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The knowledge-creating company : how Japanese companies create the dynamics of innovation

TL;DR: In this article, Nonaka and Takeuchi argue that Japanese firms are successful precisely because they are innovative, because they create new knowledge and use it to produce successful products and technologies, and they reveal how Japanese companies translate tacit to explicit knowledge.
Abstract: How has Japan become a major economic power, a world leader in the automotive and electronics industries? What is the secret of their success? The consensus has been that, though the Japanese are not particularly innovative, they are exceptionally skilful at imitation, at improving products that already exist. But now two leading Japanese business experts, Ikujiro Nonaka and Hiro Takeuchi, turn this conventional wisdom on its head: Japanese firms are successful, they contend, precisely because they are innovative, because they create new knowledge and use it to produce successful products and technologies. Examining case studies drawn from such firms as Honda, Canon, Matsushita, NEC, 3M, GE, and the U.S. Marines, this book reveals how Japanese companies translate tacit to explicit knowledge and use it to produce new processes, products, and services.
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors study the meaning of professional development as a participative process within a community of practice and discuss the significance of the collaborative engagement of teacher educators for the generation of a theory of practice.
Abstract: In this work we study the meaning of professional development as a participative process within a community of practice. In this collaborative narrative self‐study we look at the development of ourselves as a professional group working together in an intensive program. The study is based on personal career stories, each told by its author, but once told becoming a chapter in the group’s story, to be further analyzed and interpreted by its members. This process revealed four themes that contribute to professional learning experiences constructed within the context of being in the team: group diversity, interwoven work, the novice stance and collaborative research. In this paper we discuss our emerging understanding of the significance of the collaborative engagement of teacher educators for the generation of a theory of practice and suggest situating this understanding within a broader ecological perspective using the metaphor of the ‘edge’, a fertile ground for sustainable change and development.

52 citations


Cites background from "The knowledge-creating company : ho..."

  • ...It creates what Nonaka and Takeuchi (1995) describe as ‘creative chaos’, a situation that is not based on linear processes of knowledge creation but rather encourages ambiguity and thinking in alternatives as sources for learning....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Application of BPR before implementation of HIS or even after implementation can be helpful to improve effectiveness of HIS, and critical success factors for healthcare organizations to consider while implementing BPR in their process are highlighted.

51 citations


Cites background from "The knowledge-creating company : ho..."

  • ...In the first step (define the vision), the objective of BPR such as reduce process cycle time should be identified based on customer needs [10, 23]....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The article aims to be a reflective paper on the interconnected concepts of training, development and innovation and the potential they have in dealing with change in organizations.
Abstract: The article aims to be a reflective paper on the interconnected concepts of training, development and innovation and the potential they have in dealing with change in organizations. We call change both the process through which something becomes different and the result of that process. Change management is the expression used to define the complex of activities, functions, and tools (such as training courses) through which an organization deals with the introduction of something new that is relevant for both its survival and growth. Training and development are labels used to define those educational activities implemented in organizations to empower the competences of workers, employees and managers in the lifelong learning perspective of improving their performance. Consequently, we define competences as those personal characteristics that allow people to be effective in the changing contexts of both workplace and everyday life. They are also necessary in organizational innovation, which is the process of transforming ideas or inventions into goods or services that generate value and for which customers will pay. Training, development, and innovation are three different but interconnected functions by which organizations manage change. What is the state of the art of the literature dealing with these topics? Here, is a critical review on the matter.

51 citations


Cites background from "The knowledge-creating company : ho..."

  • ...…2015), witnessed by such labels as organizational learning (Senge, 1990; Argyris and Schön, 1992; Fulmer and Keys, 1998), knowledge-creating learning (Nonaka and Takeuchi, 1995; Gherardi et al., 1998), learning climate (Cortini et al., 2016), action learning (Jones, 1990; Mumford, 1997; O’Neil,…...

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The professional must not only have new ideas, but also it is necessary to know and be able to use the experience of the organization, that is able to improve the work quality and productivity.
Abstract: The dynamics of the modern market, fast development of science and technology, changes in society require a new attitude to the management of organizations. New requirements are set to the employees as well. The understanding of the necessity to improve constantly, to raise the professional level becomes a very important trait of the employee along with the perfect professional knowledge. The professional must not only have new ideas, but also it is necessary to know and be able to use the experience of the organization, that is able to improve the work quality and productivity. The spreading of the telecommunication means such as internet allow creating a homogeneous global information storage system, that significantly raises the possibility of the information search and mastering. The penetration of informational and innovational technologies into all spheres of our lives, the usage of e-learning created preconditions to establish management systems. The recognition of the importance of intellectual

51 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Knowledge management (KM) was a well-founded management approach that held significant benefits for public sector organisations as discussed by the authors and there were certain knowledge management enablers in an organisation that needed to be developed and that were necessary for the achievement of organisational effectiveness.
Abstract: Knowledge management (KM) was a well-founded management approach that held significant benefits for public sector organisations. KM as a management philosophy had an impact on various components of an organisation and it could therefore significantly advance organisational efficiency. The successful implementation of KM initiatives had to be ensured because, different organisational processes and departments had to collaborate and functional silos had to be eliminated. KM required long-term commitment and dedication from all organisational members. Furthermore, there were certain knowledge management enablers in an organisation that needed to be developed and that were necessary for the achievement of organisational effectiveness. These enablers were the organisational culture, human resources, information technology, organisational structure and, the organisation’s strategy and leadership. This article assessed each of these enablers and how they impacted on an organisation’s KM efforts. Stellenbosch Municipality was used as a case in point. The article further examined how local governments were able to effectively implement KM practices as strategic tools used to achieve service delivery and operational goals. The article concluded with a number of recommended strategies, (1) to develop the KM enablers that were present in organisations and (2) to aid the implementation of successful organisational KM initiatives.

51 citations

References
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The objective of KMS is to support creation, transfer, and application of knowledge in organizations by promoting a class of information systems, referred to as knowledge management systems.
Abstract: Knowledge is a broad and abstract notion that has defined epistemological debate in western philosophy since the classical Greek era. In the past few years, however, there has been a growing interest in treating knowledge as a significant organizational resource. Consistent with the interest in organizational knowledge and knowledge management (KM), IS researchers have begun promoting a class of information systems, referred to as knowledge management systems (KMS). The objective of KMS is to support creation, transfer, and application of knowledge in organizations. Knowledge and knowledge management are complex and multi-faceted concepts. Thus, effective development and implementation of KMS requires a foundation in several rich literatures.

9,531 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This research suggests that a knowledge infrastructure consisting of technology, structure, and culture along with a knowledge process architecture of acquisition, conversion, application, and protection are essential organizational capabilities or "preconditions" for effective knowledge management.
Abstract: A hallmark of the new economy is the ability of organizations to realize economic value from their collection of knowledge assets as well as their assets of information, production distribution, and affiliation. Despite the competitive necessity of becoming a knowledge-based organization, senior managers have found it difficult to transform their firms through programs of knowledge management. This is particularly true if their organizations have long histories of process and a tradition of business success. This research examines the issue of effective knowledge management from the perspective of organizational capabilities. This perspective suggests that a knowledge infrastructure consisting of technology, structure, and culture along with a knowledge process architecture of acquisition, conversion, application, and protection are essential organizational capabilities or “preconditions” for effective knowledge management. Through analysis of surveys collected from over 300 senior executives, this research empirically models and uncovers key aspects of these dimensions. The results provide a basis for understanding the competitive predisposition of a firm as it enters a program of knowledge management.

4,646 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explore the nature of value co-creation in the context of service-dominant (S-D) logic and develop a conceptual framework for understanding and managing value cocreation.
Abstract: Central to service-dominant (S-D) logic is the proposition that the customer becomes a co-creator of value. This emphasizes the development of customer–supplier relationships through interaction and dialog. However, research to date suggests relatively little is known about how customers engage in the co-creation of value. In this article, the authors: explore the nature of value co-creation in the context of S-D logic; develop a conceptual framework for understanding and managing value co-creation; and utilize field-based research to illustrate practical application of the framework. This process-based framework provides a structure for customer involvement that takes account of key foundational propositions of S-D logic and places the customer explicitly at the same level of importance as the company as co-creators of value. Synthesis of diverse concepts from research on services, customer value and relationship marketing into a new process-based framework for co-creation provide new insights into managing the process of value co-creation.

3,114 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined how aspects of intellectual capital influenced various innovative capabilities in organizations and found that human, organizational, and social capital and their interrelationships selectively influenced incremental and radical innovative capabilities.
Abstract: We examined how aspects of intellectual capital influenced various innovative capabilities in organizations. In a longitudinal, multiple-informant study of 93 organizations, we found that human, organizational, and social capital and their interrelationships selectively influenced incremental and radical innovative capabilities. As anticipated, organizational capital positively influenced incremental innovative capability, while human capital interacted with social capital to positively influence radical innovative capability. Counter to our expectations, however, human capital by itself was negatively associated with radical innovative capability. Interestingly, social capital played a significant role in both types of innovation, as it positively influenced incremental and radical innovative capabilities. It is widely accepted that an organization’s capability to innovate is closely tied to its intellectual capital, or its ability to utilize its knowledge resources. Several studies have underscored how new products embody organizational knowledge (e.g., Stewart, 1997), described innovation as a

3,008 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors outline a perspective on knowing in practice which highlights the essential role of human action in knowing how to get things done in complex organizational work and suggest that the competence to do global product development is both collective and distributed, grounded in the everyday practices of organizational members.
Abstract: In this paper, I outline a perspective on knowing in practice which highlights the essential role of human action in knowing how to get things done in complex organizational work. The perspective suggests that knowing is not a static embedded capability or stable disposition of actors, but rather an ongoing social accomplishment, constituted and reconstituted as actors engage the world in practice. In interpreting the findings of an empirical study conducted in a geographically dispersed hightech organization, I suggest that the competence to do global product development is both collective and distributed, grounded in the everyday practices of organizational members. I conclude by discussing some of the research implications of a perspective on organizational knowing in practice.

2,670 citations