Knowledge integration across organizations: how different types of knowledge suggest different ‘integration trajectories’

✍ Scribed by Rafael Andreu; Sandra Sieber

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2005
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 287 KB
• Volume: 12
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1092-4604
• DOI: 10.1002/kpm.232

✦ Synopsis

In this paper we establish a framework for analysing knowledge integration across organizations. In particular, we look at knowledge integration from a corporate perspective, to pinpoint the main challenges of a firm wishing to effectively integrate knowledge among its business units in order to contribute either to its efficiency as a unique firm or to its effectiveness in the form of improved competitive positioning and advantage. Knowledge integration considerations are important in today's business landscape, where the so-called 'knowledge economy' progresses. We propose to think in terms of 'knowledge integration trajectories' that can be derived from different knowledge needs of firms as a way of understanding how, over time, knowledge integration processes and relationships evolve and emerge in different forms. Our conceptualization offers some key insights into effectively managing knowledge integration across organizations.