Knowledge management: Literature review and findings about perceptions of knowledge transfer in collaborative and process-oriented teams

There is a growing consensus about the importance of organizational knowledge as a basis of competition and operational effectiveness in today's technology-rich and hyper-competitive global economy.; This study builds a unified view of Knowledge Management (KM) philosophy and frameworks articulated in the literature and, thereby, facilitates understanding of KM concepts. It also focuses on the transfer of organizational knowledge. Two methods were used for data collection: a literature review and a Knowledge Transfer (KT) survey. The literature review summarized the concepts of KM articulated by scholars, theorists, economists, and industrial practitioners to date. The KT survey comprised attitudinal and demographic items, which concern (a) perception about transfer of organizational knowledge in a collaborative and process-oriented environment and (b) demographic characteristics of the respondents. A panel of five experts assisted in validating the content of the instruments. The sample of the study included three medium-sized teams of the AeroCo. The pilot study ran an actual sample with five randomly selected members from each of the teams.; The literature review found no consensus on organizational knowledge, KM, or approaches to KM initiatives used in industry. Writers on this subject all view KM as a process that unfolds over time and links with knowledge acquisition and improved performance. They differ on whether one should develop the KM concept in accordance with information theory or the theory of human resources. The findings yielded a comprehensive picture of research studies in KM to date.; Descriptive statistics of the KT survey responses showed strong positive responses to all attitudinal items concerning (a) knowledge transfer during the key routine activities of a collaboration, (b) process and collaborative technology, and (c) management effects. The findings indicated that organizational knowledge is transferred effectively in the best practices of a collaborative and process-oriented environment.; Cross-tabulation analysis indicated that responses to three attitudinal items of the KT survey were related to the level of education and the sex of the respondents. It implied that a human factor affects knowledge transfer. In a broader perspective, the study supported the human characteristics of organizational knowledge that theorists perceive to be required in a proper environment for growth.