Willie Golden

Training the knowledge worker: a descriptive study of training practices in Irish software companies

The IT workforce of a company may embody its most important strategic asset. Such an asset needs to be managed. At a company level, measures that support and encourage knowledge transfer amongst employees can help minimise the effect of the loss of skilled staff. This paper details the results of a survey administered to 200 employees across 39 software companies in Ireland. The study assessed the impact of training practices on employee retention, gathered data on the effects of training initiatives, the types of training in use, and the influence of training on knowledge retention. Results demonstrate that organisational attitudes and provision for training relate positively to employee expectations and requirements. Well‐engineered training initiatives lead to increased organisational strength, job‐related employee competencies, and job satisfaction. Training helps in retaining knowledge within the organisation, but may not help in retaining employees. Almost one third of respondents believe that training received has not helped to reduce job‐related stress and more than one quarter indicate that their organisation does not structure training based on employee feedback on requirements.

How Internet technologies impact information flows in R&D: reconsidering the technological gatekeeper

Previous studies have firmly established the technological gatekeeper to be a key node in the innovation process – acquiring, translating, and disseminating external information throughout the R&D unit. However, the gatekeeper concept has received modest attention in recent times. We argue that the concept needs to be re-examined in light of the recent advances in Internet technologies that have dramatically altered how knowledge workers source and share their information. Drawing on social network analysis and interview evidence from a medical devices R&D group, we find that the gatekeeper role is still vital, but no longer needs to be performed by a single individual. Instead, the modern R&D group can keep abreast of the latest technological advances through a combination of Internet-enabled internal and external communication specialists. This study makes a number of important contributions. The gatekeeper theory is extended through the development of an updated conceptual framework. We also discuss the practical implications of our findings and advise R&D managers on how to organise resources to maximise optimal information flows.

Digitising the R&D social network: revisiting the technological gatekeeper

This paper examines how the digitisation of the social network, and the resulting interplay between its online and offline components, has impacted the role of the technological gatekeeper in research and development (R&D) settings. Previous studies have firmly established the technological gatekeeper to be a key node in the innovation process – acquiring, translating and disseminating novel information throughout the R&D social network. Drawing on social network analysis and interview evidence from a software R&D group, we find that the gatekeeper role has undergone a division of labour. Theoretically, we contribute to the body of knowledge by developing an updated technological gatekeeper conceptual framework. For practitioners, we identify the competencies exhibited by the small number of communication specialists who are largely responsible for diffusing novel information. We then advise practitioners how to maximise the contribution of these ‘stars’ to the information flow network.

It's About Time: Investigating The Temporal Parameters Of Decision-Making In Agile Teams

2012 International Conference On Information Systems Development (ICIS 2012), Orlando, Florida, USA, 16 19 December 2012

Analyzing R&D Knowledge Flows In The Flat World

Abstract Previous research has firmly established the importance of informal social networks in facilitating knowledge flows in research and development (R&D) settings. However, the explosion of Web technologies in recent years have ’flattened’ the planet and dramatically altered our understanding of what constitutes a social network. Despite this, current research has neglected to examine how Web technologies have impacted knowledge flows in R&D. To address this research gap, we revisit the highly influential technological gatekeeper theory. Drawing on social network analysis (SNA) and interview evidence from a medical devices R&D group, we find that the gatekeeper role is still vital, but no longer needs to be performed by a single individual. Instead, the modern R&D group can keep abreast of the latest technological advances through a combination of Web-enabled internal and external communication specialists. A unique contribution this paper makes to the IT-enabled social network literature is the development of an updated conceptual framework of how the gatekeeper role is performed in the modern R&D group.

Knowledge Diffusion in Contemporary RD Re-Examining The Role Of The Technological Gatekeeper

Knowledge flows are the lifeblood of any R&D organisation. These firms are increasingly discovering that the knowledge they require is often located beyond their boundaries. In this paper, we investigate how R&D groups acquire and diffuse external knowledge and the role Internet technologies play in this process. The focus of our study is on the technological gatekeeper. Previous studies have found that gatekeepers are key nodes in the innovation process. These sporadic individuals have the skills to identify useful knowledge outside the firm and disseminate this among their local colleagues. However, much of the seminal gatekeeper research has been conducted over two decades ago. In the time since, there have been huge advances in ICT and especially Internet technologies. These technologies have dramatically altered how knowledge workers source and share their information. Our objective is to advance the gatekeeper theory into an era where the knowledge worker is saturated with information. Using case study methods, we examine knowledge flows in the R&D group of an Irish medical devices firm. Our results indicate that due to advances in Internet technology, the traditional gatekeeper no longer exists to any great extent. Instead, the modern R&D group acquires and diffuses external knowledge through a combination of a “Web star” and a “knowledge transformer.”

Enterprise personal analytics: The next frontier in individual information systems research

Enterprise Personal Analytics: The Next Frontier in Individual Information Systems Research