Research On The Cluster-level Architectural Knowledge

Since the 1990s, the rapid development of industrial clusters has become a kind of the strategic forces for the countries and regions. The sustainable development of the cluster has been paid much attention, and more and more scholars are working on the cultivating and maintaining the competitive advantage of the cluster, therefore, the knowledge which is the source of cultivating the core-competitiveness of the cluster has been become the focus of academic study, and the knowledge management of the cluster has become a kind trend of the research. Currently, although some scholars has concerned about the technical, managerial, institutional and other knowledge that is more easily defined and represented, and this kind knowledge is component knowledge. They generally believe that knowledge can bring competitive advantage to the cluster. However, the mobility of this type of knowledge is relatively high, which can only bring short-term competitive advantage to the cluster (Tallman et al.,2004). As the source to maintain sustainable competitive advantage of industrial cluster, the cluster architecture knowledge was clearly put forward by Tallman in 2004, but without elaborating the specific contents of the cluster architecture knowledge and the forms of representation, which brings the scholars to an embarrassing position where they cannot do in-depth study of the cluster architecture knowledge. To make up this defect, the writer attempts to sweep aside the clouds, open the black-box of the cluster architecture knowledge, rich the knowledge management theory of the cluster, and provide theoretical reference and guidance for the cluster-related public policy makers, which has important theoretical value and practical significance.This paper uses the single case study method to research the cluster architecture knowledge, making Dalian Software Park for the study purpose, strictly according to scientific research process of the case study method. Firstly, based on clearing the concepts of the "industrial clusters" and "knowledge", the writer put forward the research questions and established the subject of the study. This article aims to study the content dimensions and characteristics of the cluster architecture knowledge. Secondly, the writer read and gave some comments about the relevant literature, which provided a theoretical proof for the case study. Thirdly, the writer made a scientific study design to ensure the reliability and validity of the case study, and made the idea of operational processes of a case study. Under the guidance of the study design, the writer did an overall data collection preparation, interviewed and collected secondary research materials according to the plan, scientifically classified and analysis the materials of the software park, and made out the dimensions for the case study. Fourthly, the case analysis was carried out. Based on interviews materials and secondary data analysis, the writer analyzed the component knowledge, the architecture knowledge and the relationship between them. Fifthly, based on the case analysis, a case discussion was conducted. The writer explored the content and the characteristics of the cluster's architecture knowledge, discussed the roles played by different types of architecture knowledge in the development of industrial clusters and the impacts on the maintaining the competitive advantage of the clusters, and summed up the characteristics of cluster's architecture knowledge according to interviews materials, which are very important for the policy-makers to make scientific and targeted policies for promoting the development of the cluster. Finally, conclusions were summarized. The writer summed up the contents of the cluster's architecture knowledge, which includes recognition of the strategies, conventional architecture knowledge, reciprocal architecture knowledge, industrial atmosphere, the collective reputation of the cluster, and institutional architecture knowledge. There are eight aspects of the characteristics about the cluster's architecture knowledge.This greatest innovation of this paper is that using the case study method the writer explored and summarized the dimensions of the contents and the characteristics of the cluster architecture knowledge, which provides a basic theoretical reference and guidance for the future study about the cluster architecture knowledge, and provide theoretical guidance for the cluster members to cultivate and maintain the competitive advantage of the cluster. Though the writer made the operation as scientific as possible, because of the limits of the time and energy, there are still areas to improve. You can have more attempts on the research methods, such as multiple cases research method and so on. There is a great space for extending the content of the study, such as furthering study on the creation or evolution mechanism of cluster's architecture knowledge. Therefore, there is much room for the future research on the cluster's architecture knowledge; this paper has made a fundamental but very valuable contribution to the cluster and knowledge management theory.This study is funded by the project "The Research on The Knowledge Contribution of the Electronic Practice Network in Perspective of the Social Capital".