363–80. doi:10.1016/s0268-4012(03)00064-1.
  34. What’s your strategy for managing knowledge? Harvard Business Review 1999;77(2):106–16. doi:10.4324/9780080941042-9.
  35. Asrar-ul Haq M, Anwar S. A systematic review of knowledge management and knowledge sharing: Trends, issues, and challenges. Cogent Business & Management 2016;3(1):1127744. doi:10.1080/23311975.2015.1127744.
  36. The effects of individual motivations and social capital on employees’ tacit and explicit knowledge sharing intentions. International Journal of Information Management 2013;33(2):356–66. doi:10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2012.10.009.
  37. An empirical study of global software development: distance and speed. In: Proceedings of the 23rd international conference on software engineering. IEEE Computer Society; 2001. p. 81–90. doi:10.1109/icse.2001.919083.
  38. Herbsleb JD, Moitra D. Global software development. IEEE software 2001;18(2):16–20.
  39. Hsieh HF, Shannon SE. Three approaches to qualitative content analysis. Qualitative health research 2005;15(9):1277–88. doi:10.1177/1049732305276687.
  40. Hume C, Hume M. The critical role of internal marketing in knowledge management in not-for-profit organizations. Journal of Nonprofit & Public Sector Marketing 2015;27:23–47. doi:10.1080/10495142.2014.934567.
  41. International Organization for Standardization . ISO 30401:2018 knowledge management systems – requirements. 2018.
  42. Toward developing human resource management systems for knowledge-intensive teamwork. Research in Personnel and Human Resources Management 2006;25(6):27–70. doi:10.1016/s0742-7301(06)25002-3.
  43. Kim S, Lee H. The impact of organizational context and information technology on employee knowledge-sharing capabilities. Public Administration Review 2006;66(3):370–85. doi:10.1111/j.1540-6210.2006.00595.x.
  44. Klitmøller A, Lauring J. When global virtual teams share knowledge: Media richness, cultural difference and language commonality. Journal of World Business: JWB 2013;48(3):398–406. doi:10.1016/j.jwb.2012.07.023.
  45. Kotlarsky J, Oshri I. Social ties, knowledge sharing and successful collaboration in globally distributed system development projects. European Journal of Information Systems 2005;14(1):37–48. doi:10.1057/palgrave.ejis.3000520.
  46. Lee H, Choi B. Knowledge management enablers, processes, and organizational performance: An integrative view and empirical examination. Journal of Management Information Systems 2003;20(1):179–228. doi:10.1080/07421222.2003.11045756.
  47. Leiblein MJ, Madsen TL. Unbundling competitive heterogeneity: Incentive structures and capability influences on technological innovation. Strategic Management Journal 2009;30(7):711–35. doi:10.2139/ssrn.1000078.
  48. Lin WB. The effect of knowledge sharing model. Expert Systems with Applications 2008;34(2):1508–21. doi:10.1016/j.eswa.2007.01.015.
  49. The impact of multi-site software governance on knowledge management. In: 2011 IEEE Sixth International Conference on Global Software Engineering. IEEE; 2011. p. 40–9. doi:10.1109/icgse.2011.16.
  50. Markus ML. Toward a theory of knowledge reuse: Types of knowledge reuse situations and factors in reuse success. Journal of Management Information Systems 2001;18(1):57–93. doi:10.1080/07421222.2001.11045671.
  51. Mazzei A. Promoting active communication behaviours through internal communication. Corporate Communications 2010;15(3):221–34. doi:10.1108/13563281011068096.
  52. Nahapiet J, Ghoshal S. Social capital, intellectual capital, and the organizational advantage. Academy of management review 1998;23(2):242–66. doi:10.1016/b978-0-7506-7222-1.50009-x.
  53. Reflecting the choice and usage of communication tools in gsd projects with media synchronicity theory. In: 2010 5th IEEE International Conference on Global Software Engineering. IEEE; 2010. p. 3–12. doi:10.1109/icgse.2010.11.
  54. Knowledge management: Developing intellectual and social capital. In: Jackson S, Hitt M, DeNisi A, editors. Managing knowledge for sustained competitive advantage: Designing strategies for effective human resource management. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass; 2003. p. 209–42.
  55. Nonaka I, Takeuchi H. The knowledge-creating company: How Japanese companies create the dynamics of innovation. Oxford university press, 1995. doi:10.1016/s0048-7333(97)80234-x.
  56. Polanyi M. The Tacit Dimension. Routledge, 1966. doi:10.1016/b978-0-7506-9718-7.50010-x.
  57. Global software development in practice lessons learned. Software Process: Improvement and Practice 2003;8(4):267–81. doi:10.1002/spip.188.
  58. Rus I, Lindvall M. Knowledge management in software engineering. IEEE Software 2002;19(3):26.
  59. Ružić E, Benazić D. The impact of internal knowledge sharing on sales department’s innovativeness and new product commercialization. Organizacija 2021;54(2):147–60. doi:10.2478/orga-2021-0010.
  60. Ryan S, O’Connor RV. Development of a team measure for tacit knowledge in software development teams. Journal of Systems and Software 2009;82(2):229–40. doi:10.1016/j.jss.2008.05.037.
  61. Ryan S, O’Connor RV. Acquiring and sharing tacit knowledge in software development teams: An empirical study. Information and Software Technology 2013;55(9):1614–24. doi:10.1016/j.infsof.2013.02.013.
  62. Factors affecting attitudes and intentions towards knowledge sharing in the dubai police force. International Journal of Information Management 2012;32(4):372–80. doi:10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2011.12.003.
  63. Organizational size and knowledge flow: a proposed theoretical link. Journal of Intellectual Capital 2007;8(4):610–27. doi:10.1108/14691930710830783.
  64. Sharp D. Knowledge Management Today: Challenges and Opportunities. Information Systems Management 2003;20(2):32–7. doi:10.1201/1078/43204.20.2.20030301/41468.6.
  65. Practical intelligence in everyday life. Cambridge University Press, 2000.
  66. Szulanski G. Exploring internal stickiness: Impediments to the transfer of best practice within the firm. Strategic management journal 1996;17(S2):27–43. doi:10.1002/smj.4250171105.
  67. Communication, knowledge and co-ordination management in globally distributed software development: Informed by a scientific software engineering case study. In: 2009 Fourth IEEE International Conference on Global Software Engineering. IEEE; 2009. p. 370–5. doi:10.1109/icgse.2009.58.
  68. Five steps to creating a global knowledge-sharing system: Siemens’ sharenet. Academy of Management Perspectives 2005;19(2):9–23. doi:10.5465/ame.2005.16962590.
  69. Wang S, Noe RA. Knowledge sharing: A review and directions for future research. Human Resource Management Review 2010;20(2):115–31. doi:10.1016/j.hrmr.2009.10.001.
  70. Wegner DM. Transactive memory: A contemporary analysis of the group mind. Theories of group behavior 1987;:185–208doi:10.1007/978-1-4612-4634-3_9.
  71. Knowledge sharing barriers in global teams. Journal of Systems and Information Technology 2013;15(3):239–53. doi:10.1108/jsit-09-2012-0054.
  72. Antecedents of organizational knowledge sharing: a meta-analysis and critique. Journal of Knowledge Management 2013;doi:10.1108/13673271311315204.

Summary

We haven't generated a summary for this paper yet.

Ai Sparkles Streamline Icon: https://streamlinehq.com Summarize Now