The contemporary globalisation of economic activities has enormously accelerated the pace of innovation and technology development throughout the world. Continuous transformation of the marketplace and tremendous growth of demand on knowledge-intensive products and services has led to further evolution of knowledge management and project management studies. Increasing number of research done on knowledge management aspects within project environment evidences the expanding interest on the two areas of study. Incubators, representing the accumulators of knowledge management practices which facilitate the innovation and entrepreneurship through start-up projects, encompass vast number of issues for investigation related to the mentioned study areas. Past researches done in incubator field mainly concerned with the knowledge management aspects, neglecting the project management perspectives on it. Only few articles were found which refers to both fields of study within the incubators, although with an emphasis on project management models as catalysts of innovation. Our research basically aims to explore, examine and illustrate both knowledge management and project management interrelationship, in the context of incubators. It provides with a conceptual model, which depicts the contribution and correlation of project management, organisational knowledge management and project specific knowledge management. Based on the observation and analysis of the empirical data collected using the IT knowledge-based risks model as our methodological framework, it was found that incubators do not share the same knowledge management challenges as IT companies. Combining the conceptual model derived from the findings of literature review, and the methodological framework, we developed a new model representing knowledge management challenges in the management of start-up projects within incubators. Out of ten challenges observed in the IT sector, our research finds eight main challenges in incubators that are related to knowledge management. According to the perceptions of the interviewees chosen from a sample of three incubators in Sweden, the main challenges are (i) handling business coach exit, (ii) communicating lessons learned, (iii) creating knowledge map, (iv) establishing knowledge network, (v) selecting appropriate team, (vi) storing knowledge from previous projects, (vii) integrating different expertise and (viii) transferring complete knowledge. Each of the mentioned challenges was placed in each of the three domains defined in the conceptual model, in order to accentuate the domain it directly affects or is mostly affected by.

<p><em>Project Knowledge Management</em> and more specifically how organisations capture experiences gained in projects, is a critical topic in order to compete in the knowledge economy. Little attention has been given the catchphrase <em>lessons learned practices</em> as a research area. The purpose of the thesis is therefore to analyse the framework for the <em>project closure phase</em> through a <em>Knowledge Management</em> perspective. The purpose is also to evaluate how new knowledge, captured by <em>project closure documents</em>, can be identified and measured.</p><p>To fulfil the purpose, the <em>project closure phase</em> and <em>project closure documents</em> within the project model <em>Practical Project Steering</em> are studied. Through a document study, the framework that the project model gives, and the <em>project closure documents</em> is analysed. The <em>project closure documents</em> are also examined regarding the experiences they capture. This is done by developing an instrument for identifying and measuring new knowledge.</p><p>Through the study, it can be established that the <em>project closure phase</em> provides for a link between <em>Knowledge Management</em> and <em>Project Management</em>. It has an important contribution to <em>Knowledge Management</em> since it mitigates the risk of not transferring knowledge to the organisational memory. The use of predefined knowledge domains supports structure, and systemisation in the production of the documents, as well as in the compilation and dissemination of useful knowledge.</p><p>New knowledge within the <em>project closure phase</em> can be identified and measured by dividing the documents into isolated pieces of information and using developed criteria to identify, and thereby quantify new knowledge. The instrument is highly reliable since it is ensured that the division of information does not result in any decontextualisation, and since the criteria used are very stable, and still acknowledge the dynamics of knowledge as well as the knowledge context.</p><p>By using the measurements on empirical data, problems that are important to acknowledge are identified. There is an uneven distribution of knowledge types acquired by the <em>project closure documents</em>, regardless of their importance; resulting in loss of important knowledge. The difficulty to formalise important knowledge, results in failing to transfer knowledge to an external organisational memory. The difficulty to distribute knowledge sufficiently, results in re-invention of the wheel, and the same mistakes being made twice or more.</p>

Project Knowledge Management and more specifically how organisations capture experiences gained in projects, is a critical topic in order to compete in the knowledge economy. Little attention has been given the catchphrase lessons learned practices as a research area. The purpose of the thesis is therefore to analyse the framework for the project closure phase through a Knowledge Management perspective. The purpose is also to evaluate how new knowledge, captured by project closure documents, can be identified and measured. To fulfil the purpose, the project closure phase and project closure documents within the project model Practical Project Steering are studied. Through a document study, the framework that the project model gives, and the project closure documents is analysed. The project closure documents are also examined regarding the experiences they capture. This is done by developing an instrument for identifying and measuring new knowledge. Through the study, it can be established that the project closure phase provides for a link between Knowledge Management and Project Management. It has an important contribution to Knowledge Management since it mitigates the risk of not transferring knowledge to the organisational memory. The use of predefined knowledge domains supports structure, and systemisation in the production of the documents, as well as in the compilation and dissemination of useful knowledge. New knowledge within the project closure phase can be identified and measured by dividing the documents into isolated pieces of information and using developed criteria to identify, and thereby quantify new knowledge. The instrument is highly reliable since it is ensured that the division of information does not result in any decontextualisation, and since the criteria used are very stable, and still acknowledge the dynamics of knowledge as well as the knowledge context. By using the measurements on empirical data, problems that are important to acknowledge are identified. There is an uneven distribution of knowledge types acquired by the project closure documents, regardless of their importance; resulting in loss of important knowledge. The difficulty to formalise important knowledge, results in failing to transfer knowledge to an external organisational memory. The difficulty to distribute knowledge sufficiently, results in re-invention of the wheel, and the same mistakes being made twice or more.

Magister Economicae - MEcon / Knowledge is recognised as a crucial resource in the knowledge-based economy; and it is believed to drive sustainable success in organizations. Knowledge management (KM) helps organizations identify, create, organize, distribute and transfer vital knowledge among employees within and across organizations. The underlying premise is that good KM leads to efficiency and effectiveness, which in turn, influences the total performance in an organization. Therefore, this study investigates the role of KM practices as they relate to projects in a South African government organisation. The problem was dwelt with by establishing research questions and objectives. In order to answer the research questions, a literature search was conducted in the area of KM to establish the KM enablers, barriers, and processes known to facilitate or hinder successful KM in organizations. This led to the identification of five enablers, including organizational culture, structure, technology, strategy and leadership, as well as the resources believed to be fundamental in the success of KM practices. Barriers to KM were identified as individual, organizational and technological. The study established four KM processes: acquisition, conversion, application and protection that were found to concur with good KM practices. A conceptual model was developed around these areas. The model assisted in developing qualitative and quantitative questions. In order to investigate the proposed research questions, the study identified a single directorate within the department of public works that is directly involved with the delivery of health infrastructure. The methodology used, which was mainly qualitative research, was conducted by using multiple-data evidences, namely: semi-structured interviews, document review; these were sourced from primary and secondary sources, as well as similar organizational best practices in KM. A total of nine interviews were conducted with individuals in managerial positions. A total of 7 of the 30 e-mailed questionnaires were completed and the data were used to supplement the qualitative data. This study used the Content-Analysis Technique approach to analyse the text data obtained from the interviews. It was established that successful KM implementation requires the promotion of an enabling environment. The results from the findings revealed that organizational culture, structure, leadership and strategy, ICT, as well as KM resources form, a foundation for the KM environment. KM processes, such as knowledge-retention, creation, capture, transfer and iv sharing, were found to be fundamental for KM practices to occur. Barriers to effective KM occurred largely due to the lack of awareness and time. To capitalize on knowledge, an organization must be prepared to balance its KM enablers and processes. The existing challenges impeding KM success should be identified and dealt with, in order to realize the KM benefits. The study, therefore, proposes a KM conceptual model to be integrated with the decision-making framework, as an implementation strategy for KM in the public sector. This would ensure an embedded knowledge-intensive environment in the Department, and hence the improvement of infrastructural delivery. This study is limited, since only a single case was used, which plainly suggests that there is a possibility that the results cannot be generalized beyond the researched organisation – without conducting any further study. It is recommended that for future research, this study be replicated through several other directorates, or even departments at various government levels (e.g. national, provincial). Also, quantitative analysis, together with qualitative analysis, should be used to create a triangulation between the two approaches.

Research shows that organizations rely on intangible value chains to boost their economic development through knowledge being seen as a resource. However, due to the emerging complexity withing various organizational designs and complexity of multi-levels in projects, still very little is known on how knowledge is shared and utilized in a complex and multi-leveled context. The purpose of this thesis is to examine how knowledge is shared and utilized in complex project-based environments and how underlying mechanisms of knowledge can be stimulated to facilitate a knowledge management system. To answer the research question, data was collected through eleven semi-structured interviews and analyzed through grounded theory.    Results show that depending on the organizational environment, different mechanisms are more suited than others. In the industrial organization examined in this case study, a personification strategy is well suited as the organizational tasks are unique in nature. Furthermore, the initiation of knowledge sharing opportunities play an important role in implementing knowledge management. In this context, an institutionalization approach is the desired mechanisms to stimulate. This is due to the size of the organization and the fact that employees are geographically dispersed. It is further amplified by the increased amount of remote-working, especially in the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic which has limited face-to-face interactions. To implement a knowledge management strategy of personification and institutionalization, routines are paramount to its success. Without the implementation of standards and routines governed from the organization and management level, there is a risk of knowledge management initiatives failing due to lack of commitment and participation.

One way an organization manages the knowledge of its people is in information technology (IT) projects. Organizations develop IT projects for many socially responsible reasons, including improved health care services and better community services. IT projects do not always achieve the goals of the organization when the knowledge of the stakeholders is not managed for these objectives. For this study the purpose was to address the use of knowledge management (KM) in project management (PM) to improve the success of IT projects in achieving the organizational goals. The research questions were based on KM including its tools and techniques to improve the success rate for IT projects. The conceptual framework included the project knowledge management (PKM) model, which helped identify the knowledge sharing in IT software projects for a local insurance company in Baltimore, Maryland. Interview data were collected from 26 IT project stakeholders about KM in PM. Analysis revealed 4 themes of managing knowledge in the requirement process, code development process, testing process, and the helpdesk process for the success of the IT project. Each of the 4 processes used different KM repositories and face-to-face tools. Improving the rate of successful IT projects benefits organizations and society with better products and services for lower costs. This study may affect social change by providing information for managers of other organizations about achieving success of their IT projects.

Submitted by Nadir Basilio (nadirsb@uninove.br) on 2018-04-03T18:35:34Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Rosana Yasue Narazaki.pdf: 6250505 bytes, checksum: 6740b17cf0ae92f594c884443f115a11 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-04-03T18:35:34Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Rosana Yasue Narazaki.pdf: 6250505 bytes, checksum: 6740b17cf0ae92f594c884443f115a11 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-12-14 / A gestão do conhecimento (GC) é essencial para manter e desenvolver o conhecimento como ativo da organização. A equipe de projeto está se tornando mais descentralizada, exigindo tecnologia para suportar a GC nas atividades de gerenciamento de projetos (GP). A premissa para o fluxo do conhecimento acontecer é ter um ‘ba’ (espaço compartilhado) e este deve ser apoiado por um conjunto de ferramentas colaborativas, como as mídias sociais (MS). No entanto, as melhores práticas em GP não lidam com a dinâmica da GC de forma explícita, o que tem causado falta de rastreabilidade e perda de conhecimento explícito e tácito durante o ciclo de vida do projeto. Além disso, os indivíduos desejam facilidade de uso e acessibilidade, contudo não querem mais uma ferramenta para gerenciar, sugerindo que as MS devam ser integradas. Nesse propósito, o presente estudo analisou uma solução por meio de um instrumento técnico, sob a abordagem Design Science Research (DSR), com a intenção de responder à questão de pesquisa: Como o uso integrado das mídias sociais suportam à GC nas atividades relacionadas ao GP em um projeto de uma instituição de segurança pública? O artefato SM4PM (Social Media for Project Management), um framework prescritivo que guia o uso integrado de mídias sociais para apoiar atividades relacionadas ao GP, foi instanciado para avaliar GC no GP em um projeto de uma instituição de segurança pública. A coleta de dados foi feita por meio de quatro técnicas: 1) Entrevistas, 2) Observação direta, 3) Análise documental e 4) Grupo focal. Estes dados foram analisados em cinco etapas com o suporte do software de análise qualitativa MaxQdaPlus: 1) Compilação, 2) Decomposição, 3) Recomposição, 4) Interpretação e 5) Conclusão. Os resultados mostram que as MS suportam a GC em atividades relacionadas ao GP, dando uma forte evidência de que o framework SM4PM pode ser generalizado para resolver uma classe de problema, tais como coletar lições aprendidas naturalmente durante o ciclo de vida do projeto, gerenciar o conhecimento no gerenciamento de projetos, entender o relacionamento entre os processos e a sua integração. Como contribuição, o estudo aplicou empiricamente a ‘teoria para prática’ pela instanciação de um instrumento técnico baseado na “teoria de fazer bem’ e aplicou a ‘teoria que vem da prática’ para refinar este instrumento técnico. O uso do framework SM4PM pode beneficiar os gerentes de projeto, os membros da equipe e as partes interessadas no projeto. / Knowledge management (KM) is essential for keeping and developing knowledge as an asset of organizations. Project team is becoming more decentralized, requiring technology to support KM in project management (PM) activities. The premise to the flux of knowledge to happen is to have a ‘ba’ (shared space) and this should be supported by a set of collaborative tools, such as social media (SM). Nevertheless, best practices in PM do not deal with the KM dynamics explicitly which has caused lack of traceability and loss of explicit and tacit knowledge during the project lifecycle. In addition, individuals desire ease of use and accessibility and yet no longer want a tool to manage, suggesting that SM should be integrated. For this purpose, this research analyzed a solution by a technical instrument, under Design Science Research approach, with the intention of answering the research question: How does the integrated use of SM support KM in activities related to PM in a project of a public security organization? The SM4PM (Social Media for Project Management), a prescriptive framework for guiding integrated use of SM in PM, was instantiated to evaluate KM in PM in a project of public security organization. Data collection was done through four techniques: 1) Interviews, 2) Direct observations, 3) Document analysis and 4) Focus group. These data were analyzed in five stages with the support of the MaxQdaPlus qualitative analysis software: 1) Compilation, 2) Decomposition, 3) Recomposition, 4) Interpretation and 5) Conclusion. Results showed that SM support KM in activities related to PM giving strong evidence that SM4PM framework can be generalized to solve a class of problems, such as collecting lessons learned naturally during the project lifecycle, managing the knowledge in PM, understanding relationship among processes and their integration. As a contribution, the study empirically applied ‘theory to practice’ by instantiating a technical instrument based on ‘theory of doing well’ and applied ‘theory from practice’ to refine this technical instrument. The use of SM4PM framework can benefit project managers, team members and project stakeholders.