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Theory and evidence suggests that returns to research and research and development are currently declining. This paper seeks to identify patterns in the use of business research methodologies in certain of the latest articles published at the forefront of the field of business research innovation, from its leading journal. This literature is used to identify the current front line of business research methodologies at the forefront of the field. Propositions are derived from novel theory, and are critically juxtaposed against identified topics and methodologies in these articles. In so doing, the conceptual distance of the front line of empirical research in the field from the radical front line of theory in the broader field is quantified. Methodological implications are discussed and recommendations are made for the development of a future research agenda. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores how student behaviour and interactions change when teachers use 'producing' as a primary pedagogical strategy (Papert, 1980; Ejsing-Duun and Karoff, 2014). Based on observed student and teacher actions and responses, as well as students' production, this paper emphasizes the importance of understanding how students explore creativity and playfulness while producing in learning situations. This paper is based on a large research project called 'Children as Learning Designers in a Digital School (2013-2015)', funded by Denmark's Ministry of Education, which included fieldwork in five Danish public schools, involved about 500 students, and comprised six interventions in the first, second, fifth, sixth, and tenth grades. The project's empirical data consist of observations, participatory observation, and productions students created during the interventions. This paper presents an analysis of how students were creative and playful while producing learning material as games during three of the project's interventions. The study is based on a specific understanding of the creativity with a point of departure (Boden, 2004; Tanggaard and Wegener, 2015) and playfulness (Karoff, 2013) that occur in learning situations. We approach creativity and playfulness as new methods of learning, through six areas of change that inform '[...]how today's kids play and learn, and, more generally, how they see themselves, relate to others, dwell in place, and treat things' (Ackermann, 2013: 119). This paper investigates how educators handle children's productive processes in a school setting and how teachers can conceptualize and nurture play and creativity as drivers for learning. In this context, the importance of skills and acknowledgement of reproducing and remixing existing materials is discussed. We further argue that playfulness is necessary for creativity to occur. From this point of view, it is possible to understand how learning activities can support creativity--an essential twenty-first century skill (Levinsen and Sørensen, 2015). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digital transformation has become a necessity in our volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) world. In their 2019 report, APQC found that 75% of organizations are undergoing digital transformation. Successful digital transformation requires a strong foundation of people, process, technology and content. Selection of the right combination of strategies and deep stakeholder engagement is important in early phases of change when transformation initiatives inform leaders and users why change is needed. Top drivers for digital transformation have business (e.g., increased efficiency and productivity) and people (e.g., optimize user experience with knowledge discovery) facets. This paper illustrates an example of digital transformation in practice led by Knowledge Management, within Alberta Health Services (AHS). AHS is Canada's first and largest province-wide, fully integrated health system with more than 102,700 employees. Employees need a platform for collaboration on projects, as well as documents and idea generation to meet business needs and enable them to become more efficient and effective in their daily jobs. The design, development, and implementation of a collaborative platform within this large organization required close orchestration of strategies, stakeholders' commitments and engagement, represented by a continuum of stakeholders' engagement formats, relationship and trustbuilding. Setting the stage for successful implementation and post implementation required a preview of technological and workforce trends to anticipate the future of work and worker. Fitting the change into overall business strategy, developing the knowledge of how change would affect the workers, and setting up a mechanism to inform leaders about adoption and user engagement were added as overarching strategies to better align with the line of sight in digital transformation. The platform was implemented with 23 business areas that expressed interest; it has demonstrated the potential to enable system transformation if implemented organization-wide. Business value was demonstrated with an ROI calculation on time savings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims at shedding a new and different light over a very big problem that actually is being felt by the European Society and by the world at large: namely the difficulties the EU is having, since adopting the EURO as a currency in 2002, with its own management of macroeconomic policies, and with its own forecasts over growth. We follow Sveiby (2012) analysis as a methodology. According to that author, radical innovation generates incompetence due to inability in adjusting to the environment. The incompetence materializes itself in wrong predictions by otherwise and formerly competent and acknowledged experts. Sveiby 2012, dissects the case of the financial crisis of 2007-8, as a case in which radical innovation in the financial markets produced massive managerial incompetence with huge economic and social consequences. By the same token we assume that the Eurozone became a case of incompetence at the level of macroeconomic management. We show evidence of that incompetence because we compare the predictions before the Euro and with the Euro and analyze the impact the Euro entrance add in the correctness of the experts' predictions. Furthermore we say that experts should take into account that macroeconomic restrictions posed by the Eurozone regulations deeply affect the economy of the more divergent Eurozone Member States. Moreover, the effect of the regulations has not been rightly accounted. The miscalculation generates mistakes in prediction of policy impacts. Those mistakes have major negative effects in the life of ordinary citizens. Therefore we believe that if ones assumes, as we do, and prove, that the Eurozone has currently a problem of managerial incompetence, the finding might have huge economic, social, and political effects The paper is original because we sincerely don't know (and believe it is not our fault) of any study that analyzes the problem of the current Macroeconomic crisis in the EU as a problem of incompetence. Finally we believe the study could and should developed in a multidisciplinary and multi-country book. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper justifies a mixed methods design in a Bourdieusian analysis of SME family manufacturing firms in the UK. Despite the extensive use of Bourdieu in sociological research, there have been few attempts to apply his powerful "thinking tools" of doxa, habitus and fields (Bourdieu, 1979) to business studies. The research methodology outlined in this study adopts a fresh approach to a Bourdieusian analysis of the distinctive nature of family firms, known as "familiness" (T. M. Zellweger, Eddleston, Kellermanns, 2010). Bourdieu used diverse research methods, including in-depth interviews, photographs and large-scale questionnaires to develop his concepts of doxa, fields and habitus. Therefore the philosophical underpinning has suggested a particular methodological design. Adopting a QUAN + QUAL approach (Creswell & Plano Clark, 2011, p. 110), this paper will describe the rationale for the choice of mixed methodology, the relationship of the design to the research aim and objectives, the challenges of each research stage and the case for a mixed methods research design. The quantitative stage identifies trends and correlations between innovation and family firms in the manufacturing sector using a government-commissioned dataset. The qualitative stage is an in-depth analysis of 27 interviews with family firms. The final stage will compare and contrast the analysis from both stages to arrive at a fuller understanding of the phenomenon of "familiness". This paper will not outline the results from the study, which will be the subject of further papers. It is intended that the contribution of this study will assist family firm researchers to design effective research approaches when exploring the complex nature of family firms. Furthermore, the research design will demonstrate the case for selecting a mixed methods approach for these types of research questions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Financial companies worldwide are blamed for having precipitated the gravest global economic meltdown since the Great Depression of the 1930s. While the aftershocks of the last turmoil are still palpable and some observers prophesy that another sharp economic downturn might be in the offing -- global policymakers, analysts, researchers and the public at large ruminate how to redress the balance of powers to ensure socially sustainable financial and macroeconomic growth. This paper reviews the expansion of worldwide financial industries relative to real economies ("financialisation"), exemplifies its social ramifications and indentifies the root causes of socially disruptive innovation undertaken in financial institutions. Finally, the paper highlights the prerequisites of social equilibria in financial organisations, of which most are endogenous in nature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the knowledge-based economy the nature of what is strategic has been modified along with the importance of knowledge and its management. One of the most important implications of these changes is the expansion of resources and products that are globally tradable, highlighting the importance of knowledge as the key economic resource of lasting competitive advantage. As a consequence of this shift in the economy, an increasing number of industries are moving from the closed innovation model to the open innovation model that created porous boundaries between the innovative company and its surrounding environment, changing the inter- and intra-organizational modes of coordination. In an environment where knowledge is the key economic resource and the open innovation model is applied in more and more industries, we are experiencing the increasing importance of the New Technology-Based Firm (NTBF). NTBFs face a number of difficulties mainly associated with a lack of resources and entrepreneurial skills and in order overcome the difficulties NTBFs strive towards flexibility while accelerating the development and commercialization processes by creating and/or entering business networks. By adopting a knowledge-based view for NTBFs and consequently placing knowledge in the centre of a systemic innovation model, knowledge networks constitute an asset for NTBFs. As this new form of cooperation takes multiple and often unpredictable forms it is thus essential to develop strategy formulation tools and processes that can help NTBFs to face their challenges. Until now little attention has been given to the development of strategy tools and processes tailored for the requirements of NTBFs. The present paper presents a concept to cope with NTBFs' by developing a generic process for strategy formulation. In this respect, an action research project was initiated. The proposed concept was initially designed, although not exclusively, for a Greek NTBF, Astrofos Ltd. The author, who is coordinator of the incubator where Astrofos is sited, is acting as a strategy consultant for the firm and has taken part in all its major decisions since summer 2007. In order to build the strategy formulation process, this paper proposes a mapping technique that attempts to depict a NTBF's tangible and intangible transactions as well as the strength of ties between the focal NTBF and its partners and the complexity of the knowledge. In developing the mapping technique, we have used a combination of the concept of weak ties, derived from social network analysis, with the notion of complex knowledge, as this combination was initially proposed by Hansen (1999). Additionally, a set of questions is proposed that have to be answered in order to pass from knowledge identification to knowledge transfer, from a strategic point of view. In this regard, the presented methodology constitutes an effort, on the one hand, to study the emergent patterns in what is considered to be a chaotic or disordered system and, on the other, to stimulate the creation of new patterns in the system that would be consistent with the NTBF's strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes that knowledge cannot be effectively managed, rather that people are so complex and the knowledge they acquire so varied and, even in a room where everyone is being taught the same knowledge, uptake is so disparate that to truly manage what an individual knows is impossible. An effective alternative which allows people to maximise their knowledge (even the bits we might not know they know) is to measure the outputs of an individual: what they achieve. The case study in this paper illustrates one innovative company's design to maximise the knowledge of their employees and how the management-less structure they recently adopted has had a profound effect on the engagement of their workforce - in their work and on their profitability. The argument will critique the theory of knowledge transfer as the movement of a body of knowledge from one place to another. Additionally it confronts the misuse of the work of Polanyi where theorists have crudely bunched together notions of understanding and the hidden aspects of our knowledge under the title 'tacit' knowledge and juxtaposed these with 'explicit' knowledge, which refers to documented and shared knowledge within an organisation. This paper promotes an approach that follows Coverdale's (psychologist) idea that getting things done by developing skills as opposed to focusing on traditional knowledge management is the premise of the company's success. The anthropological notion of cultural memes is explored, and the idea of agency will be introduced as a useful concept in acknowledging the potential of individuals to unleash their knowledge. The case study presented here is from empirical ethnographic research within a company in the South West. The company has transitioned from a traditionally managed SME with a hierarchical structure, to a de-centred model for workplace where each individual within the company is responsible for what is essentially like their own mini company within the larger one. The company data (quantitative) from before these changes were introduced compared to the data now (on aspects such as Quality, Delivery and Profitability) tell a remarkable story about the effects of management and organisational structure on individual performance and commercial profitability. It would seem that the best results commercially and in individual competency so far point to a counter-intuitive, hands-off approach to KM within an organisation. They point to what is in fact the non-management of knowledge in the sense that knowledge will not be prescribed or transferred from one person to another, but rather drawn out of the individual. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The creation of wealth is an important issue in any society, and entrepreneurship is regarded as an important catalyst in the creation of new wealth. This presents a challenge to develop entrepreneurship successfully. An important site for the development of entrepreneurship is higher education. The challenge however, is that there is a lack of a general understanding on how to educate students for entrepreneurship. In addition, current thought and practice on entrepreneurship education is historically biased, implying that graduates are essentially prepared for the past instead of for the future. From the perspective of higher education, the problem is how to develop current students to be entrepreneurial in the future. What is needed is to project into the future and then to develop an understanding of what should be taught as well as how it should be taught today. A versatile research technique that can assist in achieving this objective is the Delphi technique, as it is used to conduct futures research or research into areas where knowledge is incomplete. The Delphi method is a type of group interview, using the collective opinion of knowledgeable experts. The technique makes use of several rounds of data collection and feedback to create a consensus of opinion. Making use of the Delphi technique, research is being designed that will formulate expert-based strategic guidelines on entrepreneurial education within the South African higher education sector. The aim of this paper is to illustrate the research design considerations that arise in the use of the Delphi technique for this purpose and how they are addressed. The main characteristics of the Delphi are presented and arguments for the use of the Delphi within a constructivist paradigm are discussed. Practical issues related to the design of the Delphi, panel-member selection, and the formulation of panel questions, are examined. In illustrating these design considerations, the paper demonstrates a pragmatic approach to research design as well as the importance of creating coherence between the research question, the research paradigm, the research method and its use, encouraging research practitioners to adopt a more systematic, deliberate and philosophically-based approach to research design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this research study was to examine the correlation, if any, between knowledge and performance management and associated strategies employed by today's organizations to increase stakeholder and shareholder value.: Each strategy was individually examined using the quantitative causal method research design in order to examine the relationship/correlation of the level of knowledge and performance activities within participant organizations, and then collaboratively examine their inter-relations. The independent variables and the dependent variables vary in each correlation research questions. The findings endorsed that effective use of organizational explicit knowledge and efficient performance are practices worth doing. Correlations between knowledge and performance and innovation and value added were found to be relatively strong. A moderately strong predictive correlation between effective implementation of knowledge strategy and performance was also found and presented, and similar findings showing a moderately strong predictive correlation between effective implementation of performance strategy and innovation are also established and shown.: Organizations can increase and create vital added value to both stakeholders and shareholder members by implementing effectively a holistic approach as an integrated part of routine practices that enhances knowledge creation and exceptional performance, which will contribute to superior results - tangible and intangible ones. The practical implications of this research will contribute to the academic discipline of knowledge and performance management. Paper relevance: This paper will contribute to the debate regarding the linking of knowledge and performance management. Further, this paper will contribute to the in-depth analysis/discussion of the importance of knowledge in innovation and velocity management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increased international competition forces companies to sustain and improve market share through the production of a high quality product in a cost effective manner and in a shorter time. Set-based concurrent engineering (SBCE), which is a core element of lean product development approach, has got the potential to decrease time-to-market as well as enhance product innovation to be produced in good quality and cost effective manner. A knowledge-based environment is one of the important requirements for a successful SBCE implementation. One way to provide this environment is the use of trade-off curves (ToC). ToC is a tool to create and visualise knowledge in the way to understand the relationships between various conflicting design parameters to each other. This paper presents an overview of different types of ToCs and the role of knowledge-based ToCs in SBCE by employing an extensive literature review and industrial field study. It then proposes a process of generating and using knowledge-based ToCs in order to create and visualise knowledge to enable the following key SBCE activities: (1) Identify the feasible design space, (2) Generate set of conceptual design solutions, (3) Compare design solutions, (4) Narrow down the design sets, (5) Achieve final optimal design solution. Finally a hypothetical example of a car seat structure is presented in order to provide a better understanding of using ToCs. This example shows that ToCs are effective tools to be used as a knowledge source at the early stages of product development process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this article is to demonstrate the utility of a mixed methods approach in the examination of one of the best-known success factors of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs): their structural flexibility (SF), and how this is related to their organisational life cycle (OLC). Previous research has proposed five factors to explain SF in large and medium-sized organisations. By adopting an explanatory sequential design, this study demonstrates why a mono-method approach is insufficient to explain this model when put into operation in SMEs. It also highlights a key aspect of mixed methods research: the integration challenge, which is illustrated with joint displays and using a weaving approach. In the first quantitative phase, data from 257 SMEs were collected, classified according to their OLC stage, and examined with exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and a two-step cluster analysis. The EFA revealed five factors, one of which, called "decision-making", presented unexpected statistical behaviour and an unclear explanation, indicating a contrasting approach was necessary for better results explanation. It was not until the qualitative phase that we realised this aspect would be better named "centralisation in decision-making". This term is associated with growing and declining SMEs, and it may constrain their flexibility and limit their growth. Additionally, a new theme emerged in this phase: "innovation", which had not been associated with the SF before. This paper provides evidence that the combined use of quantitative and qualitative approaches offers the possibility of exploring new dimensions and can lead to a more comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon in a way quantitative data alone may not allow. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper introduces the Innate Lesson Cycle (ADIIEA) as a uniting and integrated framework for business process operations and organizational learning. Thus far, the Knowledge Management (KM) and Organizational Learning (OL) movements have tried to "teach OL" to organizations as an "add-on" while assuming that current business models are sound. Instead, we find that current business models are based on industrial age factory process work, and fail to keep up with the learning and innovation demands of the knowledge economy. This paper suggests that these current business models be replaced, not complimented, with a learning-based model. In the epistemological formulation of this learning model, ADIIEA is compared with the SECI model, and its underlying assumptions about tacit and explicit knowledge as appropriate foundational underpinnings are challenged. Instead of a "noun" approach to knowledge foundations (tacit and explicit knowledge), a "verb" approach (questioning, reflective, and reactive modes) to knowledge foundations is illustrated to be appropriately compared to required business process operations. Additionally, this approach is shown to be epistemologically aligned with the fundamental symbols of language, where we universally find the question mark, period, and exclamation point, respectfully. From this verb-based foundation, several applications of ADIIEA are then illustrated to address current issues found in education, business processes, policy-making, and knowledge systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to highlight the importance of innovation in businesses. It tries to illustrate the way companies could invest in lifelong learning focusing on the entrepreneurship education in order to support creativity and innovation as prerequisite for a short-run increase in their profits and mostly for a long-run sustainable competitive advantage. In the first part of the paper, we will focus on companies. In some companies the manager is thinking how creativity could help. One person may generate 10 ideas; conversely, 5 persons may generate 50 ideas. From those 50 ideas the manager can use at least 3 of them to increase the profit. This is how intellectual capital and creativity should be enhanced. Furthermore, it will influence the consumers buying renewed products in a more profitable way. The second part of the paper, we will highlight the importance of taking into account some best practices cases. Nowadays, with Internet banking, Euro Automatic Teller Machine (ATM) and credit cards, the final user has been granted options for the monetary transactions. People like consumers want their needs to be satisfied and this is one of the reasons why they have grown accustomed to demanding more and more from their banking services providers. In the last part of the paper, we will discuss about the creativity models and ways in which these models might influence the workers and the leaders to come up with new ideas, be creative and generate larger profit. From a methodological point of view we applied both the quantitative method (surveys) and the qualitative one (in terms of focus-groups & interviews). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The introduction of technologies into the teaching and learning environment has implied changes to the way education plays out in an e-Environment. Previous research has highlighted the many barriers and challenges in integration technology into teaching and learning. Technology is said to be underutilised. However there are studies that have identified that teachers are using technology in their work. Little is known about the extent of this use of technology. Accordingly less is known about teachers' e-Learning practices. This paper seeks to highlight the patterns in teachers' e- Learning practices. Using a blend of inductive and deductive techniques data was collected from a sample of teachers known to be using technology in their work. The study was framed by the: (i) Development in use and stages of teaching and learning with technologies (UNESCO) and (ii) Technological skills developmental levels (DoE). The data from the study has highlighted patterns in the use and practice of technology integration in school education. These patterns could be mapped to continuums of use and practice. It has been found that teachers used technology for a variety of purposes: personal, administration, teaching and learning at different frequencies and at varying levels of intensity. Teachers were found to use technology for e-Teaching and e-Learning progressively and in ways that was aligned to their comfort zones. The way teachers' used technology was found to be progressive from simple to innovative. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to test empirically the potential of Intellectual Capital (IC) as a driver of formation of cross border coalitions in European Union (EU) regions. The question is important given that, at present, economic and social cohesion is a major factor of stability in the EU. We use a computational model based on different similarity matrices, for the cross-border cases of Portugal and Spain and for Hungary and Romania, respectively. We find that the results differ with the form of attraction we suppose between the regions, namely driven by diversity or conservative. At least the potential for attraction between such regions, based in IC, may be a useful approach for modeling. We believe that our model should be replicated in other EU regions, and thereby increased in depth. However, we regard our results as a promising step towards understanding some important organizing principles for the multi-regional economics of the 21st century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of Web 2.0 has gained widespread prominence in recent years. The use of Web 2.0 applications on an individual level is currently extensive, and such applications have begun to be implemented by organizations in hopes of boosting collaboration and driving innovation. Despite this growing trend, only a small number of theoretical perspectives are available in the literature that discuss how such applications could be utilized to assist in innovation. In this paper, we propose a theoretical model explicating this phenomenon. We argue that organizational Web 2.0 use fosters the emergence and enhancement of informal networks, weak ties, boundary spanners, organizational absorptive capacity, which are reflected in three dimensions of social capital, structural, relational, and cognitive. The generation of social capital enables organizational knowledge transfer, which in turn leads to organizational innovation. Based on this model, suggestions for organizations to facilitate this process are also provided, and theoretical implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many studies focus their analysis on the effects of knowledge management on the development of organizational innovations. Innovation is posited, in this paper, to be a managerial priority that facilitates the creation of competitive advantage. The data, information and knowledge that contribute to innovation processes are available in social capital. Social capital is understood as the networks, norms and trust that enable participants to act together more effectively to pursue shared objectives (Putnam, 1993). From this foundation, we argue that the effectiveness of these networks can be determined by whether the personnel who interact perceive the relationship to be worthwhile, equitable, productive and satisfying. Only individuals can apply their own experience and contextual understanding to interpret the details and implications of a particular situation in order to determine what is the appropriate action or actions to take. Internal social capital enhances the ability of members within a firm to know who to contact for relevant knowledge. This means that internal social capital facilitates the development of innovation through the acquisition of knowledge from internal and external networks. However, there are some problems in family firms. The utilization of internal capital does not guarantee that appropriate information is used in appropriate circumstances or that information is appropriately updated (De Holan and Phillips, 2004). The influence of the family on the company may inhibit or foster the exploitation of this knowledge. In this context, we try to test the influence of social capital on innovation on family firms. We develop a measure of the extent of family control of family companies -- familiness -- and examine the moderator role of this variable in the relationship between social capital and product innovation. The results of our empirical study of 282 family firms show that social capital has a positive relationship with product innovation. That is, the active connections among people -- "the trust, mutual understanding, shared values and behaviors that bind the members of human networks and communities and make cooperative action possible" (Cohen and Prusak, 2001) -- allow companies to generate innovations. Second, we also found that familiness plays a moderator role in the relationship between social capital and innovation. In this case, we have found that cultural dimension of familiness positively moderates the relationship between social capital and innovation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to investigate the relationship between firm's innovation and knowledge sources in Baltic countries. We focus on Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, since for these countries, the relationship between innovation and knowledge is unexplored from an empirical point of view. There is a theoretical background on the different types of knowledge that influence a firm's innovation level. By using firm-level data of the Community Innovation Survey (CIS 2014), we observe this relationship in the specific sub-category of the manufacturing sector in Baltic countries, and consider a range of control variables. Our findings highlight a positive and consistent relationship between knowledge sources and innovation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The "triple helix" model is considered as being a spiral model of innovation contributing to the country and regional improvement by fostering interactions between academic, industry and government. This model highlights the ties between the three parties at different stages in the process of knowledge capitalization and flow. Although, this model has proven to be effective in some countries, some questions remain regarding its effective implementation in Thailand. This paper presents an adapted version of the helix model that could contribute to development of ties among stakeholders through strategic alliances. The success key factors leading to an economic development mission by universities are as well discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the Lisbon Agenda declares the aim for the European Union to become the most dynamic and competitive knowledge-based market in the world by 2010, management instruments are needed to support companies achieving this ambitious goal. Small and medium-sized companies (SMEs) are especially affected by this plan being the driving force of Europe's economy. To obtain their competitive advantage, it is crucial for SMEs to utilise knowledge efficiently and to enhance their innovation potential. Thus, managing their specific Intellectual Capital (IC) becomes more and more important for future-oriented organisations. A practical way to tackle the challenge is the methodology developed by the German pilot project 'Wissensbilanz -- Made in Germany' and the European pilot project 'InCaS: Intellectual Capital Statement -- Made in Europe'. The Intellectual Capital Statement (ICS) is an instrument to assess, develop and report the IC of an organisation and to monitor critical success factors systematically. By applying this method in more than 50 German and 25 European small and medium-sized enterprises, it was possible to support the participating companies in identifying, evaluating and developing their strategically relevant knowledge. Resulting from increased interests in managing and reporting of IC, stakeholders such as creditors or investors receive ICS in completely different qualities -- from very reliable to implausible. To ensure the quality of ICS in a sustainable way, we have developed an approach of ICS certification based on the methods of quality management system certification, financial audit and the assessment for European Excellence Award. In the end, only the ICS fulfilling the quality requirements will be awarded a certificate. A catalogue with requirements shall serve as the certification basis and has to be in place beforehand. This catalogue evolved as an essence of both above mentioned projects and includes the experiences of ICS implementations. The challenge is to determine the smallest possible amount of requirements that will enable the ICS to meet the acknowledged quality criteria. Furthermore, this paper summarises how the InCaS method supports companies developing a knowledge-based strategy. We describe research results gained from the German and European project about the strategic relevance of particular IC factors in general and their relevance depending on the business sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Globalisation and the accompanying increasing international competition put considerable pressure on European small and medium-sized enterprises (SME). The key to competitiveness increasingly appears to be the way people combine, master and commercialise their know-how. Hence it is crucial for European SMEs to utilise and manage knowledge efficiently in order to obtain a competitive advantage. While different national approaches on the management of Intellectual Capital (IC) have been developed and tested, there is no European wide standard regarding the measurement of IC. The collective research project "Intellectual Capital Statement - Made in Europe" aims at harmonising these scattered approaches on a scientific as well as a practical level. Based on scientific consensus a first framework has been developed providing a common ground for the measurement of IC by introducing the Intellectual Capital Statement (ICS). The ICS is an instrument to assess, develop and report an organisation's IC, to monitor critical success factors systematically, and to support strategic management decisions. As InCaS puts emphasis on a practical approach suitable for SMEs, the framework is to be understood as a starting point for phase I of the project, providing the basis for further development of the method towards practicability and harmonisation. It will be expanded to the final "European ICS guideline" and supported by the "ICS toolbox" in subsequent project phases. Main focus of this paper is the InCaS project and the accompanying European approach on measuring IC. As a first result a brief overview on the existing approaches on measuring IC is provided. Furthermore, the InCaS project as well as the ICS method is described and preliminary results are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Virtual communities of practice (COPs) are fast becoming a basic work unit in a networked world. The relationship between COPs, Knowledge Management, and the Learning Organisation is a question of priority for social sector leaders, researchers, policy makers, and practitioners as they seek to establish ways to maintain relevance and effectiveness in the volatile environments in which they work (Thomas et al, 2005). When well executed, virtual COPs produce results because the knowledge is stewarded: organised for learning, poised for action, and planned for sustainability. In this paper, we document and analyse the actors and factors that, in our experience, contribute to success: Enlightened Leadership, Compelling Work, Appropriate Technology and Knowledge Sustainability. Over the last two years we have worked with new virtual COPs in both the public and non-profit sectors. The outsized successes prove the power of this approach to work. The under-performers help define the parameters for more effective implementations. Perhaps surprisingly, the critical success factors for a high-performing virtual COP have absolutely nothing to do with technological aptitude. The two key determinants of community success harken back to Business Management 101: the strategic clarity and capacity for collaborative leadership in the organisation, and the specificity and practicality of the community mission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The primary objective of this study was to assess employees' perceptions on the use of online internal communication (OIC) for knowledge sharing from a personal/individual perspective. This is important because of the emphasis placed on the relevance of knowledge management (KM) in transforming ordinary organisations into learning ones, and to a greater degree through the use of new media technologies. One of the important dimensions of KM that is crucial for organisational learning is knowledge sharing (KS). However, the use of OIC to share knowledge among employees in deposit-taking savings and credit co-operative societies (SACCOs) in Kenya is still low. Therefore, it is necessary to explore employees' perceptions and personal/individual factors influencing employees' online KS using the available OIC tools. A cross-sectional survey design was adopted. Primary data were collected using an online structured questionnaire targeting the accessible population of 485 mid-level employees of deposit taking SACCOs in Kenya, and data were migrated to SPSS version 25.0 to generate descriptive statistics. Thematic coding of data obtained from eight focus group discussions involving 72 employees and in-depth interviews with eight senior managers were presented as narrative analysis. The findings of this study indicated that most employees lacked the requisite knowledge, skills and attitude for adopting OIC for knowledge sharing (KS), and emphasised the need for training prior to the implementation process and an organisational environment that is conducive for attutude modification in the use of existing OIC. This study is unique and adds to the existing body of knowledge in the proposed theoretical framework emphasing the need to enhance KS through OIC, specifically on a personal/individual level, considering the managerial/organisational and technical levels as well, to contribute to organisational learning and innovation to ensure sustainable competitive advantage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study is an Information and Computer Technology evaluation of the Blackboard Learning Management System into teaching and learning at an institution of higher education in South Africa. In view of the institution's objective of developing a context-driven, transformative, and innovative teaching and learning practices involving the integration of technology, the study sought to classify and evaluate the form and function of teaching and learning innovations on Blackboard. Using a case study research design and a purposive sampling strategy, lecturers making an extensive use of Blackboard in the delivery of their courses were sampled. Blackboard start-up documents as well as open-ended questionnaires for lecturers provided qualitative data. Content analysis and the extraction of themes were employed. The functional pedagogical framework and SAMR models were used as interpretive lenses for the findings. The study concludes that the nature of Blackboard innovations tended to be more superficial at the levels of substitution and augmentation. Limited transformation evidenced by modification and redefinition spelled lack of substantial changes in curriculum design and delivery. With respect to the functions served by Blackboard, the conclusion drawn is that the integration is to a large extent driven by management and efficiency concerns and less by interaction, collaboration and personalisation functions. The study signals non-realisation of the educational functions spelt in the Blackboard start-up documents. The study recommends a differentiated approach to Blackboard training by a multi-disciplinary team. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since seamless learning (SL) is still a rather unknown concept in higher education many educators classify it under the same categories as mobile, blended, online or hybrid learning. The purpose of this study is firstly to clarify the historical evolvement of the seamless learning concept over the past decades and, to position the seamless learning concept as it is understood today. Secondly, to find the most important concepts which can be proposed for a useful seamless learning experience design framework to assist educators with their course design. Considering this context, the research question for this study is formulated as follows: "Which concepts constitute a seamless learning experience design framework for students in higher education?" To answer this question, an inductive qualitative research analysis was conducted by collecting data from educators from countries on five continents on their views on this topic. Following a thematic coding approach of the combined dataset, five emerging themes crystallised, and are presented as part of a proposed Seamless Learning Experience Design (SLED) framework. They include core, positive, practical, human and design concepts - including sub-themes. The framework contributes to quality assurance processes in e-learning practices by providing a guide for developing seamless learning experiences for students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With accelerated market volatility, faster response times and increased globalization, business environments are going through a major transformation and firms have intensified their search for strategies which can give them competitive advantage. This requires that companies continuously innovate, to think of new ideas that can be transformed into products, processes or services, generating value for the firm. Innovative solutions and processes are usually developed by a group of people, working together. A grouping of people that share and create new knowledge can be considered as a Community of Practice (CoP). CoPs are places which provide a sound basis for organizational learning and encourage knowledge creation and acquisition. Virtual Communities of Practice (VCoPs) can perform a central role in promoting communication and collaboration between members who are dispersed in both time and space. Nevertheless, it is known that not all CoPs and VCoPs share the same levels of performance or produce the same results. This means that there are factors that enable or constrain the process of knowledge creation. With this in mind, we developed a case study in order to identify both the motivations and the constraints that members of an organization experience when taking part in the knowledge creating processes of VCoPs. Results show that organizational culture and professional and personal development play important roles in these processes. No interviewee mentioned direct financial reward as a motivation factor for participation in VCoPs. Most identified the difficulty in aligning objectives, established by the management, with justification of the time spent in the VCoP. The interviewees also said that technology is not a constraint. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work discusses how knowledge gatekeepers' intervention in the process of innovations and technology transfer was developed and applied in the manufacturing, financial and R&D firms in Rwanda and Uganda. The study was based on 150 questionnaires distributed, and used to collect empirical data. Furthermore, 25 interviews were conducted within ten organizations and fifteen well known opinion leaders and recognised experts in the fields concerned by this study. In an examination of the role of gatekeeper of knowledge in knowledge transfer processes the study has found that knowledge gatekeepers maybe individual, a firm, or a department within an organization. Furthermore, individuals working as knowledge gatekeepers must adapt to the recipient culture and knowledge sharing practice if they are to effect change. For technological innovations and knowledge transfer, the study found that the role of gatekeepers can be a multidimensional one, ranging from being trust and relationship builders, ambassadors within and from originating firms to receiving firms, and flag bearers. On the basis of the evidences obtained, the study has found no evidence to suggest that, in a gatekeeper's intervention within the knowledge creation process, there are no evidences that, in case of a firm acting as a knowledge gatekeeper, may necessarily develop asymmetries as well as put in place destructive mechanisms to restrain potential competitors within the sector from developing similar products or that they would necessarily incorporate innovative SMEs in their network who may provide related products to the leading firm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In May 2003 an article by the former editor of the Harvard Business Review (HBR), Nicholas Carr, in HBR, suggested that IT was no longer a strategic concern for management and that investments in IT should, in future, be restricted to the routine. Carr's thesis has been widely debated, not least in the context of IT value in general and its strategic value in particular. Notwithstanding flaws in his reasoning, this short nine-page article appears to have had a significant impact and influence on the way chief executives think about IT, and has had real consequences for IT budgets, not to mention careers. Carr went on to develop his ideas in a subsequent book. This article examines Carr's arguments at a number of levels and suggests that it would be unwise to base long-term thinking about IT on his conclusions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the case of events such as fundamental regulatory reforms or radical technological advances, firms have to undertake discontinuous or dynamic learning. Such learning involves the generation of new capacity through the acquisition of new knowledge and the combination of it with the firm's existing accumulated knowledge. In developing countries the challenge for firms to develop new competencies through dynamic learning is more complex due to political and economic complexities. This paper discusses the limitations of existing frameworks for analysing the process aspect of transformation and proposes a theoretical framework with which to explore dynamic learning in firms from developing countries. The proposed theoretical framework is based on a constructivist approach to organisational knowledge and uses the concept of absorptive capacity. The responses of large pharmaceutical firms to biotechnological change are used to illustrate the areas under investigation. The theoretical framework is used to explore the responses of Indian pharmaceutical firms to changes in patent law required by that country's accession to the World Trade Organisation (WTO). The cases show that the theoretical framework is comprehensive and useful for exploring firm level knowledge processes within firms from developing countries. However a broader analysis of firm-level learning in developing countries should include an analysis of the institutional environment as this plays an important role in creating environment for firm based learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the relationship between the leadership dimensions associated with Bass's (1985) model, and the 'stimulant' and 'obstacle' determinants of the work environment for creativity. There are three major findings in this research. First, the relationship between transformational and transactional leadership and the 'stimulant' determinants of the work environment for creativity is significant and positive. Second, the 'obstacle' determinants of the work environment for creativity are negatively related with both transactional and transformational leadership. Finally, transformational leadership is more strongly correlated than transactional leadership with the 'stimulant' determinants of the work environment for creativity. Thus, transformational leadership is an increasingly important aspect in today's organisations in creating a corporate culture and the work environment that stimulates employees' creativity and innovation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Knowledge is used as a focal factor for competitive advantage, through effective and efficient performances by employees in many organisations. As a result, knowledgeable employees are expected to share their knowledge with others to increase innovation within the organisation. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. Generally, employees behave differently within an organisation. The main challenge is that no organisation has total control of its employees' behaviour and actions. The behaviour and action has impact on how information systems are deployed for innovation, in creating competitive advantage. As a result, many systems have been deployed by different organisations in attempt to address this challenge for the interest. Others have deployed competitive intelligence products and services. This is primarily intended to provide decision - makers with information that can contribute to the innovative process in order to meet customer needs. For an organisation to survive, it must be able to innovate and market its innovations. Also, innovation creates uncertainty about its consequences in the mind of potential adopters. There exists a discrepancy between what customers perceive as their problems or needs and what organisations understand these problems to be. This study was conducted with the primary aim to understand the impact of Competitive Intelligence (CI) on Information systems (IS) innovation products and services in organisations. The case study research method was employed, using a financial organisation. The Innovation-decision process, from the perspective of Diffusion of Innovation theory (DOI) was applied in the data analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]