Øivind Revang

Knowledge and Value Creation in Professional Service Firms: A Framework for Analysis

This article presents a comprehensive framework for the analysis of value creation and knowledge development in general and, in particular, for professional service firms (PSFs). The framework integrates the relationship between the domain choice and the resource (or knowledge) base, and argues that the bridge between the two is best explained as value creation processes (VCPs) with two interrelated dimensions: direct value creation for the clients, and indirect value creation in terms of enhancing the knowledge base.

Knowledge Development through Client Interaction: A Comparative Study:

The present article extends a previously published framework for the analysis of knowledge development in professional service firms by looking deeper into the underlying dynamics of the components and processes described in the framework. This extension is based on an in-depth comparative case study of knowledge development in two professional service firms from two very different industries, namely, engineering design and communication consulting. Despite the major differences between the firms and the industries, we found some remarkable similarities in terms of how professionals perceive knowledge development at work, in particular, the emphasis on the role of sophisticated and knowledgeable clients. In this article, we elaborate on this aspect. As a result of these findings, the framework is further refined, as the areas where clients play a major role in the knowledge-development processes of professional service firms are highlighted.

Challenges to existing strategy theory in a postindustrial society

In the postindustrial era, firms are facing increasing complexity for a number of reasons, two of which are fundamentally altering the competitive context of firms and managers, namely knowledge and technology dissemination. In this article, we argue that these global changes at the societal as well as the individual level affect strategic management theory and practice in two ways: they alter the relationships between firms and external stakeholders (e.g., customers), and they alter the relationships between firms and internal stakeholders (e.g., employees). After briefly outlining the changes observed, we analyze a number of contributions to strategic management theorizing and argue that as researchers we tend to focus primarily on one of these dimensions of complexity: internal or external. We then continue by discussing how the postindustrial context will require fundamentally different approaches, as the dimensions of internal vs. external collapse, and as a result even the notion of an industry, becomes blurred. In this new context, we need to go beyond the theoretical lenses and paradigms we have been trained in, to explore the implications of these changes at a more fundamental level. For the traditional theories, we need to refocus attention on the underlying assumptions, in order to explore their areas of applicability and the limits to their relevance. In addition, we need to discover and invent new theories and approaches relevant to this specific context. Since we do not know at this point in time what the postindustrial organization may be, we must not limit our creativity as researchers nor as managers by prematurely investing in assumptions and frameworks which may turn out to be less than ideal for the new opportunities (and threats) to be discovered. We need to explore alternative solutions with managers dealing with extreme complexity on a day-to-day basis, try out alternative options and invent new ones, and more than ever be critical about the relevance of the existing body of knowledge as well as sensitive to the possibilities created in this new and exciting context.

The dynamics of intellectual property rights for trust, knowledge sharing and innovation in project teams

Abstract The research question is: How can intellectual property rights (IPRs) influence trust, attitudes, commitment, knowledge sharing, and innovation in inter-organisational project teams? The four strategically selected team cases include eight global knowledge-intensive industrial oil service companies in Norway. The methodology included 24 in-depth interviews done in 2016. The study finds that formal intellectual property rights are key to building up and keeping trust in the team and also for building up the right attitudes within the team. The IPRs increased the innovativeness in the team and incremental innovations. The IPRs fostered a unique knowledge sharing in these four teams enabling them to work towards innovative solutions and delivering in time. Formal IPŔs foster informal trust and expertise sharing and by that also the inter- organizational cooperation. The confidence and knowledge sharing strengthen the possibility for future collaboration and innovations both on an individual level and on a corporate level. The theoretical implication of our findings is that IPRs increase the trust, commitment, and attitudes within the team providing knowledge sharing and innovativeness for improved solutions and results. IPRs are positive for collaboration, and they are complementary governance mechanisms. The practical implication is that IPRs must be defined and accepted before the corporations start up the inter-organizational teamwork. The contract typology should in the start up be sensitizing giving directions and security and in the end definitive.

The Significance of Information Technology for Service Quality: From Market Segmentation to Individual Service

How information technology is rapidly becoming necessary for achieving quality in the airline industry is focused on. Three levels of service quality management are proposed in a strategic model: the standard service system; a complex service system; and a sensitive service system. The latter implies the integration of an advanced information culture with an advanced service culture. SAS is used as an empirical case to illustrate development to today′s practice and to compare present practice with the proposed strategy for tomorrow.

Working smarter and greener: Collaborative knowledge sharing in virtual global project teams

Abstract The purpose of this study is to explore how to facilitate the sharing of high-quality knowledge in a virtual global project team context. The most obvious finding from this study is that we can develop social interaction building up trust and share knowledge through online technology platforms without offline social interaction. The design and methodology are case studies of four Scandinavian virtual global project teams with a total of 42 team members. The survey is a longitude study in 2014-16 based upon 168 individual reports and 16 in-depth top leader interviews. Working smarter means using technology platforms for developing trust and knowledge collaboration to deliver business solutions and innovations. Working smarter mean to work in a global project team where the collaboration results develop the team into a high-performance team. Working more intelligent is sharing knowledge to improve innovation and collective and individual competence growth. Understanding that investment in top technology solutions are inexpensive compared to the results delivered by professional human resources. Working greener means to let the team members be aware of green solutions and innovations. Working greener means to travel less using the possibilities given by social technology platforms. The four teams reduced the number of trips by 50–70%. The result is less airline pollution, less stress, and more professional work.

Exploring the performance of tacit knowledge: How to make ordinary people deliver extraordinary results in teams

Abstract Our research question is how do we transform individual and collective tacit knowledge into collective, explicit and actionable knowledge in teams?. As our methodological approach, we conducted a longitudinal survey study from 2012 to 2014 to of two teams of staff employed with a Norwegian furniture manufacturer. Each team included designers, production engineers, and salespeople. The survey included the teams and the upper corporate team. The survey monitored the design, production and market processes involved in launching furniture to the marketplace (30 months). The teams decided to rotate their professional roles as designers, production engineers, and salespeople. This rotating role mechanism and socialization process encouraged the sharing of knowledge. The team members transformed their tacit knowledge into collective explicit knowledge, allowing it to deliver innovative results within a time limit. As a theoretical implication, we have found a workable means of transforming tacit, productive, individual and collective knowing into explicit actionable knowledge. Productive team knowledge was converted into tacit managerial knowledge in upper management personnel, enabling the group to translate knowledge into explicit business actions. We propose, as a general theory, that by rotating professional roles within a team individual tacit knowledge can be transformed into collective explicit knowledge. The productive team tacit knowledge that was transferred was identified as expert, nodding, familiarity and holistic knowledge. As a practical implication, we show that rotating professional roles within a team works when a team is afforded enough time to develop a socialization process. When professionals are given direction, trust, responsibility and time to develop results, they break out of their comfort zones and deliver extraordinary results together. As a practical implication, we show that this process can be planned, managed and controlled. Role rotation facilitates both the creation of high-performance teams and the transformation of tacit professional knowledge into explicit knowledge. The transformation of tacit knowledge into explicit knowledge helps increase efficiency and effectiveness in knowledge-intensive corporations. Therefore, practically, is it possible to create a corporate flywheel from tacit knowledge? The conversion of productive tacit knowledge into tacit managerial knowledge converted into specific business actions can create an explicit corporate flywheel while maintaining tacit knowledge as a competitive advantage.