As current social problems grow more complex, public organizations have to deal with more complicated problems and values than in the past. Public organizations arguably need more knowledge to effectively address such complex problems. However, there is little study of the relationship between knowledge sharing and government performance. This study has several primary purposes. First, it tries to find out more about the roles and effects of knowledge sharing on program performance in public organizations. Second, by examining the factors affecting the relationships between knowledge sharing and program performance, the study explores the importance of individual and organizational conditions in connecting knowledge sharing to program performance. Lastly, the study helps clarify the effect of knowledge sharing on program performance by also examining other factors that are likely to affect program performance. To explore the relationships among explicit and tacit knowledge sharing, public service motivation, self-set goals, red tape, economic conditions, staffers' professionalism, budgetary resources, and program performance, I examined Virginia's Child Protective Services program. The Virginia Department of Social Services determines the guidelines and policies for the state's CPS program and supervises its implementation by local agencies. I focused on the implementation of the CPS program. The study examined the relationships between CPS program performance and the degree and dynamics of knowledge sharing at the local jurisdictional and at the individual social worker levels in each of the 23 local CPS departments in which staffers responded to an on-line survey. In addition to these relationships, the study examined the effects of individual, organizational, and financial factors in Virginia local CPS departments on the relationships between knowledge sharing and program performance. The study yielded numerous findings. First, at the local agency level evidence showed that explicit knowledge sharing played an important role in affecting CPS program performance. At the individual level, only the reported usefulness of explicit knowledge sharing affected CPS program performance, while the usefulness of tacit knowledge sharing and time devoted to explicit knowledge sharing affected usefulness of explicit knowledge sharing. The personal motivation of CPS staffers influenced program performance through tacit knowledge sharing, and red tape evidently affected CPS program performance by decreasing explicit and tacit knowledge sharing. Even when factors like local economic conditions and available financial resources were taken into account, the usefulness of explicit knowledge sharing still affected CPS program performance. Second, the relationships among time devoted to, usefulness of, and access to explicit and tacit knowledge sharing were diverse. They affected CPS program performance through the reported usefulness of explicit and tacit knowledge sharing. Third, individual and organizational factors influenced the relationship between knowledge sharing and CPS program performance. The personal motivation of CPS staffers had a positive effect on tacit knowledge sharing, but red tape appeared to have a negative effect on explicit and tacit knowledge sharing. Fourth, the study showed that several factors other than knowledge sharing such as local economic conditions, work training of CPS staffers, family assessments, CPS staffer education, and additional budgetary resources also affected CPS program performance. / Ph. D.

Modern organisations are increasingly seen as knowledge-based business ventures in which proactive knowledge management is important for competitiveness. The interest in knowledge management seems to have surged across world. In the increasingly competitive and global marketplace, firms are especially keen to integrate and capitalise on the knowledge of their employees and make it available when and where it is needed. In addition, many firms realise the need to educate and indoctrinate new hirelings into the organisation quickly due to the scarcity of global resources and an aging workforce (Teicholz, 2004). As a result, many organisations implement knowledge management initiatives in an attempt to combine and exploit their knowledge assets. It is therefore necessary to critically evaluate Sasol on these terms. How the knowledge management strategy supports organisational processes is investigated along with collective learning and collaborative decision making within the organisation. An in depth literature study was conducted to gain insight into KM concepts and strategies. It also provided a reference to current best practices. Above all, the literature study helped to gain perspective on the complexities of measuring a phenomenon like KM in an organisation. Performance measurement techniques are discussed and reference made to the eras of knowledge management. A short section makes reference to another organisation considered to be a global leader in integration of knowledge management systems. The research design method that was chosen to authenticate the research objectives is qualitative. The interpretive methods employ an inductive approach that starts with data and tries to derive a theory about the phenomenon of interest from the observed data. Results were obtained from a combination of two methods. Published and available secondary data mainly obtained from Sasol resources. The second was structured interviews conducted from a criterion based sampling strategy conducted on employees to obtain primary data. Sasol employees are supportive of the Sasol KM systems and are (to some extent) using it. Many believe that Sasol is a learning organisation and therefore benefitting from the systems in place. However, the people of Sasol are generally not aware of the full functionality of the deployed systems. Therefore the current state of the Sasol KM system integration is the consequence. Organisational Knowledge, unlike personal knowledge, is only of value if it is shared with others who need it (KMI, 2010). In order to enhance collective learning, learning organisations establish specific learning processes that become embedded in work processes. This is the basis of the outcomes and the recommendations of this research. / MIng (Development and Management Engineering), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

Modern organisations are increasingly seen as knowledge-based business ventures in which proactive knowledge management is important for competitiveness. The interest in knowledge management seems to have surged across world. In the increasingly competitive and global marketplace, firms are especially keen to integrate and capitalise on the knowledge of their employees and make it available when and where it is needed. In addition, many firms realise the need to educate and indoctrinate new hirelings into the organisation quickly due to the scarcity of global resources and an aging workforce (Teicholz, 2004). As a result, many organisations implement knowledge management initiatives in an attempt to combine and exploit their knowledge assets. It is therefore necessary to critically evaluate Sasol on these terms. How the knowledge management strategy supports organisational processes is investigated along with collective learning and collaborative decision making within the organisation. An in depth literature study was conducted to gain insight into KM concepts and strategies. It also provided a reference to current best practices. Above all, the literature study helped to gain perspective on the complexities of measuring a phenomenon like KM in an organisation. Performance measurement techniques are discussed and reference made to the eras of knowledge management. A short section makes reference to another organisation considered to be a global leader in integration of knowledge management systems. The research design method that was chosen to authenticate the research objectives is qualitative. The interpretive methods employ an inductive approach that starts with data and tries to derive a theory about the phenomenon of interest from the observed data. Results were obtained from a combination of two methods. Published and available secondary data mainly obtained from Sasol resources. The second was structured interviews conducted from a criterion based sampling strategy conducted on employees to obtain primary data. Sasol employees are supportive of the Sasol KM systems and are (to some extent) using it. Many believe that Sasol is a learning organisation and therefore benefitting from the systems in place. However, the people of Sasol are generally not aware of the full functionality of the deployed systems. Therefore the current state of the Sasol KM system integration is the consequence. Organisational Knowledge, unlike personal knowledge, is only of value if it is shared with others who need it (KMI, 2010). In order to enhance collective learning, learning organisations establish specific learning processes that become embedded in work processes. This is the basis of the outcomes and the recommendations of this research. / MIng (Development and Management Engineering), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

This thesis is broadly concerned with the future of the Human Resources function within organisations. The nature of these concerns is two-fold: first, how can Human Resources deal effectively with the challenges of organisational life today; second, how can Human Resources convince senior management that it is both relevant, and necessary, to the economic success of the enterprise, and so assure its future as an internal organisational function. This thesis posits that not only does an involvement in the knowledge management process hold considerable benefits for an organisation through a direct and positive influence on the �bottom-line�, but that such an involvement takes on a specialised set of aims and objectives within the human resource perspective that should not be ignored. The argument is that Human Resources, with its own knowledge-awareness and overview of the structures, manpower, performance and reward systems, and training and development programs, is uniquely placed to be instrumental in creating the open, unselfish culture required to make a success of Knowledge Management, and secure its own future as a trusted and valued strategic partner, fully contributing to the enhancement of organisational performance, and ultimately, the organisation�s place in the world. The thesis commences with an overview of how Human Resources has defined its role within organisations since the 1980s. The challenges and concerns of human resources professionals are discussed, and the opportunity for them to take the lead in developing the social networks that are vital to the capture and transfer of knowledge is foreshadowed. An examination of knowledge and knowledge management concepts and principles, and a discussion of the specialised aims and objectives that a knowledge management system can be argued to have within a human resources management perspective in the 21st century is discussed next. As learning from experience with the aim of improving business performance is one of the uses of knowledge management, a discussion of �learning� and the concepts of the �learning organisation� follows. The chapters in the first part of the thesis contain the theoretical material concerning knowledge and knowledge management, learning and the Learning Organisation, and the argument that Human Resources is in a position to play a major role in moving the organisation's culture to one of value creation and valuable strategic decision-making capability, through its awareness of the concept of knowledge and its implementation of knowledge systems, policies, and practices. The second part of the thesis is more empirically based, and reports the results of recent research by the author into the levels of awareness of the knowledge concept, and the degree to which knowledge management systems, policies, and practices are being implemented. The purpose of the study was to test a number of hypotheses about knowledge and knowledge management and the role of the Human Resources function vis-a-vis these issues. The results and their implications are subsequently discussed. The thesis concludes with some reflections on the concepts of knowledge and learning, and the specialised role that the Human Resources professional can play in knowledge work.

This paper aims to provide a description of how knowledge can occur in Apoteket AB, an organization that is operating on the Swedish pharmacy market. The purpose of this paper is also to describe how the organizational learning occurs in the organization, and how the outcome of this learning can be stored in the organizational memory. This subject is of interest since Apoteket AB experience changes in their external environment in that they no longer have monopoly to sell pharmaceuticals on the Swedish pharmacy market. Earlier research claims that organizations need to develop new knowledge in order to take action, and this development needs to be supported by the management within the organization. The collection of primary data was done by two qualitative interviews with employees within the organization of Apoteket AB. Our conclusions are that knowledge can occur in many forms, such as tacit and explicit knowledge. The vast majority of the knowledge within the organization is the information that can be found in the electronic database Aponet within Apoteket AB, and that is useful for the employees in their daily work, and therefore is known as explicit knowledge. Since this knowledge is to be found through Aponet, the organizational memory plays an important role in sharing knowledge. The organizational learning can also be found in many different forms, making it possible for the organization to benefit from the employees experiences and discoveries. The outcome of this learning is often stored in the organizational memory known as social networks, which includes the employees in different situations.

Historically there has been an ongoing debate whether leadership is innate behaviour, a trait or a skill. I believe leadership is both a skill and a behaviour that exhibits that skill (Doh 2003). ‘This dual definition generated an additional disagreement over whether leadership can be taught’ (Doh 2003, p. 54). I have had conversations with professors, alumni and leaders who have experience with leadership (broadly defined) and more specifically with leadership programmes. I have asked the experts how they would define leadership; if leaders are born; how the profile of a successful leader looks like; and how we should develop leaders. This study indicates that leadership can be enhanced with the development of (1) explicit knowledge (2) tacit knowledge (3) emotional intelligence (4) and ethical leadership.

This thesis reports on a study on the ultimate attainment of grammatical intuition in Swedish in 29 adult hearing native signers, bilingual in Swedish Sign Language and Swedish. It is reasoned that measures of such intuition in adults may indicate implicit linguistic entrenchment in Swedish during early language development. Although Sign Language Linguistics and Second Language Research on deaf signers are two established fields of research in Sweden, there is little research on hearing native signers. A few international studies have focused on early child language development in hearing native signers, showing that these children develop their two languages simultaneously from birth even if the signed language dominates the linguistic environment. However, studies focusing on older children indicate that their morphological and syntactic proficiency in the majority language resembles that of second language learners. Deductively this paper rests on neurobiological and psycholinguistic theories claiming that early language development is naturally and genetically constrained within a critical or maturational period. Grammatical intuition was measured through the use of two versions of a GJT-test (written and auditory) and a cloze test. The results showed that the average grammatical intuition of the hearing native signers was comparable to that of a group of early L2 learners of Swedish, but significantly different from that of a group of native speakers of Swedish, indicating that for some of the native signers, Swedish might have been successively learned. This thesis contributes unique data to second language research, while shedding a light on a group of bilinguals that is scarcely known to the study of linguistics. / Denna explorativa och explanatoriska studie testade grammatisk intuition i svenska hos 29 vuxna hörande tvåspråkiga i svenskt teckenspråk och svenska. Vid statistisk analys och jämförelse med testresultat från tidigare andraspråksforskning indikerar denna studie att deltagarna kan ha lärt sig delar av svenskans morfologi och syntax successivt. Teckenspråkslingvistik och svenska som andraspråk för döva är idag två etablerade forskningsområden. Trots en växande kunskap om teckenspråkiga saknas svensk forskning om tvåspråkigheten hos hörande infödda teckenspråkiga. De internationella studier som gjorts har fokuserat på små barn och visar att hörande infödda teckenspråkiga är simultant tvåspråkiga från födseln även om det tecknade språket dominerar den första tiden. Å andra sidan visar studier på lite äldre barn att kunskaper i majoritetsspråket (det talade språket) hos vissa individer, har morfologiska och syntaktiska drag liknande dem som andraspråksinlärare uppvisar.  Med stöd i neurobiologiska och psykolingvistiska teorier om en biologiskt betingad språkinlärningsmekanism som kräver triggning från födseln, undersökte denna studie, hypotes-deduktivt, huruvida deltagarna utvecklat implicita kunskaper i svenska under en kritisk period för språkutveckling. Denna studie bidrar med nya, unika data till tvåspråkighetsforskning och kastar ljus över en inlärarpopulation som tidigare inte uppmärksammats inom språkinlärningsforskningen.

The objectives of this study are to determine the awareness level of knowledge sharing amongst the employees of Sasol, to determine how Sasol utilises human capital in the company and to identify and analyse the methods of knowledge sharing and knowledge transfer. The literature review distinguishes between explicit and tacit knowledge. Explicit knowledge leads a company to codify while tacit knowledge leads to connecting people. The literature study also covers the utilisation of human capital and identifies methods of knowledge sharing and -transfer, namely legacy pages, expert location systems, buddy systems, post-retirement agreements, identification of successors, After Action Reviews, interviews, observation, protocol analysis, teach backs, story writing and storytelling, and process mapping. The literature study forms the foundation for the formulation and designing of a questionnaire. The questionnaire was distributed amongst the employees of two of Sasol's divisions in order to obtain data about the utilisation of human capital in Sasol and to identify and analyse the current and preferred methods to capture and share tacit knowledge and skills. The data obtained from the questionnaires was processed, analysed and interpreted. Conclusions were drawn, linking the literature review and the results obtained from the empirical study. Based on these conclusions, recommendations were made. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006.

This is a qualitative study inquiring ”What does it entail to be a sex worker in Sweden today?” Four female sex workers were interviewed in semi-structured interviews. Using methods for reflexive analysis, interpreting the interviews and their context theoretically through notions of Competence and Stigma, the results of this study shows that sex workers may be both competent agents and stigmatized. This informs the understanding of sex work, stigma and how learning, subjective room for action and social agency can be aggravated or hindered by stigma. The results are viewed in the context of Swedish legislation against sex purchase in relation to previous research which shows that said legislation is problematic. This study recommends; further studies on varieties of competence, room for action and social agency among sex workers; further studies on how sex workers subjective room for action is affected by the Swedish law against sex purchase; further studies on how the Swedish law against sex purchase affect sex workers prospects for learning; studies on how stigma and discrimination against people in socially vulnerable and/or excluded groups affect individual learning; as well as updated estimations on the prevalence of male, female and transgender sex workers in Sweden. It is also suggested that Sweden could look to other countries for constructive ideas on how to reform sex purchase laws. In this context, New Zealand and Germany are mentioned specifically.

The objectives of this study are to determine the awareness level of knowledge sharing amongst the employees of Sasol, to determine how Sasol utilises human capital in the company and to identify and analyse the methods of knowledge sharing and knowledge transfer. The literature review distinguishes between explicit and tacit knowledge. Explicit knowledge leads a company to codify while tacit knowledge leads to connecting people. The literature study also covers the utilisation of human capital and identifies methods of knowledge sharing and -transfer, namely legacy pages, expert location systems, buddy systems, post-retirement agreements, identification of successors, After Action Reviews, interviews, observation, protocol analysis, teach backs, story writing and storytelling, and process mapping. The literature study forms the foundation for the formulation and designing of a questionnaire. The questionnaire was distributed amongst the employees of two of Sasol's divisions in order to obtain data about the utilisation of human capital in Sasol and to identify and analyse the current and preferred methods to capture and share tacit knowledge and skills. The data obtained from the questionnaires was processed, analysed and interpreted. Conclusions were drawn, linking the literature review and the results obtained from the empirical study. Based on these conclusions, recommendations were made. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006.