Diagnosing Organizational Knowledge Flow through Social Network Analysis: A Foreign Branch Case of A Global Company

Purpose – This study aims at analyzing the features of knowledge flow and the role-specific nodes in knowledge networks among individuals and business units of six organizations in different industries, and suggesting prescriptions to prevent the organizational knowledge sclerosis. Design/methodology/approach – This research conducts multiple case studies on the organizational knowledge paths of six companies in the multiple industries through social network analysis (SNA) tool developed by the authors of this paper. Findings – This study provides four major findings which shed a new light on how to comprehend the features of knowledge flow and the role-specific nodes in knowledge networks in organizations: the within-business unit knowledge flows are more dominant over the inter-business units knowledge flow; the downward knowledge flows are dominant over the horizontal and upward knowledge flows in the management levels; distributions of knowledge owners and providers are like L-shape and the gap between knowledge owing and providing expands as the management levels go up; and the top 20 percent people in an organization dominate over a large portion of the knowledge brokerage activities. Research limitations/implications – Cultural difference issue might arise because data collection was limited to Korean organizations. Therefore, the findings from this study needs to be cautiously interpreted considering the cultural difference/deeper understanding of the organizational knowledge paths through social network lens can make it possible for more context-specific KM strategies (e.g. suitable for a specific functional unit, management level, or industry type) to be identified and implemented. Practical implications – Managers can have a solid grasp about knowledge flows and knowledge node roles in their organization through social network analysis in order to facilitate the knowledge transfer and eliminate the knowledge link lapse in organizations. Originality/value – This study could be a stepping stone for further empirical research since it expanded the level of organizational knowledge network analysis from individual and team to inter-unit and inter-management level through the block modeling analysis of knowledge network.

Download Full-text

Analyzing the Experience of Networked Flow Through Social Network Analysis

Networked Flow - SpringerBriefs in Education ◽

10.1007/978-94-007-5552-9_4 ◽

2012 ◽

pp. 71-99 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Andrea Gaggioli ◽

Giuseppe Riva ◽

Luca Milani ◽

Elvis Mazzoni

Keyword(s):

Social Network ◽

Social Network Analysis ◽

Network Analysis ◽

Flow Through

Download Full-text

Knowledge Networks and the Role of Family Firms: The Case of an Italian Regional Cluster

Journal of Open Innovation Technology Market and Complexity ◽

10.3390/joitmc7030193 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 7 (3) ◽

pp. 193

Author(s):

Stefano Ghinoi ◽

Riccardo De Vita ◽

Bodo Steiner ◽

Alessandro Sinatra

Keyword(s):

Social Network ◽

Social Network Analysis ◽

Network Analysis ◽

Open Innovation ◽

Family Firms ◽

Organizational Knowledge ◽

Knowledge Networks ◽

Regional Cluster

Studies on open innovation (OI) have highlighted the importance of inter-organizational knowledge networks. However, little is known about OI networks established by family firms, and their roles in such knowledge networks. By focusing on one of the most important Italian footwear clusters, this paper applies Social Network Analysis to investigate the role of family firms in exchanging knowledge according to their intra-cluster position and extra-cluster openness. Our results provide novel evidence on the role of family firms in OI networks, as they suggest that family firms mainly operate as gatekeepers in the technological and managerial networks, while they act as external stars in the market and managerial networks.

Download Full-text

Social Network Analysis

Research Methods in the Social Sciences: An A-Z of key concepts ◽

10.1093/hepl/9780198850298.003.0061 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 261-266

Author(s):

Jean-Frédéric Morin ◽

Christian Olsson ◽

Ece Özlem Atikcan

Keyword(s):

Social Network ◽

Social Network Analysis ◽

Network Analysis ◽

Social Relations ◽

Social Ties ◽

Social World ◽

Face To Face ◽

Social Actors ◽

The Social ◽

Flow Through

This chapter studies Social Network Analysis (SNA), which is a methods toolbox for analysing the patterning of social ties and explaining how and why those patterns emerge and what consequences they have for social actors. Social networks are ubiquitous in the social world, either unfolding in face-to-face interactions or digitally. In recent decades, SNA has grown in popularity, appealing broadly to students interested in complex social structures. The recent availability of data based on digital traces of social relations (e.g. emails or social media profiles) has further prompted students to study these network structures. Analysing how actors are connected through other actors via paths may indicate how e.g. information or resources flow through the network via these ties.

Download Full-text