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Purpose – The aim of this paper is twofold: to understand if it is possible to find similarities and dissimilarities among the construction companies in terms of knowledge management (KM) process, identifying the main tools and techniques adopted by the same companies within this process; second, to emphasize and study more in depth the best KM techniques that emerged from the cases in the context of the Italian construction industry. Design/methodology/approach – On the basis of available studies on KM within the industry investigated, multiple case studies were developed to reach the aforementioned objective, involving 14 Italian construction companies. Findings – The outcomes obtained from the case studies allow drawing some conclusions on the KM process adopted by the companies investigated, as well as on the type of tools and techniques adopted by the same companies in the KM process. Research limitations/implications – The case study is based on 14 single cases and, therefore, we must keep in mind that there may be significant differences between industries, companies, departments and individuals regarding how management tools and technological systems are used in practice. Originality/value – Very few papers are available on the KM process within the Italian construction landscape. This study is expected to encourage future studies in this field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The paper, covering the actual argument of open innovation, aims to answer two main research questions, namely: "Which open innovation approach is adopted by the companies belonging to the ICTs industry?" and "Which types of collaborations are carried out by the companies and which are the dynamics that characterize it?". Design/methodology/approach – In order to answer the research questions a multiple case study methodology is adopted. The research framework was structured in three main phases: first, a literature review on the matter of open innovation in general and within the ICTs industry in particular, as well as of the specific features of the industry investigated, was carried out. Second, a list of questions containing the main issues that arose from the previous step has been designed for the case study protocol, to be used in the following structured interviews. Finally, structured direct interviews were conducted on three important Italian companies active in the telecommunications area. Findings – Results highlighted different ways to manage the open innovation processes, based on teamwork or task forces, and the different roles, more or less proactive, that an information communication technology (ICT) company may undertake within this process. Moreover, they show that ICT companies acquire external knowledge and skills mainly from universities and research centers, as well as from value chain's actors (suppliers in primis). Originality/value – Still little attention has been paid to the understanding of the open innovation approach of Italian firms belonging to the ICT industry, thus the authors believe that this paper may represent a valuable basis for future research on the open innovation issues in the field of ICT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The objective of the paper is twofold: first, to test a framework of the relationship between satisfaction of knowledge workers and organizational culture, developed in a previous theoretical study, within a specific industry, specifically, the pharmaceutical one; second, to investigate which of the constructs that constitute such a framework are the most important in the above mentioned industry.Design/methodology/approach – In order to achieve the above mentioned objectives, the authors adopted multiple case study based research. The case studies were carried out with a series of semi-structured interviews, with all the knowledge workers operating in the R&D business functions of each company, over a two-month period during May and June 2009.Findings – The main result of the research is the validation of the research framework by knowledge workers operating in the pharmaceutical industry. It emerged that a bureaucratic organizational culture has a negative influence on knowledge workers' job satisfaction, while innovative or supportive organizational culture have a positive impact. Moreover, the study makes it possible to understand which aspects of their job satisfaction are more influenced by the organizational culture.Practical implications – Results indicate to managers the essential features of an organizational culture that positively influence job satisfaction, and in particular to introduce in the industries (like the pharmaceutical one) where R&D is the key activity, carrier ladders and forms of participation for the knowledge workers. Moreover, they help managers in detecting the things to be improved in the organization in order to improve the job satisfaction of their knowledge workers.Originality/value – Since only few studies have investigated the link between the organizational culture on knowledge workers' satisfaction, in general and within a specific industry in particular, the paper adds elements of discussion to the debate about the evaluation of the impact of organizational culture on job satisfaction of knowledge workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present the main findings of an empirical study conducted in the Italian food machinery industry, on identifying the technological innovation determinants in small or medium enterprises. Design/methodology/approach – On the basis of a research framework, a study was carried out on 98 Italian firms operating in the food machinery industry, by means of a questionnaire survey. A statistical analysis was conducted on the data collected, in order to understand which are the most important factors influencing innovation and the relative effect on the innovation output of the various factors considered. Findings – The results of the statistical analysis conducted show that, in contrast with the trend of the industry investigated, great importance is attributed only to collaboration with universities and research centres. Network actors are not perceived as an important source of information for innovation, while universities, conferences and scientific papers are significant sources of information in explaining the share of total turnover from new products or processes and process innovations, respectively. As far as, obstacles to innovation are concerned, the results indicate that both financial and informative obstacles are consistently associated with the innovative output. Finally, firms focusing on market and efficiency related innovation objectives realise higher levels of process related innovative output. Originality/value – The study provides some empirical evidence on identifying and prioritising the technological innovation determinants for enterprises operating in the context of a northern Italian district. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – To identify the problematic areas relating to the current managerial practices in motivating engineers and evaluating their relative contribution to the overall level of engineers' satisfaction. Design/methodology/approach – Based on a conceptual model, an empirical study was conducted within 11 organizations operating in the food machinery industry in Italy. A survey was carried out on 376 development engineers staffed in these companies and a statistical analysis was conducted on the data collected in order to refine and operationalize the conceptual model proposed and to investigate the relative effects of the various factors considered. Findings – From the statistical analysis it emerged that job satisfaction can be split into three dimensions and that it is impacted by five factors related to managerial policies, perception of engineers' status and job-related motivational mechanisms. Practical implications – The analysis clearly suggests that engineers in industry are generally dissatisfied and largely demotivated. It also emphasizes the importance of sound managerial practices that enables the organization to establish appropriate reward systems, to understand engineers' expectations as technical professionals and to provide them with task-related motivational tools fostering challenge and flexibility. Originality/value – It addresses an explanation of engineers' satisfaction based on a theoretical framework, striving to identify key motivational stimuli effective with engineers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]