The ShaRInK framework: a holistic perspective on key categories of influences shaping individual perceptions of knowledge sharing

Purpose – This paper aims to present a holistic framework, termed ShaRInK (Sharer, Relations, Institution, Knowledge), that depicts key categories of influences that shape individual perceptions of knowledge sharing within an organisational setting. Design/methodology/approach – An exploratory and qualitative case study strategy in which empirical data were gathered from 24 interviewees that were based in four different branches (i.e. China, The Netherlands, the UK and the USA) of a single information technology services organisation. Findings – The findings led to a holistic framework that depicts four key categories of influences that shape knowledge sharing from an individual perspective: attitudes and characteristics of the sharers, relations between the sharers, institutions which act as a united entity on sharer perceptions and knowledge itself. Furthermore, the four key influences not only shape knowledge sharing independently but are intertwined and have a synergistic effect. The ShaRInK framework is formed by combining these. Originality/value – The findings indicate that knowledge sharing from an individual-level perspective is a more complex phenomenon than currently portrayed in the literature. All four key influences, each being fundamentally different in nature, and their relationships should be taken into account. Equally, the ShaRInK framework can be applied by organisations when developing a knowledge-sharing strategy or auditing existing strategies

Absorptive capacity: a process and structure approach

The aim of this study is to understand and explain different dimensions of absorptive capacity and the strategies used in practice to realise it. The theoretical and conceptual contribution of the study lies in the adoption of a dual process and structure approach, aiming at identifying, respectively, how learning takes place and what learning takes place. The study is based upon a case study research design to explore the manifestation of absorptive capacity processes and its relationship to knowledge structures in four company case studies. The findings of the research indicate that knowledge acquisition, transformation and integration involve successive iterations of codification, abstraction and diffusion of knowledge in relation to product concepts, process requirements and problem-solving approaches. This relates to the capability to adopt, simultaneously, different trajectories in terms of knowledge exploration and knowledge exploitation strategies. The combined adoption of these different strategies enables both strategic and operational flexibility and underlies the successful realisation of absorptive capacity

Bletchley Park : an untold story in Information Science

This paper explores the view of Bletchley Park (BP) as an untold story in Information Science. While a substantial amount of literature relating to the site and its operations has been published, these primarily focus on military and intelligence history, or technical and mathematical subjects, with limited coverage in information science. We argue that there is an untold story of BP as a complex information arena

Qualidade do azeite e sua relação com a cultivar e o clima em Portugal

A qualidade do azeite pode ser um elemento diferenciador, permitindo a prática de melhores preços num mercado cada vez mais competitivo. Os constituintes que mais têm sido apontados como tendo propriedades benéficas para a saúde são a composição acídica elevada em monoinsaturados, os valores elevados de tocoferóis, nomeadamente do atocoferol (vitamina E), e de polifenóis. A cultivar, a temperatura e o índice de maturação são variáveis que influenciam alguns dos parâmetros que estão associados à qualidade do azeite. No âmbito do projeto Futurolive, financiado pela FCT, as cultivares Arbequina, Cobrançosa, Galega, Picual e Verdeal foram ensaiadas em Mirandela, Santarém, Elvas e/ou Moncarapacho (Algarve) durante 2 anos. Fizeram-se medições nas plantas, na atmosfera e no solo. No azeite extraído em todas as localizações e olivais, fizeram-se análises detalhadas (análise sensorial, acidez, índice de peróxidos, espectrofotometria, horas rancimat, tocoferóis, polifenóis, esteróis, ácidos gordos totais, e triglicéridos). Todas as amostras foram classificadas como azeite Virgem Extra, obtiveram na análise sensorial uma classificação final igual ou superior a 6,5 e índices de peróxidos, na generalidade dos casos, muito inferiores a 20 meq 0 2 kg· 1 . As cultivares Picual e Verdeal distinguiram-se por valores muito superiores de horas de rancimat, A 'Cobrançosa' e 'Galega' apresentam os valores mais elevados de a-tocoferol. A concentração de polifenóis e de ácido oleico foi mais elevada na 'Verdeal' e 'Picual'. A localização parece ter influência nos teores de a-tocoferol, sendo que em Mirandela estes teores foram consistentemente mais elevados. Os teores de polifenóis são muito influenciados pelo índice de maturação. Relações entre a temperatura durante a maturação e as concentrações dos principais parâmetros associados à qualidade são apresentadas e discutidas. Consequências do aumento da temperatura devido às alterações climáticas são discutidas