Chen, L and Mohamed, S (2010) The strategic importance of tacit knowledge management activities in construction. Construction Innovation, 10(2), pp. 138-163. ISSN 1471-4175
Abstract
Purpose – Tacit knowledge is perceived as the most strategically important resource of the construction organisation, and the only renewable and sustainable base for its activities and competitiveness. Knowledge management (KM) activities that deal with tacit knowledge are essential in helping an organisation to achieve its longterm organisational objectives. The purpose of this paper is to provide empirical evidence for the stronger strategic role of tacit KM in comparison to explicit KM. Design/methodology/approach – A questionnaire survey was administered in 2005 to a sample of construction contractors operating in Hong Kong to elicit opinions on the internal business environment, intensity of KM activities as executed by targeted organisations, and contribution of these activities to business performance (BP). A total of 149 usable responses were received from 99 organisations representing about 38 per cent of the sampling frame. The statistical analyses helped to map the reported KM activities into two groups that, respectively, deal with tacit and explicit knowledge. The sensitivity to variations of organisational policies and strength of association with BP in relation to the two groups of KM activities were also compared empirically. A total of 15 interviews with the managerial and professional staff of leading contractors was undertaken to provide insightful narratives of KM implementations. Findings – The effective implementation of organisational policies, such as encouraging innovations and strengthening strategic guidance for KM, would facilitate human interactions of tacit KM. Higher intensity of activities in managing tacit knowledge would ultimately help the organisations to achieve economic gain in the long run. Originality/value – The stronger strategic role of tacit KM is empirically investigated and established within the context of construction organisations.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | balanced scorecard; construction industry; Hong Kong; knowledge management; strategic management; tacit knowledge |
| Index terms: | explicit knowledge, interview, survey, questionnaire, business performance, evidence, strengthening, methodology, variation, narrative, strategic management, knowledge management, construction contractor, tacit knowledge, Hong Kong, construction organization, balanced scorecard, statistical analysis, competitiveness, sampling, construction industry, interaction, implementation |
| Subjects: | practitioner, organization, data collection methods, evaluation and assessment methods, data science, knowledge management, contractual arrangements, professional development, qualitative and interpretive research, Geography, contractual condition, research methods, management, structural engineering, performance measurement, behavioral psychology, industry analysis, market analysis |
| Topics: | Contract Administration, Quality Management, Procurement, Roles and Professions, Engineering Principles, Information Management, Research Practice, Geographical Context, Business Strategy |
| Descriptive scope: | 5 PCTEA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here