Examining knowledge transfer and networks: an overview of the last twenty years

Abstract

Purpose Knowledge transfer (KT) has been attracting significant attention from the scientific community. The need to establish collaborative network relationships to achieve effective KT has led to a large volume of studies that attempt to identify how collaborative networks influence KT processes. However, papers, which link KT and networks have not been systematised. This study aims to provide an overview of this academic field and sets an agenda for future research. Design/methodology/approach The authors followed the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses method to conduct a systematic review of the literature published in 2000–2020. The authors sourced the sample from the Web of Science and Scopus databases. The authors screened the references under the management and business categories that were published in the first two quartiles of the Journal Citation Report. This search returned 190 impactful papers across the 53 journals that were analysed. Findings The authors present the main results in two sections. First, this paper elaborates a conceptual model of the field; second, the authors review KT between firms and other agents, which allows us to identify KT flows within and between companies, universities and public institutions. Originality/value This paper provides the first systematic review of collaborative networks and KT. Five areas of action are identified for future research and are specified in several research questions. The authors also provide several practical implications. In a world in which more and more dynamic agents coexist, it is important to be aware of the needs of organisations that create and disseminate specific knowledge.

Revisiting online academic networks within the COVID-19 pandemic – From the intellectual capital of knowledge networks towards institutional knowledge capitalization

“…Knowledge networks are collections of individuals and teams who come together across organizational, spatial, and disciplinary boundaries to invent and share a body of knowledge. According to Schutte and du Preez (2008), knowledge networks imply several actors and resources, whose relationship bring about knowledge capture, knowledge transfer (Ferrer-Serrano et al, 2022), and knowledge creation for the purpose of creating added value. These networks develop to create value by collecting and implementing knowledge, mainly via access to and capitalization of the IC dimensions, namely via the human, relational and structural capital (V at am anescu et al, 2016).…”

“…Knowledge networks are collections of individuals and teams who come together across organizational, spatial, and disciplinary boundaries to invent and share a body of knowledge. According to Schutte and du Preez (2008), knowledge networks imply several actors and resources, whose relationship bring about knowledge capture, knowledge transfer (Ferrer-Serrano et al. , 2022), and knowledge creation for the purpose of creating added value.…”

External business knowledge transmission: a conceptual framework

“…While there is extensive literature on knowledge management processes (Martelo-Landroguez and Cegarra-Navarro, 2014), there is a noticeable lacuna in research which specifically examines the transference processes (or connections) between external PBAs’ knowledge and their advisory knowledge transmission actions. Ferrer-Serrano et al (2022, p. 2023) identify that there is a “need to create mechanisms to facilitate [knowledge transfer] practices to address the difficulties detected”. This need underpins the development of a framework specifically for evaluating those facilitating mechanisms, specifically the knowledge transmission aspect.…”

“…They discern that simply making knowledge available is not representative of knowledge transference, that only when new knowledge is applied can transference be acknowledged. As argued by Ferrer-Serrano et al (2022), there is a need to create mechanisms to facilitate the process, this study presents a framework to explore the transmission mechanisms embedded in the process when knowledge external to the organisation is provided. It presents a structure that focuses on the process of intentionally transmitting knowledge from an external knowledge source, the PBA, to a receiver (business client), and therefore uses the term “knowledge transmission”.…”

An Integrated Paradigm for Managing Efficient Knowledge Transfer: Towards a More Comprehensive Philosophy of Transferring Knowledge in the Construction Industry

“…Most organisations have well-defined procedures for knowledge transfer (Zhou, et al, 2020). However, merely implementing a knowledge transfer method will not be sufficient to ensure success in knowledge transfer (Ferrer-Serrano, Fuentelsaz and Latorre-Martinez, 2021). Instead, organisations must be proactive in implementing such formal procedures (López-Sáez, et al, 2021).…”