12,842 research outputs found

    The Effects of Knowledge Embeddedness on the Diffusion of Case Technologies within Organizations

    Get PDF
    Systems development in organizations is well recognized as a knowledge-intensive effort. Since the relevant application domain knowledge is thinly spread across an organization, the acquisition, sharing, and integration of knowledge are significant activities during the development process. Advocates of computer-aided software engineering tools (CASE) claim that these tools offer a potentially valuable feature/\u27or facilitating such knowledge integration and management activities: the central repository\u27, which is a location for storing, retrieving, and maintaining a variety of applications development information. Yet, the effects of the CASE repository on the diffusion of the technology have received limited attention in prior research. This study exmnines whether the embedding ofapplications developmentknowledge withintheCASErepositoryinfluencesthediffusionoftheCASE technologyacross apphcations projects in organizations. We develop a consmmt called knowledge embeddedness, which refers to the extent to which relevant applications development knowledge is systematically populated within the CASE repository. Based on data gathered from 168 organizations, through a large-sample survey of CASE user groups, we found strong support for the relationship between kalowledge embeddedness and diffusion of CASE technology. These results have interesting implications for future research and practice

    Discourses on ICT and development.

    Get PDF
    Research on ICT and development (ICTD) involves assumptions on the nature of ICT innovation and on the way such innovation contributes to development. In this article I review the multidisciplinary literature on ICTD and identify two perspectives regarding the nature of the ICT innovation process in developing countries - as transfer and diffusion and as socially embedded action - and two perspectives on the development transformation towards which ICT is understood to contribute - progressive transformation and disruptive transformation. I then discuss the four discourses formed by combining the perspectives on the nature of IS innovation and on the development transformation. My review suggests that ICTD research, despite its remarkable theoretical capabilities to study technology innovation in relation to socio-economic context, remains weak in forming convincing arguments on IT-enabled socio-economic development.

    Securing intellectual capital:an exploratory study in Australian universities

    Get PDF
    Purpose – To investigate the links between IC and the protection of data, information and knowledge in universities, as organizations with unique knowledge-related foci and challenges.Design/methodology/approach – We gathered insights from existing IC-related research publications to delineate key foundational aspects of IC, identify and propose links to traditional information security that impact the protection of IC. We conducted interviews with key stakeholders in Australian universities in order to validate these links.Findings – Our investigation revealed two kinds of embeddedness characterizing the organizational fabric of universities: (1) vertical and (2) horizontal, with an emphasis on the connection between these and IC-related knowledge protection within these institutions.Research implications – There is a need to acknowledge the different roles played by actors within the university, and the relevance of information security to IC-related preservation.Practical implications – Framing information security as an IC-related issue can help IT security managers communicate the need for knowledge security with executives in higher education, and secure funding to preserve and secure such IC-related knowledge, once its value is recognized.Originality/value – This is one of the first studies to explore the connections between data and information security and the three core components of IC’s knowledge security in the university context

    Innovation processes and industrial districts

    Get PDF
    In this survey, we examine the operations of innovation processes within industrial districts by exploring the ways in which differentiation, specialization, and integration affect the generation, diffusion, and use of new knowledge in such districts. We begin with an analysis of the importance of the division of labour and then investigate the effects of social embeddedness on innovation. We also consider the effect of forms of organization within industrial districts at various stages of product and process life, and we examine the negative aspects of embeddedness for innovation. We conclude with a discussion of the possible consequences of new information and communications technologies on innovation in industrial districts

    Inter-organizational learning in drifting environments - Experiences from a multi-firm software development project

    Get PDF
    This paper examines conditions under which organizations can acquire and profitably utilise knowledge generated in joint product development ventures. Past research states that such learning depends on relationships between knowledge accumulation at the level of joint venture and the evolution of knowledge structures in the wider organizational environment. An important argument of this paper is that such relationships might drift abruptly due to unforeseen events taking place during project operation, creating new challenges and opportunities for learning. Drawing upon previous research on project-based learning, the paper proposes a model of interorganizational learning aimed to help managers and researchers visualising links between drift and learning in distributed project contexts. The paper illustrates and assesses the empirical relevance of the analytical framework through a case study of a multi-firm product development project in the European software industry.

    The Effect of Alliance Block Membership on Innovative Performance

    Get PDF
    Alliance, membership, Innovation, performance

    How change agents and social capital influence the adoption of innovations among small farmers: Evidence from social networks in rural Bolivia

    Get PDF
    "This paper presents results from a study that identified patterns of social interaction among small farmers in three agricultural subsectors in Bolivia—fish culture, peanut production, and quinoa production—and analyzed how social interaction influences farmers' behavior toward the adoption of pro-poor innovations. Twelve microregions were identified, four in each subsector, setting the terrain for an analysis of parts of social networks that deal with the diffusion of specific sets of innovations. Three hundred sixty farmers involved in theses networks as well as 60 change agents and other actors promoting directly or indirectly the diffusion of innovations were interviewed about the interactions they maintain with other agents in the network and the sociodemographic characteristics that influence their adoption behavior. The information derived from this data collection was used to test a wide range of hypotheses on the impact that the embeddedness of farmers in social networks has on the intensity with which they adopt innovations. Evidence provided by the study suggests that persuasion, social influence, and competition are significant influences in the decisions of farmers in poor rural regions in Bolivia to adopt innovations. The results of this study are meant to attract the attention of policymakers and practitioners who are interested in the design and implementation of projects and programs fostering agricultural innovation and who may want to take into account the effects of social interaction and social capital. Meanwhile, scholars of the diffusion of innovations may find evidence to further embrace the complexity and interdependence of social interactions in their models and approaches." from Author's AbstractSocial networks, Agricultural innovation, Change agent, Social capital,
    corecore