Joyline Makani

Towards a typology of knowledge-intensive organizations: determinant factors

Phrases such as ‘knowledge-intensive organizations’ (KIOs) and ‘knowledge-intensive firms’ (KIFs), have recently found common usage, describing the distinct activities and attributes of some organizations. But a review of the literature reveals a lack of consensus among scholars and practitioners on the definition of KIOs. What is also absent from the discussion is an agreement on the factors that differentiate KIOs from non-KIOs, and how those factors affect knowledge management (KM) theory and practice. The objective of this paper is to extend a typology of KIOs as a preliminary step to conducting research on these types of organizations. With the typology of KIOs presented in this paper, we hope to provide a basis of distinguishing these organizations from other organizations, and also to allow one to perform comparative organizational analysis. The typology will also help researchers identify which of the organizations are knowledge-intense, and the nature of their knowledge-intensity, so that they help these organizations in designing appropriate KM tools.

Effectuation, innovation and performance in SMEs: an empirical study

Purpose – Ever since Sarasvathy’s (2001) seminal article, scholars have sought to test effectuation’s affect on firm performance. Although recent work has begun the arduous process of testing effectuation’s effect on entrepreneurial performance, there is still much to learn about its impact on firm performance. One such area is the relationship between effectuation and innovation. The purpose of this paper is to first, propose a scale suitable to the explication of the effectuation construct relative to innovation. Second, it proposes a more parsimonious scale for the measurement of innovation. Third, these scales are tested relative to firm performance. Design/methodology/approach – This paper develops and tests a structural model, which investigates aspects of effectuation as mediators between innovation orientation and product/service innovation. This is accomplished using a sample of 169 electronic product manufacturing-based small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Subjective measures of performanc...

Classifying organizations by knowledge intensity – necessary next‐steps

Purpose – This study aims to empirically explore the key elements for classifying and differentiating knowledge‐intensive organizations (KIOs) from other traditional organizations.Design/methodology/approach – The studys conceptual framework is based on the prevailing propositions from the literature on KIOs and is explored using a survey of knowledge management (KM) professionals, a purposely selected community of practice (CoP).Findings – The results suggest that organizations can generally be divided into two groups – KIOs and non‐KIOs, and there appear to be some clear factors that differentiate KIOs from non‐KIOs according to the CoP.Research limitations/implications – This study lays a foundation for the systematic development and evaluation of KIOs and their KM practices. The results from this study can stimulate issue formulation and hypothesis generation for investigation by KM researchers and academics. The study focused on a few types of organizations drawn from the literature which may limit ...

Information Seeking Behaviours of Business Students and the Development of Academic Digital Libraries

Objectives - The objective of this project was to gain insight into the extent to which user information seeking behaviours should inform the design and development of digital libraries in an academic setting. Researchers conducted this study at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada to explore the information seeking behaviours of business students. Methods - The students participating in the study were enrolled in the School of Business Administration at Dalhousie University. The study was based on qualitative and quantitative data collected through a survey, in-depth semi-structured interviews, an observational study, and document analysis. Qualitative case study data was coded using QSR N6 qualitative data analysis software ( . The data was categorized using Atkinson’s Model of Business Information Users’ Expectations and Renda and Straccia‘s personalized collaborative digital library (DL) model. Atkinson’s model defines the expectations of business students in terms of cost, time, effort required, pleasure, and the avoidance of pain. Renda and Straccia’s model of a personalized and collaborative digital library centres around three concepts: actors, objects, and functionality. The survey data was analysed using Zoomerang software . Results - The study results revealed that students tend to select resources based on cost (free or for fee), accessibility, ease of use, speed of delivery (of results), and convenience. The results showed that similar to Atkinson’s findings, business students’ information seeking behaviour is influenced by the concepts of cost-benefit and break-even analyses that underlie business education. Concerning speed of delivery and convenience, the organization of the resources was paramount. Students preferred user-defined resource lists, alert services, and expert-created business resource collections. When asked about the usefulness of potential digital library functionalities, students valued a personalized user interface and communal virtual spaces in order to share information and communicate in real-time with their peers. Conclusion - This study reveals that when digital libraries are developed, user behaviours and needs should be taken into consideration. Results demonstrate that the activity as well as the “user’s orientation and motivation” (here the business student training) can directly influence the design and use of a digital tool. In other words, this study confirms a new typology of a business digital information user, one that requires the building of dedicated accredited library research systems. Providing information and information tools tailored to this specific audience is more likely to increase the appeal and use of an academic business digital library.

Knowledge management, research data management, and university scholarship

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to synthesize existing research on research data management (RDM), academic scholarship and knowledge management and provide a conceptual framework for an institutional research data management support-system (RDMSS) for systems development, managerial and academic use. Design/methodology/approach – Viewing RDMSS from multiple theoretical perspectives, including data management, knowledge management, academic scholarship and the practice-based perspectives of knowledge and knowing, this paper conceptually explores the systems’ elements needed in the development of an institutional RDM service by considering the underlying data discovery and application issues, as well as the nature of academic scholarship and knowledge creation, discovery, application and sharing motivations in a university environment. Findings – The paper provides general criteria for an institutional RDMSS framework. It suggests that RDM in universities is at the very heart of the knowledge life c...

A subject specialist-centric model for library resources management in academic libraries

Purpose The purpose of this study is to analyze factors affecting decision-making on libraries’ electronic resources management under the situation of tight budgets in Canadian research universities. Design/methodology/approach Interview was adopted to investigate library resources management leaders’ opinions from English-speaking university members of the Group of Canadian Research University Libraries. Findings A comprehensive model is developed for library resources’ management. Subject specialists are the key of the model integrating marketing roles and evaluation roles. Research limitations/implications The main limitations of this study are the small sample size of interview candidates, which may have application limitations on other types of libraries and universities in different areas. Practical implications This study generates a comprehensive model based on past research, contributing to future library decision-making practices. Originality/value It develops a subject specialist-centric model of library resources’ value assessment and brings the element of culture into future studies of academic library.