This article explores the complexities of establishing knowledge-sharing practices between organizations through a case study of the creation of a database for energy efficiency measures relevant to the shipping sector. As researchers and policy-makers tend to point towards knowledge sharing and collaboration as means towards a more energy-efficient society, there is a need to better understand the knowledge sharing practices in such initiatives. The study is based upon extensive fieldwork where the first author was recruited to a collaborative network on energy efficiency in the shipping sector, to aid in the development of the collaboration while carrying out participatory-observational research in an ethnographic tradition. The study highlights the need to maintain realistic expectations for new knowledge-sharing collaborations, and the necessity to allow such arrangements to develop over time.
A qualitative synthesis is presented covering the literature on operational energy efficiency in shipping based on research from a sociotechnical perspective. Three themes were identified, using thematic analysis, as particularly significant for the management of energy: (i) cooperation, communication, and knowledge sharing between stakeholders; (ii) organizational information processing (cognitive bottlenecks and sense making practices); and (iii) professional education and training. We conclude that while previous research has uncovered many of the barriers to increasing energy efficiency, few studies have examined the interdependence of practices and technologies underlying organizational cognitive systems and change. The identified research gap calls for more longitudinal process-based case studies investigating the design, implementation, and use of information technologies supporting organizational planning and decision-making required for improving energy efficiency.
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