bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Six Sigma implementation in Ireland: the role of multinational firms
Authors: van der Wiele Ton , van Iwaarden Jos , Power David 
Published: October 2010

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the intra‐organisational diffusion of management innovations, taking Six Sigma as an example.Design/methodology/approachThe study focuses on Six Sigma implementation among companies operating in Ireland. It makes use of a theoretical framework, which posits that multinational firms act as a diffusion mechanism for Six Sigma. The analysis of Six Sigma implementation consists of an online survey to which 132 firms responded. Subsequently, a qualitative analysis of Six Sigma implementation was conducted through semi‐structured interviews with 13 respondents.FindingsThe results show that roughly half of respondent firms use Six Sigma. These firms are typically large US multinationals, which have used Six Sigma for at least three years. Intra‐organisational diffusion does exist. Multinationals do act as a diffusion mechanism – with the adoption of Six Sigma at US headquarters level and then the diffusion of the practice internally to the Irish subsidiary and subsequently to suppliers and finally other local firms. However, the role of traditional diffusion mechanisms is also highlighted. Firms adopt Six Sigma in response to competitive pressure and for cost/efficiency reasons.Originality/valueThe research shows how organisations influence one another in the implementation of Six Sigma as a management concept, and at the same time this can be seen as a specific example of the dissemination of management concepts in general.
Dissemination and adoption of quality management in China
Authors: Qui Yun , Tannock James D.T. 
Published: October 2010

PurposeThis paper aims to achieve a better understanding of the dissemination and adoption of quality management in China, in the context of theory on management trends and fashions, dissemination and adoption.Design/methodology/approachFollowing a literature review, the research adopts a qualitative, multiple case‐study approach, based on the study of six Shanghai manufacturers.FindingsA dissemination and adoption model is presented, which contains nine observed dissemination and adoption factors. These factors and their relationships are identified, analysed and discussed.Research limitations/implicationsThe selection of case study companies was constrained by practical considerations of location and access. Further constraints of time and resource meant that only 14 interviews with managers from case‐study companies and three interviews with quality experts and consultants were conducted.Practical implicationsThe findings will be of interest to those involved in developing QM within China, or working with Chinese manufacturing partners. They suggest that Chinese businesses do not blindly adopt QM initiatives simply because they are the current trend or fashion – instead, companies make decisions based on several rational adoption factors.Originality/valueThe research contributes to a richer understanding of the dissemination and adoption of QM in China, and extends understanding of QM dissemination in the context of management fashion and dissemination theories, using a qualitative approach.
Impact of cultural differences on knowledge management in global projects
Authors: Anantatmula Vittal S. 
Published: October 2010

PurposeThis study aims to propose a knowledge management process model for global projects. The paper also seeks to generate interest among academic researchers for undertaking further research on this important topic.Design/methodology/approachThis research effort uses literature review findings and past research efforts of the author to develop a generic KM process model and a set of questions for designing a project‐specific KM process model.FindingsDifferent cultures understand knowledge and its value differently. It is a challenge to develop KM processes for knowledge capturing and sharing in global projects where cultural diversity is a norm.Research limitations/implicationsThe KM process model and the set of questions identified to develop the KM process need to be studied further and to be validated for their effectiveness in knowledge management.Practical implicationsThe study is an attempt to recommend a knowledge management process that meets both internal and external goals and challenges. It aims to generate interest in the research community for undertaking a detailed and comprehensive research on this topic. It also aims to serve as a foundation for future studies.Originality/valueThe study is an original effort in examining some of the issues related to the impact of cultural differences on knowledge sharing in global projects and virtual teams.
KM in China: Western heads in Eastern hands?
Authors: Boersma Arno 
Published: October 2010

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present a case for effective knowledge transfer, management and protection between the West and the East, with an emphasis on cultural aspects.Design/methodology/approachThe paper describes the background of KM programs in China for Western companies and the three‐step approach for its implementation.FindingsThe three‐step KM approach was effective in managing knowledge flows from the west to the east. Key lessons are that responsible KM, while doing business in China, is not about stopping knowledge flows but rather about assessing the knowledge, its channels and recipients; and that the cultural factor is key to successful KM in a global context.Practical implicationsAlthough the paper is based on projects in China, this three‐step approach for knowledge transfer, management and protection in China can be applied by any organization that needs to share effectively across borders.Social implicationsThe social implications could be a higher awareness of the cultural factor for KM in different global contexts, and a more people‐oriented approach to doing KM.Originality/valueMuch has been written about doing business in China and much has been written about knowledge management. The paper is unique as it combines these two vast domains by way of a very practical and proven project case. It is also original, as dealing with knowledge in China by Western companies has been dominated by legal measures, not KM approaches.
Knowledge‐sharing intention in Vietnamese organizations
Authors: Dong Gowming , Gia Liem Chau , Grossman Martin 
Published: October 2010

PurposeThis research seeks to obtain a better understanding of the factors impacting the intent to share knowledge within the Vietnamese organizational context. While the literature provides some examples of cross‐cultural studies involving knowledge sharing, there has been a lack of research on emerging economies such as Vietnam.Design/methodology/approachThe theoretical foundation for the paper is the theory of reasoned action (TRA), a social psychology framework that has been used extensively to explain many types of human behavior. The research model was formulated based on the original TRA framework as well as additional factors taken from the literature. Six variables were tested to determine their impact on the intention to share knowledge in an organizational context. Primary data were obtained from a survey administered to 124 employees in six multinational companies in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.FindingsRegression analysis shows that TRA, for the most part, has explanatory power within the Vietnamese organizational context. All TRA constructs were found to be significant, except for extrinsic awards and expected associations. Examination of actual survey responses revealed that knowledge sharing is generally recognized as being a beneficial strategy in this context.Research limitations/implicationsThe size and make‐up of the sample were limiting factors in this study. In spite of these limitations, the results provide insight into knowledge‐sharing intent in Vietnamese companies. Managers looking to enhance the knowledge‐sharing capabilities of Vietnamese employees will find practical implications in the study.Originality/valueThe paper provides a much needed view of the organizational environment and knowledge‐sharing culture of Vietnam, an emerging country rapidly entering into the knowledge economy.
The 2020 federal knowledge worker
Authors: Engle Charles , Engle Nancy 
Published: October 2010

PurposeThis paper aims to look at the culture of federal workers and some reasons why workers may or may not want to share knowledge among their peers. To overcome the resistance to knowledge sharing, the paper seeks to explore the benefits of having a knowledge management facilitator with experience in the social professions guiding an agency toward becoming a team learning organization. The objective is to show how cultural changes among the federal workers can enable them to participate in team learning and achieve their fullest potential in their careers and their personal lives. Through employee enrichment, federal organizations can enable their workers to achieve new goals, which in turn can promote improved efficiency, innovation, and effectiveness within the organization.Design/methodology/approachSome federal agencies have a strong KM program in place that applies the concepts involving people, processes, learning and technology as part of their culture. Others have focused on the technology aspect of KM, while resisting incorporation of the remaining elements that are necessary to sustain a knowledge‐sharing culture. Although more investigation is needed to determine each federal agency's position on knowledge management, one thing is certain – encouraging individuals to reach their fullest potential will have a beneficial impact among federal agencies and encourage knowledge sharing among the workforce.FindingsThe paper illustrates that addressing the people aspect of KM is an important step that can provide a foundation for establishing a sound knowledge management program throughout the federal government. Focusing on the individual workers, it is necessary to keep in mind the systems approach to KM and incorporate appropriate elements of the system, as individuals are encouraged to participate in the knowledge management process. The paper provides certainty that implementing a sound KM program will benefit today's federal knowledge worker and further the growth of the future knowledge worker in the 2020 decade.Practical implicationsThe paper improves the efficiency of the federal workforce.Social implicationsThe paper acknowledges the federal worker's value, which instils a commitment of the federal knowledge worker and stimulates employee creativity.Originality/valueThe paper provides insight into the culture of federal workers and changes that can be made to improve the innovation, efficiency and effectiveness of the federal work force.
Knowledge management: French cooking
Authors: Mercier‐Laurent Eunika 
Published: October 2010

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to share experience on what has happened in knowledge management in France since the 1980s, for better understanding of cultural influence in holistic KM.Design/methodology/approachThe main method is applying the KM principles, such as continuous feedback from experience, to understand better all facets of the whole process and improve the theories by from field experiments.FindingsIt was found that culture has influence on the way of applying the KM theories in various countries. Taking into consideration the past experience accelerates the progress and experience helps to improve theories.Research limitations/implicationsAll facets of knowledge management should be included in an effective/useful research.Practical implicationsA better understanding of the French way of applying the KM principles is produced.Social implicationsThis paper makes a contribution to a global KM approach. An impact could be made on education by a new KM culture for knowledge society, capable of successful management in the knowledge economy.Originality/valueThe value is represented by the holistic and system view presented.
Accelerating acculturation through tacit knowledge flows: refining a grounded theory model
Authors: Chin Yi Lee June G. , Nissen Mark E. 
Published: October 2010

PurposeIntercultural knowledge flows are critical to global enterprise performance, but the impact of knowledge management theory on such intercultural flows remains limited. This paper seeks to address this issue.Design/methodology/approachThe present investigation builds on and partially validates two prior studies: research to integrate institutional theory with knowledge flow theory, which provides a powerful theoretical framework for understanding how tacit knowledge flows across cultures; and recent qualitative research, which has employed this framework to develop a theoretical model of acculturation. The present investigation refines this model by drawing in particular from the mergers and acquisitions literature to characterize both accelerators and decelerators of acculturation.FindingsThe paper is able to identify theoretical dimensions to measure acculturative stress, a concept that proves to be useful in terms of validating, refining and simplifying the basic acculturation model.Research limitations/implicationsThe refined acculturation model maintains the essential structure and many elements of the basic model, but it links more closely with extant theory as characterized by the mergers and acquisitions and trust literatures; hence it is more broadly generalizable. The refined model also links well to institutional theory and explains how to increase or decrease the tacit knowledge flows underlying acculturation to affect organizational outcomes.Practical implicationsThe refined acculturation model provides the practicing leader and manager with clear insight into the kinds of promoters and inhibitors of intercultural knowledge flows, and identifies key actions that can be taken to affect such flows and the corresponding organizational outcomes.Social implicationsThis paper elucidates both difficulties and opportunities associated with intercultural knowledge flows in today's global economy – difficulties and opportunities that will likely gain prominence as the world becomes increasingly global.Originality/valueThe refined acculturation model makes both theoretical and practical contributions.
Culture and KM in China
Authors: Liu Eddie , Porter Timothy 
Published: October 2010

PurposeThis study seeks to present observations on the impact of Chinese culture traits on knowledge management practices in Chinese corporations.Design/methodology/approachThe paper presents an analysis of the authors' own experience as senior managers in implementing a globalization strategy for a leading Chinese domestic IT services company. It specifically focuses on key culture traits that have been proven to directly impact knowledge management practices.FindingsThere are deeply rooted culture traits that work counter to the objectives of a knowledge management program within a Chinese corporation. Information sharing is essential counter culture. The authors' experience is that incremental changes that rely on institutionalized systems of information transfer offer hope for the gradual transformation of corporate cultures that foster effective knowledge management practices and increase corporate competitiveness.Research limitations/implicationsThis study is by no means exhaustive, but is intended as a starting‐point to explore alternatives for overcoming culture traits that inhibit knowledge transfer.Originality/valueThe study provides a basis for companies including Chinese companies, joint ventures or multi‐national companies operating in China to assess obstacles to effective knowledge management and to consider various alternatives in adopting a knowledge management plan.
The impact of national culture traits on the usage of web 2.0 technologies
Authors: Ribière Vincent M. , Haddad Maliha , Vande Wiele Philippe 
Published: October 2010

PurposeWeb 2.0 technologies are becoming popular and are being used not only for social networking but also to facilitate communication and increase knowledge sharing in the work environment. Extensive research has been conducted in the past to understand the factors affecting the adoption and use of IT systems but few have studied the influence of national culture on such adoption models. When it comes to web 2.0 usage, the literature is only emerging and the role of national culture has not been addressed. The purpose of this paper is to fill this gap.Design/methodology/approachIn order to better understand the factors that affect the use of web 2.0 technologies and the influence of national culture on it, data were collected from 376 young adults in the age range of 18‐29 from the USA, Thailand and Bahrain. A model was developed and statistically tested to understand the influence of national culture traits, social grooming aspects, efficiency, online privacy, perceived usefulness, subjective norms and gender.FindingsBased on the type of web 2.0 usage (expressive or instrumental) different variables were demonstrated to be significant predictors. For expressive usage, uncertainty avoidance, maintaining relationships, online privacy and perceived usefulness were significant. For instrumental usage, long‐term orientation and perceived usefulness were significant. A ranking of various types of web 2.0 usage was also created, showing very few differences among countries.Research limitations/implicationsThis research is the first step in a series of research activities that should be conducted to better understand the influence of culture in the adoption and usage of web 2.0 technologies. The sample was composed only of “Millennial” generation students and should be extended to other generations and to other countries with markedly different cultural profiles.Practical implicationsThe findings of the paper help to better understand the usage of web 2.0 technologies by young adults who are about to enter the labor market and are likely to use Enterprise 2.0 applications in their work environment. Since web 2.0 technologies are centered on the concepts of communication, collaboration and information sharing, they will influence the behavior of future knowledge workers in terms of knowledge sharing. Accordingly, better understanding of web 2.0 use will help to improve the understanding of Enterprise 2.0 and knowledge management tools usage in a global environment.Originality/valueThis paper's original contribution stems from the fact that the influence of national culture on the use of web 2.0 has not yet been addressed in the literature.
Cultural impacts on knowledge sharing: empirical data from EU project collaboration
Authors: Siakas Kerstin V. , Georgiadou Elli , Balstrup Bo 
Published: October 2010

PurposeEU‐sponsored lifelong learning projects involve a variety of experts of diverse cultural, organisational, and professional backgrounds connected together in one project with time and money constraints. The members of the consortium, often unknown to one another from the beginning, come together for a specific period of time to accomplish certain distinctive objectives. A special knowledge‐sharing strategy is needed in order to incorporate culturally diverse values, and to overcome the technical difficulties of dispersion and limited access to informal communication. This paper aims to explore the way in which EU projects appreciate diverse cultural (national, organisational, and professional) influences on knowledge sharing in project‐based collaboration.Design/methodology/approachThis paper is based on longitudinal studies, own multicultural experiences and earlier conceptually grounded arguments regarding cultural complexities to knowledge sharing in project environments. The key cultural issues highlighted here were empirically tested through a survey in the context of knowledge sharing in several EU lifelong learning projects. Finally, the paper discusses the implications of dealing with cultural issues in fostering good knowledge‐sharing practices within dispersed projects.FindingsIt is apparent that culture has a most significant influence on the knowledge‐sharing capability of time‐ and money‐restricted dispersed projects. Cultural awareness and the use of new information and communication (ICT) tools, such as web 2.0, are factors supporting knowledge sharing.Originality/valuePrevious studies have not examined knowledge sharing in EU projects. The paper aims to help practitioners and academics, who participate in EU projects, to recognise that the different EU project team members usually are dispersed in terms of geography, expertise and working methods and to understand that diverse cultural values (national, organisational and professional) can be a competitive advantage. As a result of gaining such understanding it is expected that EU project performance will improve if diversities are handled in a proper manner and if in addition web 2.0 is used as a communication and sharing platform to enable increased knowledge sharing, interactive participation and digital democracy in practice.
Positioning a research agenda on the social economy
Authors: Swart Ignatius , Orsmond Edward 
Published: October 2010

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the theoretical and ideological foundations for a research agenda on the social economy in South Africa.Design/methodology/approachThe paper combines relevant literature research and case study work in a selected geographical region in the Western Cape province of South Africa to meet its research aim.FindingsThe perspectives emanating from the case study research on the nature of the diversified forms of new capitalist expansion and entrepreneurial activity in the case study area and particularly the way in which the new developments impact on the working conditions of farm workers lead to the consolidation of the authors' option for a constructive research agenda in which the realities of new‐found economic opportunity and prevailing conditions of exclusion are both negotiated.Research limitations/implicationsFrom the point of view of an ongoing research agenda, further empirical and literature research will be required to deepen the understanding of the socio‐economic dynamics in the case study area and in the process further refine the identified theoretical and ideological position.Originality/valueThe paper contributes towards defining the theoretical and ideological foundations of a research agenda on the social economy in South Africa. As such, the way in which binary positions are avoided in positioning this research agenda in relation to the mainstream capitalist economic system can be considered as provocative.
The profile of income‐poor children
Authors: Bastos Amélia , Machado Carla , Passos José 
Published: October 2010

PurposeChild poverty has become an important issue in social and political agendas. In Portugal, almost 25 per cent of children are at risk of poverty and the most vulnerable age group. This paper seeks to investigate child poverty in Portugal, using European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions microdata for 2004‐2008. It explores the sociodemographic and economic attributes associated with child poverty in order to design the profile of income‐poor children. Furthermore, it analyses social policies efficiency in reducing child poverty.Design/methodology/approachThe paper uses descriptive methods as well as econometric tools to select the characteristics of income‐poor children and to evaluate social policy efficiency. The estimation of a discrete choice model allows inference purposes.FindingsResults obtained show that children included in large households and in lone‐parent households, are particularly at risk. Social policies undertaken had roughly impact on child poverty.Originality/valueThis paper aims to contribute to the literature by establishing the profile of income‐poor children, which may contribute to design more efficient policies to tackle the problem of child poverty. The policy evaluation sheds light on the results obtained by the current policies suggesting the discussion of new programs.