Knowledge Management/ Organizational Learning in MNC´s

Learning within and as an organization is seen as a prerequisite to adapt to continuously changing conditions in the business environment and, therefore, as a critical factor concerning the survival of today`s organizations. "New knowledge provides the basis for organizational renewal and sustainable competitive advantage" (Inkpen, 1998, p. 69). In a highly competitive global environment, the management of the knowledge and learning within multinational organizations will be a key challenge for managers. The proposed research project aims to identify key aspects which have an impact on the successful management of knowledge assets within a multinational environment. In particular, the processes of knowledge sharing and knowledge transfer in and between learning organizations are investigated. Moreover, our research aims to enter a new field of research on knowledge management and learning organizations by focusing on two main aspects: 1. Linking different knowledge management approaches of multinational companies to different strategies. 2. Knowledge management, inter-organizational knowledge sharing and learning within a multinational company. Besides, the proposed research project contributes to fill existing gaps in the research on organizational learning and learning organizations. It focuses on the process of (individual and collective) knowledge sharing and organizational learning in general, the process of transferring individually shared knowledge into collective knowledge in particular, the contextual preconditions for knowledge sharing and learning, knowledge sharing and learning in an international context, i.e. taking into account national differences. To answer our research questions, we developed two models of knowledge management strategy and knowledge sharing in multinational organizations. Together, the proposed models provide a holistic picture of knowledge management in multinational organizations. They analyze the impact of the value discipline on the knowledge management strategy and the process of inter-organizational knowledge sharing and its various influencing variables. The research method we use is a combination of the testing of hypotheses and an explorative approach.

Knowledge Management (KM) has become a ubiquitous phenomenon both in the academic as well as in the corporate world. In fact, it has turned into one of the most prominent and widely discussed management concepts of the post-modern era. However, it is sometimes difficult to judge whether this apparent passion for KM will have a lasting effect or if it is simply another management fad. We have investigated KM activities and cross-site knowledge sharing in eight renowned Multinational Companies (MNCs). Three interviews with respondents from the top and upper management levels (mainly CEOs and CFOs) were each conducted in the headquarters and in two different subsidiaries located in Asia, Europe, North America, South Africa and South America respectively. One of the most interesting results of our study is that the importance of KM very much depends an the industry, the companys business and its strategy. The hypotheses we derived from our case study analysis is that High-Tech companies do not need KM to be successful. In contrast, for consulting companies, a well-established KM is a "must" to be successful. Nevertheless, the effective management of knowledge resources in MNCs can be seen as a main challenge for the top management. To understand the- mechanism of cross-site knowledge sharing, it is necessary to investigate its process and context. According to our analysis, the intensity of the process depends an the accessibility, the value attached to accessible knowledge, its utilization and finally the integration in the organizational memory (retention). We have found that KM activities are decreasing stepwise along these process factors. Knowledge accessibility is the first precondition for the process of cross-site knowledge sharing. Only if knowledge is accessible it can be processed further. Second, it is necessary that high value is attached to the accessible knowledge so that it can possibly be utilized by individuals. If utilized knowledge is finally retained by several forms of documentation or through norms, structure and processes, the organization learns. Furthermore our findings show interesting results concerning the single process factors: The more knowledge is accessible an a technical level, the less intense are the knowledge flows an a personal level. The degree of value the headquarters attaches to company-wide knowledge has an impact an the intensity of cross-site knowledge sharing. Apart from this mutual impact among the process factors, the intensity of cross-site knowledge sharing depends an various factors of the organizational and multinational context of the MNC. It is the degree of strategy relevance attached to knowledge that influences the intensity of cross-site knowledge sharing, and also the organizationas structure. Decentralized organizational structures encourage cross-site knowledge sharing an a personal level, whereas central decision-making and central control have a negative impact an cross-site knowledge sharing in general. Our results point out that networks across sites are highly encouraging cross-site knowledge sharing and are; thus, of` enormous importance when intensifying the process of exchange. Organizational culture has shown to have an impact insofar as that an increasing degree of participation and mistakes taken as learning opportunity support cross-site knowledge sharing. For consultancies the following findings are especially significant: For consultants, KM systems represent a "Janus face", because they benefit and damage their career. . Cultivating informal networks has a far more supportive effect an career development than knowledge codification. Despite the new media, geograph c as well as society-cultural distance proves to have a negative impact an cross-s te knowledge sharing. Therefore the multicultural environment must not be neglected in terms of KM in MNCs. Besides, language has turned out to be still a barrier to cross-site knowledge sharing, because employees` cognitive limitations of and emotional aversions to English as company language restrict its intensity.