Hazel Hall's paper presented at the Third European Conference on Organizational Knowledge, Learning and Capabilities, Athens, Greece, 5-6 April 2002. The full text manuscript of the paper is available from http://drhazelhall.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/2002_hall_sharing_capability_greece.pdf. The material presented here draws on the preliminary findings of Hazel Hall's doctoral research, the full details of which are available from http://hazelhall.org/publications/phd-the-knowledge-trap-an-intranet-implementation-in-a-corporate-environment/

1. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Hazel Hall
Senior Lecturer
School of Computing
Napier University, Edinburgh
h.hall@napier.ac.uk
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2. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Practice as reported in
professional press
Does social capital drive knowledge management?
Research
Consultancy work
literature
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3. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
How can this be explored in a robust
way for a doctoral dissertation?
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4. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
How can this be explored in a robust
way for a doctoral dissertation?
Use an academic theoretical Investigate a knowledge
framework to design research intensive organisation
instruments with a track record in KM
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5. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
“Social exchange for knowledge exchange”, OKLC 2001,
Leicester
Discussion centred on theoretical framework
• Exchange theories in general
• Social exchange theory in particular
• Treatment of social exchange theory in information science
(e.g. scholarly communication, citations and acknowledgements as gifts,
information sharing across networks)
… and plans for primary data collection for doctoral research
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6. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Exchange theories Social exchange theory
• Actors people
• Resources what people value
• Structures dependent relationships
• Processes interactions, opportunities
Few instances of information/knowledge treated as exchange resources
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7. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Evolution of research question
Can social exchange theory be extended to
knowledge sharing practice over intranets within large
distributed organisations?
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8. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Evolution of research question
Can social exchange theory be extended to
knowledge sharing practice over intranets within large
distributed organisations?
Incentives to generate exchange
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9. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Incentives for knowledge sharing
Rewards Conditions Infrastructure
Usability
Hard Responsibilities
Articulation
Soft Status
Critical mass
Communities Boundary
objects
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Incentives for knowledge exchange (literature review)

10. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Incentives for knowledge sharing
Rewards Conditions Infrastructure
To jump start knowledge For long-term compliance To help new members of staff
sharing
To encourage experimentation For cross-team working
To match “expectations” For “community” benefits
of personality types For distributed staff
To promote moral obligation
For wide dissemination
Move from knowledge to knowledge with appropriate
as a private good as a public good support
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11. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Primary data collection October - December 2001
Company identified
• large
• multi-national
• distributed
• information intensive
• intranet dependent
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12. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Primary data collection October - December 2001
Company identified Possible data subjects
• large • Knowledge Managers
• multi-national • Web Site Managers
• distributed • UK-based
• information intensive • represent company’s lines
• intranet dependent of business, functions and
infrastructure groupings
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13. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Incentives for knowledge sharing
Rewards Conditions Infrastructure
Schedule for semi-structured interviews
Snowball technique
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14. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Preliminary data analysis
Full set of data
• 20 transcripts
• 14 Knowledge Managers
• 6 Web Site Managers
• 50:50 gender split
• represent company’s lines
of business, functions and
infrastructure groupings
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15. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Preliminary data analysis
Full set of data Partial set of data
• 20 transcripts • 10 transcripts
• 14 Knowledge Managers • 7 Knowledge Managers
• 6 Web Site Managers • 3 Web Site Managers
• 50:50 gender split • 50:50 gender split
• represent company’s lines • represent company’s lines
of business, functions and of business, functions and
infrastructure groupings infrastructure groupings
Data analysis to date limited 15
to a sub-set of data

16. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Incentives for knowledge sharing
Rewards Conditions Infrastructure
Usability
Hard Responsibilities
Articulation
Soft Status
Critical mass
Communities Boundary
objects
Data analysis to date limited 16
to one main theme

17. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Goals of preliminary data analysis
• To understand perceptions of:
– nature and degree of knowledge sharing in company
– barriers to knowledge sharing in company
– roles of rewards for knowledge sharing in company
• Relate findings to the concepts of the knowledge market and
exchanges
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18. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Mission statement
Economic Sharing = intranet input
Value recognised
For staff, e.g morale, Nature and degree of
retention
knowledge sharing in company
Effort required to
Investment extract
content
Training
Concerns over buy-in Concerns over interest
in codification
Knowledge sharing as
Senior management job requirement Impossible 18
support
Overload

19. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Mission statement
Economic Sharing = intranet input
Value recognised
For staff, e.g morale, Nature and degree of
retention
knowledge sharing in company
Effort required to
Investment
N SI O extract
TE N Training
content
Concerns over buy-in Concerns over interest
in codification
Knowledge sharing as
Senior management job requirement Impossible 19
support
Overload

20. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Use of Organisational
systems interest
Barriers to knowledge sharing
Treatment of
information Relationships
& knowledge
as assets
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21. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
system under-use, cliques, lack of buy-in, confusion IM/KM,
alternative means of meeting needs company priorities
Use of Organisational
systems interest
Barriers to knowledge sharing
Examples in tables 3-5
Treatment of
information Relationships
& knowledge
as assets
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“confidential” information, “bad” news, difficulties in making/keeping friends
intellectual property, assets unrecognised

22. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Lack of market infrastructure Lack of market
in official economy intervention
Use of Organisational
systems interest
Grey, black & alternative Inappropriate regulatory
economies frameworks
Barriers to knowledge sharing
Restrictions on trade of Barriers between markets
certain goods & traders
Treatment of
information Relationships
& knowledge
as assets
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Certain assets not traded Lack of trading partners

23. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Lack of market infrastructure Lack of market
in official economy intervention
Support of
Use of exchange Organisational
systems structures interest
Grey, black & alternative Inappropriate regulatory
economies frameworks
Barriers to knowledge sharing
Restrictions on trade of Barriers between markets
certain goods Exchange & traders
resources
Treatment of
information Exchange actors Relationships
& knowledge & support of
as assets exchange 23
structures
Certain assets not traded Lack of trading partners

24. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Incentives for knowledge sharing
Rewards
Economic & career gains
Hard Access to information
and knowledge
Soft Enhanced reputation &
personal satisfaction
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Roles of rewards for knowledge sharing

25. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Incentives for knowledge sharing
Too difficult to implement & measure
Rewards (problems setting up market)
Economic & career gains More effective routes to such resources
exist (other markets)
Trades description problems
Hard Access to information
and knowledge
Soft Enhanced reputation &
personal satisfaction
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Roles of rewards for knowledge sharing

26. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Incentives for knowledge sharing
Rewards
Economic & career gains Vocabulary of exchange
Resource under-valued: opportunities for
Hard Access to information free-riding
Different interpretations of bargain lead
and knowledge to quality issues - nagging, charitable
donations
Economy does not value this currency
Soft Enhanced reputation &
personal satisfaction
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Roles of rewards for knowledge sharing

27. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Incentives for knowledge sharing
Rewards
Economic & career gains
Hard Access to information
and knowledge
Acknowledged & employed by KM staff -
Soft Enhanced reputation & indirect tie to economic & career gains
personal satisfaction Personal satisfaction as incidental
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Roles of rewards for knowledge sharing

28. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Analysis to date
• Findings articulate with previous studies: intentions of designers of
systems to promote knowledge sharing are rarely realised in
implementation.
• There is limited evidence of social exchange in knowledge markets:
parallels with exchange theory are more easily drawn. (However data
collected on enabling conditions and infrastructure is yet to be
analysed. Indications are that social infrastructure will be a significant
factor.)
• Means of implementation may assume greater importance in later
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analysis - focus on codification, interpretations of “knowledge sharing”.

29. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Analysis to date
• Findings articulate with previous studies: intentions of designers of
systems to promote knowledge sharing are rarely realised in
implementation.
• There is limited evidence of social exchange in knowledge markets:
parallels with exchange theory are more easily drawn. (However data
collected on enabling conditions and infrastructure is yet to be
analysed. Indications are that social infrastructure will be a significant
factor.)
• Means of implementation may assume greater importance in later
29
analysis - focus on codification, interpretations of “knowledge sharing”.

30. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Analysis to date
• Findings articulate with previous studies: intentions of designers of
systems to promote knowledge sharing are rarely realised in
implementation.
• There is limited evidence of social exchange in knowledge markets:
parallels with exchange theory are more easily drawn. (However data
collected on enabling conditions and infrastructure is yet to be
analysed. Indications are that social infrastructure will be a significant
factor.)
• Means of implementation may assume greater importance in later
30
analysis - focus on codification, interpretations of “knowledge sharing”.

31. Sharing capability: the development of a framework to investigate
knowledge sharing in distributed organisations
Related work
Davenport, E. & Hall, H. (2001). New knowledge and micro-level online
organization: 'communities of practice' as a development framework. In R.
Sprague (Ed.), Proceedings of the 34th Annual Hawaii International
Conference on System Sciences (CD ROM). Los Alamitos: IEEE.
Davenport E. & Hall, H. (2002). Organizational knowledge and communities of
practice. In B. Cronin & D, Shaw (Eds.). Annual Review of Information Science
and Technology (pp. 171-227). Medford NJ: Information Today.
Hall, H. (2001). Input-friendliness: motivating knowledge sharing across intranets.
Journal of Information Science 27(2), 139-146.
Hall, H. (2001). Social exchange for knowledge exchange. Paper presented at the
International Conference on Managing Knowledge, University of Leicester,
April 10-11 2001.
[http://www.bim.napier.ac.uk/esis/about_us/hazel_publications.html]
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