Knowledge is a crucial resource in modern business environments. The proper management of an organization’s internal knowledge assets can lead to a sustainable competitive advantage. Literature on knowledge management has identified a large number of factors that influence the transfer of knowledge within organizations. The purpose of this study is to investigate how internal knowledge assets are managed in the R&D department of a large company in the high-tech healthcare industry, what informal and formal organizational factors influence the transfer of knowledge, and to explore possible requirements and success factors for ICTs in knowledge transfer. A qualitative case study approach is adopted and semi-structured interviews with a total of ten members of the research and development departments are performed. A theoretical framework is used with elements from the knowledge-based view of the firm, dimensions of knowledge strategies, operational knowledge management practise, knowledge transformation models, and social exchange theory. The results of the empirical research show a knowledge-heavy company that engages in personalization, as well as codification strategies with the support of ICTs. Socialisation, combination, externalisation, and internalization are identified and related to the organization’s processes and practises. In addition, drivers, such as a friendly, cooperative atmosphere and the complexity of task, as well as deterrents of knowledge transfer, such as lack of time and weaknesses of ICTs, are identified. Interviewees identified several requirements for ICTs, above all low thresholds and the attainment of critical mass, as well as the demand for standardization and formalization. It was also found that employees are willing to document their knowledge in a technological knowledge management system if they can retrieve knowledge for themselves from the same system. This study provides a relevant example of knowledge management and transfer processes and practises, as well as influences on internal knowledge exchange.

<p>This study is based upon the double proposition that a transfer of modern management knowledge is an important component of the development assistance given to Third World countries and that this knowledge has a cultural basis that</p><p>restricts its transferability. The very essence of the cultural basis is thought to consist of culture contingent implicit assumptions about phenomena in the reality. Problems experienced in five cases of transfer of management knowledge are analysed in search for such implicit assumptions questioned. A paradigm comprising fifteen basic assumptions attached to the images of different management relevant phenomena is identified in the analysis carried out. Different corroborating conditions that make experiences from management-inaction corroborate the validity of the basic assumptions are also identified. The recognition of the relationships between basic assumptions and environmental conditions is held to be crucial to the understanding of how and why the cultural basis of modern management knowledge makes its transfer difficult. The identified relationships between basic assumptions and corroborating conditions has implications for two major issues discussed in cross-cultural management research: (i) it supports the convergence hypothesis, and (ii) it can be concluded that the perceived appropriateness of the “modern” delegativeparticipative management style hinges on the “industrialising” of environmental conditions. In addition to the implications for the cross-cultural management discourse, it is found that the perspective developed has implications for the institutionalism approach to management. In particular, it points to the importance of normative messages and collectively shared perceptions as isomorphic forces. It also points to important mechanisms behind institutional variability and change. The relationship between basic assumptions and environmental conditions is central to a strategy for transfer of modern management knowledge that is discussed in the end of the study. The importance of a cognitive transformation is emphasised as a prerequisite for a long-term success of such a transfer.</p>

This study is based upon the double proposition that a transfer of modern management knowledge is an important component of the development assistance given to Third World countries and that this knowledge has a cultural basis that restricts its transferability. The very essence of the cultural basis is thought to consist of culture contingent implicit assumptions about phenomena in the reality. Problems experienced in five cases of transfer of management knowledge are analysed in search for such implicit assumptions questioned. A paradigm comprising fifteen basic assumptions attached to the images of different management relevant phenomena is identified in the analysis carried out. Different corroborating conditions that make experiences from management-inaction corroborate the validity of the basic assumptions are also identified. The recognition of the relationships between basic assumptions and environmental conditions is held to be crucial to the understanding of how and why the cultural basis of modern management knowledge makes its transfer difficult. The identified relationships between basic assumptions and corroborating conditions has implications for two major issues discussed in cross-cultural management research: (i) it supports the convergence hypothesis, and (ii) it can be concluded that the perceived appropriateness of the “modern” delegativeparticipative management style hinges on the “industrialising” of environmental conditions. In addition to the implications for the cross-cultural management discourse, it is found that the perspective developed has implications for the institutionalism approach to management. In particular, it points to the importance of normative messages and collectively shared perceptions as isomorphic forces. It also points to important mechanisms behind institutional variability and change. The relationship between basic assumptions and environmental conditions is central to a strategy for transfer of modern management knowledge that is discussed in the end of the study. The importance of a cognitive transformation is emphasised as a prerequisite for a long-term success of such a transfer.

Thesis (M. Sc.(Computer Science))--University of Pretoria, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references.

Is public health policy based on scholarly evidence? With the manifold variables that policy makers must consider, is evidence-based policy even realistic? While strategies exist to translate research into policy, a need to understand better how that can play out in real-life remains. Using interviews from informants occupying a range of positions, and considering the atmosphere created by media reports, this study examines the case of smoking privileges at East Coast Forensic Hospital. After a patient committed murder while on leave, apparently to smoke, public pressure over public safety, a relative lack of relevant scholarship, ethical considerations, and the divergent voices of stakeholders created challenging circumstances for policy makers. Through the use of case study methodology, this project identifies the kinds of information that are employed in the creation or modification of policy and offers insights concerning how the influences exerted on policy makers determine how information is employed.

This project presents an investigation into the viability of alternative knowl- edge acquisition strategies in knowledge management systems. The goal of this project is to illustrate that alternative means of knowledge acquisition can have a significant effect on the quality of the knowledge base. To accomplish this a modification of a wiki system, dubbed Prometheus, is proposed that uses a threshold based user vote acquisition mechanism. A simulation approach is used to compare a model of the Prometheus system against a model of a standard wiki system. A simulation framework is described that facilitates comparison between models of knowledge systems. The simu- lation framework is used to compare the knowledge systems in three different scenarios in an attempt to determine the conditions in which the Prometheus system may produce a higher quality knowledge base. The results of these ex- periments are presented along with some discussion and areas for future work.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Discipline of Economics, School of Economics and Political Science, Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Sydney, 2006. / Title from title screen (viewed 5th June, 2007). Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy to the Discipline of Economics, School of Economics and Political Science, Faculty of Economics and Business. Degree awarded 2006. Bibliography: leaves 308-331. Also issued in print.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Saint Louis University, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 66-73).

Zugl.: Bremen, Univ., Diss., 2008

Thesis (Ph. D.) -- Lincoln University, 2009. / Also available via the World Wide Web.