Knowledge transfer in virtual systems development teams: An exploratory study of four key enablers

IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication

Volumn 48, Issue 2, 2005, Pages 201-218

  Sarker, Saonee ^a   Sarker, Suprateek ^a   Nicholson, Darren B ^a   Joshi, Kshiti D ^a  

^a WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY   (United States)

Author keywords

Cross cultural group work; Knowledge management; Knowledge transfer; Systems development; Virtual teams

Indexed keywords

DATA COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS; DISTRIBUTED COMPUTER SYSTEMS; ELECTRONIC COMMUNITIES; INFORMATION MANAGEMENT;

CROSS CULTURAL GROUP WORK; KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT; KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER; SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT; VIRTUAL TEAMS;

COMPUTER SUPPORTED COOPERATIVE WORK;

EID: 21044434515     PISSN: 03611434     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2005.849650     Document Type: Article

References (79)

1. I. Nonaka, "A dynamic theory of organizational knowledge creation," Org. Sci., vol. 5, no. 1, pp. 14-37, 1994.
2. S. L. Pan and H. Scarbrough, "A socio-technical view of knowledge-sharing at Buckman laboratories," J. Knowledge Manage., vol. 2, no. 1, pp. 55-66, 1998.
3. R. Hiebeler, "Benchmarking knowledge management," Strat. Leadership, vol. 24, no. 2, pp. 22-32, 1996.
4. S. L. Jarvenpaa and D. E. Leidner, "Communication and trust in global virtual teams," Org. Sci., vol. 10, no. 6, pp. 791-815, 1999.
5. J. Lipnack and J. Stamps, "Virtual teams: The new way to work," Strat. Leadership, vol. 27, no. 1, pp. 14-19, 1999.
6. C. S. Saunders, "Virtual teams: Piecing together the puzzle," in Framing the Domain of IT Management: Projecting the Future Through the Past, R. W. Zmud, Ed. Cincinnati, OH: PinnFlex Education Resources,, 2000, pp. 29-50.
7. E. Carmel, Global Software Teams. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1999.
8. A. B. Hollingshead and N. S. Contractor, "New media and organizing at the group level," in The Handbook of New Media, L. Lievrouw and S. Livingstone, Eds. London: Sage, 2002, pp. 221-235.
9. A. Rutkowski, D. Vogel, M. Genuchten, T. Bemelmans, and M. Favier, "E-collaboration: The reality of virtuality," IEEE Trans. Profess. Commun., vol. 45, no. 4, pp. 219-230, 2002.
10. D. Sole and A. Edmondson, "Bridging knowledge gaps: Learning in geographically dispersed cross-functional development teams," in The Strategic Management of Intellectual Capital and Organizational Knowledge, C. W. Choo and N. Bontis, Eds. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 2002, pp. 587-604.
11. S. Sarker and S. Sahay, "Implications of space and time for distributed work: An interpretive study of US-Norwegian systems development teams," Eur. J. Inform. Syst., vol. 13, no. 1, pp. 3-20, 2004.
12. S. Sarker and S. Sahay, "Understanding virtual team development: An interpretive study," J. AIS, vol. 4, no. 1, pp. 1-38, 2003.
13. G. Walsham, Making a World of Difference: IT in a Global Context. Chichester, UK: Wiley, 2001.
14. D. Robey, H. Khoo, and C. Powers, "Situated learning in cross-functional virtual teams," IEEE Trans. Profess. Commun., vol. 43, no. 1, pp. 51-66, 2000.
15. T. H. Davenport and L. Prusak, Working Knowledge: How Organizations Manage What They Know. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Bus. School Press, 1998.
16. D. J. Pauleen, "A grounded theory of virtual facilitation: Building relationships with virtual team members," Ph.D. dissertation, Victoria Univ. Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand, 2001.
17. B. C. Y. Tan, K. K. Wei, W. W. Huang, and G. Ng, "A dialogue technique to enhance electronic communication in virtual teams," IEEE Trans. Profess. Commun., vol. 43, no. 2, pp. 153-165, 2000.
18. D. Leonard and S. Sensiper, "The role of tacit knowledge in group innovation," in The Strategic Management of Intellectual Capital and Organizational Knowledge, C. W. Choo and N. Bontis, Eds. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 2002, pp. 485-499.
19. D. Cecez-Kecmanovic, "What enables and prevents knowledge-sharing via computer-mediated communications?," J. Syst. Inform. Technol., vol. 5, no. 1, pp. 115-134, 2001.
20. K. D. Joshi and S. Sarker, "A framework to study knowledge transfer during information systems development process," in Knowledge Management: Current Issues and Challenges, E. Coakes, Ed. Hershey, PA: Idea Group, 2003.
21. C. W. Holsapple and K. D. Joshi, "Knowledge manipulation activities: Results of a delphi framework," Inform. Manage., vol. 39, no. 6, pp. 477-490, 2002.
22. M. Alavi, "Managing organizational knowledge," in Framing the Domain of IT Management: Projecting the Future Through the Past, R. W. Zmud, Ed. Cincinnati, OH: PinnFlex Education Resources, 2000, pp. 15-28.
23. B. Puccinelli, "Strategies for sharing knowledge," Inform, vol. 12, no. 9, pp. 40-41, 1998.
24. G. Szulanski, "The process of knowledge transfer: A diachronic analysis of stickiness," Org. Behav. Human Decision Process., vol. 82, no. 1, pp. 9-27, 2000.
25. L. Argote and P. Ingram, "Knowledge transfer: A basis for competitive advantage in firms," Org. Behav. Human Decision Process., vol. 82, no. 1, pp. 150-169, 2000.
26. B. Curtis, H. Krasner, and N. Iscoe, "A field study of the software design process for large systems," Commun. ACM, vol. 31, no. 11, pp. 1268-1287, 1988.
27. C. Prahalad and G. Hamel, "The core competence of the corporation," Harvard Bus. Rev., pp. 79-91, 1990.
28. F. Blackler, N. Crump, and S. McDonald, "Knowledge, organizations, and competition," in Knowing in Firms: Understanding, Managing, and Measuring Knowledge, G. von Krogh, J. Roos, and D. Kleine, Eds. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 2000, pp. 67-86.
29. L. J. Kirsch, "Software project management: An integrated perspective for an emerging paradigm," in Framing the Domain of IT Management: Projecting the Future Through the Past, R. W. Zmud, Ed. Cincinnati, OH: PinnFlex Education Resources, 2000, pp. 285-304.
30. A. C. Inkpen and A. Dinur, "Knowledge management processes and international joint ventures," Org. Sci., vol. 9, no. 4, pp. 454-468, 1998.
31. G. von Krogh, K. Ichijo, and I. Nonaka, Enabling Knowledge Creation. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 2000.
32. S. Bonner and P. Walker, "The effects of instruction and experience on the acquisition of auditing knowledge," Accounting Rev., vol. 69, no. 1, pp. 157-178, 1994.
33. C. Earley, "Knowledge acquisition in auditing: Training novice auditors to recognize cue relationships in real estate valuation," Accounting Rev., vol. 76, no. 1, pp. 81-97, 2001.
34. G. Szulanski, "Exploring internal stickiness: Impediments to the transfer of best practice within the firm," Strat. Manage. J., vol. 17, pp. 27-43, 1996.
35. U. Zander and B. Kogut, "Knowledge and the speed of the transfer and imitation of organizational capabilities: An empirical test," Org. Sci., vol. 6, no. 1, pp. 76-92, 1994.
36. B. Simonin, "Transfer of marketing know-how in international strategic alliances: An empirical investigation of the role and antecedents of knowledge ambiguity," J. Int. Bus. Studies, vol. 30, no. 3, pp. 463-490, 1999.
37. F. M. Jablin and L. L. Putnam, The New Handbook of Organizational Communication: Advances in Theory, Research, and Methods. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 2001.
38. R. M. Perloff, The Dynamics of Persuasion. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum, 1993.
39. H. Bresman, J. Birkinshaw, and R. Nobel, "Knowledge transfer in international acquisitions," J. Int. Bus. Studies, vol. 30, no. 3, pp. 439-462, 1999.
40. R. S. Bhagat, B. L. Kedia, P. D. Harveston, and H. C. Triandis, "Cultural variations in the cross-border transfer of organizational knowledge: An integrative framework," Acad. Manage. Rev., vol. 27, no. 2, pp. 204-221, 2002.
41. Y. Yoo and B. Torrey, "National culture and knowledge management in a global learning organization," in The Strategic Management of Intellectual Capital and Organizational Knowledge, C. W. Choo and N. Bontis, Eds. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 2002, pp. 421-435.
42. J. A. Hoffer, J. F. George, and J. S. Valacich, Modern Systems Analysis and Design. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2002.
43. D. Vogel, M. Genuchten, D. Lou, M. van Eekhout, S. Verveen, and T. Adams, "Exploratory research on the role of national and professional cultures in a distributed learning project," IEEE Trans. Profess. Commun., vol. 44, no. 2, pp. 114-125, 2001.
44. K. Ichijo, G. von Krogh, and I. Nonaka, "Knowledge enablers," in Knowing in Firms: Understanding, Managing, and Measuring Knowledge, G. von Krogh, J. Roos, and D. Kleine, Eds. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 2000, pp. 173-203.
45. R. E. Walton, "The diffusion of new work structures: Explaining why success didn't take," Org. Dynamics, vol. 3, no. 3, pp. 3-21, 1975.
46. M. Venzin, G. von Krogh, and J. Roos, "Future research into knowledge management," in Knowing in Firms: Understanding, Managing, and Measuring Knowledge, G. von Krogh, J. Roos, and D. Kleine, Eds. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 2000, pp. 26-66.
47. G. Hofstede, Cultures Consequences: Comparing Values, Behaviors, Institutions, and Organizations across Nations, 2nd ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 2001.
48. M. A. Lyles and J. E. Salk, "Knowledge acquisition from foreign parents in international joint ventures: An empirical examination in the Hungarian context," Journal of Int. Bus. Studies, vol. 27, no. 5, pp. 877-903, 1996.
49. A. Azevedo, E. A. Drost, and M. R. Mullen, "Individualism and collectivism: Toward a strategy for testing measurement equivalence across culturally diverse groups," Cross Cultural Manage., vol. 9, no. 1, pp. 19-29, 2002.
50. D. C. Thomas, Essentials of International Management: A Cross-Cultural Perspective. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 2002.
51. H. C. Triandis, Individualism and Collectivism. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1995.
52. R. T. Watson, T. N. Ho, and K. S. Raman, "Culture: A fourth dimension of group support systems," Commun. ACM, vol. 37, no. 10, pp. 44-55, 1994.
53. U. P. Anakwe, E. H. Kessler, and E. W. Christensen, "Distance learning and cultural diversity: Potential users' perspective," Int. J. Org. Anal., vol. 7, no. 3, pp. 224-243, 1999.
54. J. G. Oetzel, "Explaining individual communication processes in homogeneous and heterogeneous groups through individualism-collectivism and self-construal," Human Commun. Research, vol. 25, no. 2, pp. 202-224, 1998.
55. C. C. Chen, X. Chen, and J. R. Meindl, "How can cooperation be fostered? The cultural effects of individualism-collectivism," Acad. Manage. Rev., vol. 23, no. 2, pp. 285-304, Apr. 1998.
56. D. G. Mook, "In defense of external validity," Amer. Psych., vol. 38, no. 4, pp. 379-387, 1983.
57. E. A. Locke, Generalizing from Laboratory to Field Setting: Research Finding from Industrial Organization, Organizational Behavior, and Human Resource Management. Lexington, MA: Lexington Books, 1986.
58. J. Cumming and B. Teng, "Transferring R&D knowledge: The key factors affecting knowledge transfer success," J. Eng. Technol. Manage., vol. 20, no. 1/2, pp. 39-68, 2003.
59. G. P. Huber, "Organizational learning: The contributing processes and the literatures," Org. Sci., vol. 2, no. 1, pp. 88-115, 1991.
60. L. Hakanson and R. Nobel, "Technology characteristics and reverse technology transfer," in Proc. Annu. Meeting Acad. Int. Bus., Vienna, Austria, 1998.
61. L. Kim and R. R. Nelson, Technology, Learning, and Innovation: Experiences of Newly Industrializing Economies. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge Univ. Press, 2000.
62. E. D. Darr and T. R. Kurtzberg, "An investigation of partner similarity dimensions on knowledge transfer," Org. Behav. Human Decision Process., vol. 82, no. 1, pp. 28-44, 2000.
63. B. C. Y. Tan, K. K. Wei, R. T. Watson, and R. M. Walczuch, "Reducing status effects with computer-mediated communication: Evidence from two distinct national cultures," J. Manage. Inform. Syst., vol. 15, no. 1, pp. 119-141, 1998.
64. K. S. Raman and R. T. Watson, "National culture, information systems, and organizational implications," in Global Information Systems and Technology: Focus on the Organization and Its Functional Areas, P. C. Deans and K. R. Karwan, Eds. Hershey, PA: Idea Group, 1997, pp. 493-513.
65. S. Ang and S. A. Slaughter, "The missing context of information technology personnel: A review and future directions for research," in Framing the Domain of IT Management: Projecting the Future through the Past, R. W. Zmud, Ed. Cincinnati, OH: PinnFlex Education Resources, 2000, pp. 305-327.
66. J. A. Wagner III, "Studies of individualism-collectivism: Effects on cooperation in groups," Acad. Manage. J., vol. 38, no. 1, pp. 152-172, 1995.
67. J. C. Anderson and D. W. Gerbing, "Some methods for respecifying measurement models to obtain unidimensional construct measurement," J. Market. Research, vol. 19, no. 4, pp. 453-460, 1982.
68. J. C. Nunnally and I. H. Bernstein, Psychometric Theory. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1994.
69. J. Miles and M. Shevlin, Applying Regression & Correlation: A Guide for Students and Researchers. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 2001.
70. J. Stevens, Applied Multivariate Statistics for the Social Sciences, 2nd ed. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum, 1992.
71. J. Cohen, Statistical Power Analysis for the Behavioral Sciences, 2nd ed. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum, 1988.
72. E. Goffman, "Presenting the self to others," in The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life, E. Goffman, Ed. New York: Doubleday, 1959, pp. 1-15.
73. W. M. Cohen and D. A. Levinthal, "Absorptive capacity: A new perspective on learning and innovation," Admin. Sci. Quart., vol. 35, no. 1, pp. 128-152, 1990.
74. D. A. Kenny, L. Mannetti, A. Pierro, S. Livi, and D. A. Kashy, "The statistical analysis of data from small groups," J. Personal. Social Psychol., vol. 83, no. 1, pp. 126-137, 2002.
75. N. Kock and R. Davison, "Can lean media support knowledge sharing? Investigating a hidden advantage of process improvement," IEEE Trans. Eng. Manage., vol. 50, no. 2, pp. 151-163, 2003.
76. S. Sarker, J. S. Valacich, and S. Sarker, "Virtual team trust: Instrument development and validation," Inform. Resource Manage. J., vol. 16, no. 2, pp. 35-55, 2003.
77. C. W. W. van Lohuizen, "Knowledge management and policy making,," Knowledge: Creation, Diffusion, Utilization, vol. 8, no. 1, 1986.
78. C. Holsapple and A. Whinston, Decision Support Systems - A Knowledge Based Approachy. New York: West Publishing, 1996.
79. M. Polanyi, The Tacit Dimension. Garden City, NY: Anchor, 1967.