Collective knowledge and collective strategy : a function of symbiotic knowledge for business-university alliances (Working paper series ; no.57)

Abstract

This paper combines the concept of Collective Knowledge with the one of Collective Strategy, which will be to give new foundations on the theory of knowledge management.Depending on four types of Collective Strategies, corres ponding types of Collective Knowledge is created. One type of Collective Knowledge, Symbiotic Knowledge, stands out as it embodies a new dimension for problem solving by a usage of collaboration with different field of expertise. The applicability of Symbiotic Knowledge is exemplified by the business-university-government alliances in Toyama, Japan. The selection of who to invite as participants plays a decisively important role in knowledge creation. The symbiotic knowledge creation is limited by those who are allowed to participate in the organization. In this process, the coordinators play the most important role for the performance of inter-organizational alliances