Purpose: Knowledge strategy and its planning are affected by uncertainty and environmental turbulence. This paper aims to discuss these issues and present knowledge strategy planning as an integrated approach for facing these conditions. Design/methodology/approach: Based on an extensive survey and an original re-elaboration of the literature, the paper addresses these research questions: What is the meaning of knowledge strategy, and how can it be related to concepts such as strategic thinking, business strategy and knowledge management (KM) in organizations? What are the limitations of a pure rational approach to knowledge strategy in turbulent environments and under uncertainty? and What approaches can be consequently proposed to formulate knowledge strategies? Findings: The study provides a critical reading of the current literature. Also, it proposes an integrated approach that sees planning as a continuous effort of learning and adaptation to needs and opportunities that dynamically emerge from daily practices. Research limitations/implications: The proposed framework can inspire a new research agenda to detect how knowledge strategies are planned in companies and how they are continuously adapted on the basis of a dialog between rational contributions and perceptions of reality, practical views, intuitions and emotions. This can also inspire a new agenda for company strategists and KM professionals. Originality/value: In the literature, little attention has been devoted to knowledge strategy planning. The paper contributes to fill this gap and proposes a new way to see knowledge strategy as an integration of rational thinking and dynamic learnin

During the COVID pandemic, many companies, schools, and public organizations all around the world asked their employees to work from home i.e. to adopt what are called “smart working” modalities. This has and will presumably have a serious impact on both employees and employers, which still needs to be clarified and investigated: indeed, if smart working becomes a common working modality, this may have a significant impact on both organizations and employees. This paper reports the results of an online survey of “smart workers” in Italy during the COVID pandemic, when a great number of employees suddenly moved to working from home with no or little preparation. The study offers interesting indications about the involvement and usefulness perception of smart working by the sampled people and makes it possible to single out different categories of employees based on their attitude towards this modality. Also, it points out the potential impact on socialization among colleagues, and the consequent implications for knowledge sharing and knowledge management. From the collected responses, a fully positive or negative conclusion about working from home was not possible, nor a clear indication about the efficiency and effectiveness of this working modality. The analysis, instead, highlighted the presence of different but numerically similar groups of people, i.e. those who were not satisfied at all with the experience, those who were very satisfied, and those who were “undecided”. Furthermore, respondents underlined the importance and the difficulty to maintain working contacts and the intense use of communication systems made for this purpose. Lastly, collected opinions on positive and negative aspects of working from home provided some practical suggestions about how to successfully implement this solution.

No abstract

The paper illustrates and discusses the findings of a systematic literature review on CoPs focusing on papers published in the most influential Knowledge Management and Intellectual Capital Journals

No abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the knowledge management (KM) approach followed by small companies. In particular, after introducing the notion of emergent approach, the paper aims to examine if that notion is useful to properly describe the way small businesses approach their KM activities.\ud Design/methodology/approach – The study is based on the results of a qualitative survey involving 12 owners and managers of small companies belonging to the knowledge-intensive business services (KIBS) sector. The survey uses the case-study method.\ud Findings – The findings confirm that the approach to KM adopted by small companies can be defined as emergent: in the analysed cases, there were no formal KM plans, despite the fact that the examined companies have all introduced various KM practices. This shows that there can be the need to define KM approaches that better fit smaller companies

In traditional sectors, due to the strong incidence of labour costs, the progressive delocalization of manufacturing activities in low-wage countries has been typically considered unavoidable. However, this process appears to be very different at national, industrial, and also corporate level. Empirical studies are needed to investigate the existing linkages among industry general conditions, each firm's global operations strategy and specific operative choices for implementing it. Presents empirical research on the patterns and the factors characterizing the international relocation of manufacturing followed by Italian clothing firms

Purpose This paper aims to categorise the approaches to knowledge management (KM) by companies. In the literature, there is no consensus on a universal or “best” approach to KM. Especially, this paper singles out and discusses the variegated features that characterise the implementation of KM by small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) having different characteristics. Design/methodology/approach A cluster analysis was used to detect the possible distinct traits of companies that have different approaches to KM. The unit of analysis is represented by small- and medium-sized knowledge intensive business services (KIBS) firms. Data were collected by means of an extensive survey of 223 companies in different European countries and sectors. Findings Three clusters were identified: Companies showing a relative “unconscious” attention to KM and implementing KM practices without particular awareness; Companies adopting a more conscious approach and using a significant number of KM practices; and companies with a marginal propensity towards KM. Research limitations/implications This study considers only KIBS, and future research should include other economic sectors. In addition, a convenience sample was used. Practical implications This paper improves awareness of managers of small companies concerning different KM approaches that can be adopted. It highlights that a conscious adoption of a KM strategy involves the introduction of a set of consistent practices. Originality/value The topic of KM approaches by small companies is still underdeveloped in the literature. Also, the paper proposes a multi-contextual investigation that makes it possible to highlight the transversality of KM approaches across different countries or sectors.