Knowledge management in innovation teams : a case study of an IT development institute in Taiwan

Abstract

This thesis focuses on how knowledge management activities are undertaken in innovation processes. The research adopts Snowden’s perspective of context management to refer to knowledge management in technological innovation. In particular, the research investigates knowledge management activities within a team context, rather than focusing on organisational knowledge management systems. Hence, this research raises the overall research question ‘how are knowledge management activities initiated and undertaken to enhance innovation activities,’ which were then broken down into three sub-questions.

This research investigates four IT R&D teams in an IT institute in Taiwan to explore how knowledge management related activities take place within technological innovation contexts.

A case study approach was adopted and through semi-structured interviews, team observation and documentary review data was collected to identify key themes, that aid in our understanding of knowledge management related processes within innovation teams. The literature review and the analysis of the data generated a conceptual model for team knowledge management which comprises eight elements, namely, project characteristics, R&D processes, R&D context, team operation, information systems, individual and team learning knowledge management in practice and innovation practice and performance.

The model evidences that on initiation of a project, specific project characteristics, a team’s R&D process and context, and a team’s operation are determinants of how information systems are used, how individual and team learning takes place, and how and what knowledge management activities are performed. By understanding these processes, teams are able to improve their innovation capabilities which may result in better innovation practice.

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