Crossing power and knowledge boundaries in learning and knowledge sharing

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the crossing of knowledge and power boundaries within a bureaucratic organization using Enterprise Social Media (ESM). Carlile’s (2004) boundary crossing framework is used to guide this research. Design/methodology/approach- This is a qualitative study based on semi-structured interviews and observations in a large Norwegian public sector organization. Findings- We find that crossing knowledge and power boundaries using ESM is problematic at both a syntactic, semantic and pragmatic level. ESM is used predominantly for sharing, storing and retrieving explicit knowledge, which is a display of crossing the information processing boundary. While the use of ESM allows for potential power shifts among different levels, shared meaning, taking the perspective of other and new knowledge-in-practices are not achieved. Therefore examples of crossing the semantic and pragmatic knowledge boundaries are rarely found. Research limitations/implications- The framework could be applied to a variety of contexts to further explore the role of ESM in learning and knowledge sharing and its ability to cross power and knowledge boundaries. Practical implications- Organizations will benefit from understanding issues related to the use of ESM to enhance knowledge sharing, learning and the development of new practices, as well as potential power, knowledge and trust issues that may arise in connection with the use of ESM. Originality/value – This paper addresses a gap in the literature around discussions of power, trust, boundary crossing and the use of enterprise social media for knowledge sharing and learnin

OSUL 2013 Implementation Phase Final Report

The University Archives has determined that this item is of continuing value to OSU's history.OSUL 2013 overview; Implementation Team and Community; Projects; Long-term plan for OSUL; Proposal for next 2013 grou

Informal learning at workplace : Real case study from the private companies in Bulgaria

In an era of ongoing change, workplace learning has taken on an increasingly popular role as a vehicle through which organizations can achieve their long-term goals and strategic visions. Informal learning at work has become an extremely important issue and Managers and HRD practitioners have attempted to deploy informal learning in the design of corporate cultures. Empirical Research on Informal Learning The term informal learning was first introduced in 1950 by Malcolm Knowles, in his pioneer work “Informal Adult Education”. Since that time, many authors have written about informal learning, offering their unique perspective on the meaning of the term. Nevertheless the broad spectrum of leading theoretical models and used methods in terms of case study, ethnographic, interview and survey approaches, no single theoretical model or methodological approach has yet established dominance. What is now needed is some typology or organizing tool for understanding the different types of informal learning and how these events might be connected to the more formal training undertaken by the worker. Objectives of the study This report presents the findings from a study carried out by the NBU, SM between October 2008 and September 2009. (This study is the first of its kind for the Bulgarian environment). The aims of the study were to illustrate the range of practice of informal learning at work, to provide an analysis of these practices in some private companies in Bulgaria in order to propose ways to target case study material at a business audience. More specifically, the research examined: the types of informal learning activities people engage in at work and perceived factors that affect informal learning engagement. The idea was to document the incidental or tacit knowledge and skills that are acquired outside of the formal training program and how these pieces fit together as a strategy for lifelong learning and work. Design/methodology/approach Through various data collection methods, the investigation was run. Twenty four (24) private small, medium and large companies were selected for the study and 145 managers, HR practitioners and specialists took part in it. Participants were generally full-time employees, and approximately 60% were female. Data sources have included structured and in depth employee questionnaire, and manager and specialists interviews. The research is asking about what happens to the employees that may be related to their learning experiences at work and the extent to which they are engaged in these activities. Findings and Future Research As evidenced by the findings of the study, there were certain types of informal learning activities in which the specialists from the companies were most likely to engage and in this sense the advantages of informal learning cannot be denied. But, informal learning is merely one intervention that could resolve all organizational problems. So, consideration must be given and future research are needed to organizational context and culture, assessment of informal learning activities in relation to other activities of everyday life, examination of different categories of employees, etc. in order to find the combination of the right environment and mix of strategies as a foundation for an organization's workplace learning efforts

The Adoption of Web 2.0 in Corporations: A Process Perspective

Widely discussed in the media, Web 2.0 systems have drawn the attention of corporations, many of which now seek to adopt Web 2.0 technologies and transfer its benefits to their organizations. Organizations often struggle with the adoption of information systems, and Web 2.0 systems are certainly no exception. As an empirical foundation, we studied three organizations that successfully adopted Web 2.0 systems. We conducted a narrative analysis of the case study material to produce a process theory for Web 2.0 system adoption. Finally, we compare it to the enterprise system experience cycle of Markus and Tanis (2000). Our results indicate that the adoption of Web 2.0 systems differs from larger enterprise system adoption projects. This is rooted in the lower implementation and maintenance costs as well as lower technical complexity of Web 2.0 systems. Furthermore, its voluntary characteristics lead to an adoption process that focuses mainly on convincing users of its benefits

Employment Relations And Bullying In Academia: A Case Of Academic Staff At Makerere University

While institutions of higher learning are ordinarily believed to be the epitome of knowledge and custodians of focal principles that guide sound practices and performance, they are certainly not immune to the prowl of bullying and mobbing, which are antecedents to poor employment relations. This article presents results of a study conducted to examine the nature of employment relations and the prevalence of bullying amongst academic staff at Makerere University. It analyses the prevalence, perceptions, and manifestations of bullying; the nature of employment relations and the existing supportive systems to deal with the vice at this premier university of the eastern and central African region. Results show that bullying and mobbing exist in University academic units. It has thrived on deficiencies in legal and policy framework, poor leadership styles and centralised control of decision-making, the nature of the working environment characterised by scanty resources and facilitation support to task holders. In spite of its incessant nature, it is often trivialized and relegated as a non-issue that deserve little, if any, serious attention. The authors posit that tolerating a culture of human abuse in any form undermines the very essence of a higher institution of learning. Thus, the university must develop a respectful organizational culture that fortifies colleagueship and harmonious coexistence through policy and open systems of communication with empowerment and participatory decision-making. Effort should be made to invigorate rigorous academic debate, research, and other scholarly endeavours, that promote intellectual resonance, as opposed to schemes of undermining practices

A methodology for the 'live' capture and reuse of project knowledge in construction

The importance of capturing and sharing useful knowledge from construction projects has been recognised by the construction industry. However, issues such as the loss of important insights due to the time lapse in capturing the knowledge, the need for sharing the knowledge captured as soon as possible in order to maximise the benefits brought about by reusing the knowledge, and the need to share the knowledge before the opportunities for reusing the knowledge diminish have not been adequately addressed. To address this, it is crucial for knowledge to be captured as soon as possible once it is created or identified (i.e. 'live') in a collaborative environment, and presented in a format that will facilitate its reuse during and after the project. This research was aimed at developing a methodology that facilitates the `live' capture and reuse of project knowledge in construction. An extensive literature review was first conducted on the concept of knowledge management and the current practices for managing project knowledge. Subsequently, case studies involving six companies were carried out to investigate the shortcomings of current practice and the end-user requirements for the capture and reuse of project knowledge. These requirements informed the development of the methodology for `live' capture and reuse of project knowledge. The Web IS Development Methodology (Avison and Fitzgerald, 2003) employing ASP. NET 2.0 was adopted to encapsulate the methodology into a Web-based prototype application. The evaluation of the prototype revealed that the methodology can enable project knowledge to be captured and shared `live' across different organisations without significant additional workload and costs. It is concluded that the `live' capture and reuse of project knowledge in construction is important in preventing knowledge loss and helping to harness the project knowledge captured. A combination of both KM technologies and techniques is essential for the effective management of tacit and explicit knowledge. The prototype application developed can facilitate the `live' capture and reuse of project knowledge as shown by the results of the evaluation. There is scope for enhancing this study by exploring the integration of the prototype application with other information systems, and the use of software agents to automatically locate useful knowledge from the Internet and project extranets. The methodology developed will help construction organisation to leverage their knowledge in a timely way to meet the challenge of today's fast evolving world

Social Knowledge Environments

Knowledge management represents a key issue for both information systems’ academics and practitioners, including those who have become disillusioned by actual results that fail to deliver on exaggerated promises and idealistic visions. Social software, a tremendous global success story, has prompted similarly high expectations regarding the ways in which organizations can improve their knowledge handling. But can these expectations be met, whether in academic research or the real world? This article seeks to identify current research trends and gaps, with a focus on social knowledge environments. The proposed research agenda features four focal challenges: semi-permeable organizations, social software in professional work settings, crowd knowledge, and crossborder knowledge management. Three solutions emerge as likely methods to address these challenges: designoriented solutions, analytical solutions, and interdisciplinary dialogue

Implementing Web Technologies as Organizational Communication Media: A Study of Employee Adoption Likelihood

As an indicator of adoption likelihood, we studied employee dispositions that impact Perceived Usefulness (PU) of several Web technologies as organizational media. We also examined the acceptability of organization-owned platforms as informal communication media by employee. Employees were studied across two countries with different levels of infrastructure maturity—Spain and Nigeria. Results show that PU of Web technologies is positively impacted by employee usage habits, perceived capacity to facilitate image enhancement, use by persons with whom the employee wishes to relate and the availability of media options on the same platform. Previous notion that PU is positively impacted by media richness was not supported. Results also suggest employee unwillingness to use organization-owned media for informal communication except for job-related conversations that could enhance performance. We recommend approach to planning Web technologies implementation as effective organizational media

A pragmatic cluster randomised trial evaluating three implementation interventions

Background Implementation research is concerned with bridging the gap between evidence and practice through the study of methods to promote the uptake of research into routine practice. Good quality evidence has been summarised into guideline recommendations to show that peri-operative fasting times could be considerably shorter than patients currently experience. The objective of this trial was to evaluate the effectiveness of three strategies for the implementation of recommendations about peri-operative fasting. Methods A pragmatic cluster randomised trial underpinned by the PARIHS framework was conducted during 2006 to 2009 with a national sample of UK hospitals using time series with mixed methods process evaluation and cost analysis. Hospitals were randomised to one of three interventions: standard dissemination (SD) of a guideline package, SD plus a web-based resource championed by an opinion leader, and SD plus plan-do-study-act (PDSA). The primary outcome was duration of fluid fast prior to induction of anaesthesia. Secondary outcomes included duration of food fast, patients' experiences, and stakeholders' experiences of implementation, including influences. ANOVA was used to test differences over time and interventions. Results Nineteen acute NHS hospitals participated. Across timepoints, 3,505 duration of fasting observations were recorded. No significant effect of the interventions was observed for either fluid or food fasting times. The effect size was 0.33 for the web-based intervention compared to SD alone for the change in fluid fasting and was 0.12 for PDSA compared to SD alone. The process evaluation showed different types of impact, including changes to practices, policies, and attitudes. A rich picture of the implementation challenges emerged, including inter-professional tensions and a lack of clarity for decision-making authority and responsibility. Conclusions This was a large, complex study and one of the first national randomised controlled trials conducted within acute care in implementation research. The evidence base for fasting practice was accepted by those participating in this study and the messages from it simple; however, implementation and practical challenges influenced the interventions' impact. A set of conditions for implementation emerges from the findings of this study, which are presented as theoretically transferable propositions that have international relevance. Trial registration ISRCTN18046709 - Peri-operative Implementation Study Evaluation (POISE