Purpose The present paper attempts to identify factors and variables affecting designing and assi... more Purpose The present paper attempts to identify factors and variables affecting designing and assimilating technology in knowledge-based centers and aerospace industries, to study their relations and; ultimately, to provide a model based on research data. Methodology Structural equation modeling (SEM) using AMOS software was employed to study the relations among latent variables. Initially, we assure the right structure of devised measure and, then, by introducing a concept called " invariance " , we show that the devised measure structure in both aerospace industries and knowledge-based centers measures the same traits. Finally, the relations among latent variables in both knowledge-based centers and aerospace industries are studied and compared through SEM. Findings Findings indicate that there is a significant and positive relationship between knowledge management and successful technology transfer effectiveness. Further relational and organizational capabilities as a key factor and facilitator plays a mediating role between knowledge management and technology transfer effectiveness. Practical implications According to direct impact of knowledge management on successful technology transfer, it is appropriate that domestic managers in research centers and aerospace industries pay more attention to technology transfer and pave the ground for executing its processes and mechanisms. Originality/value In the model provided in the theoretical literature, the sequence of technology transfer is more addressed while the capabilities of technology sender (university), technology receptor (industry), knowledge management, and its influence role in technology transfer from university to industry are not considered.
Purpose -This paper aims to explore the relationship between knowledge creation and intellectual ... more Purpose -This paper aims to explore the relationship between knowledge creation and intellectual capital (IC) through an empirical study in the pharmaceutical industry. In the current economy, knowledge and IC are considered as the most important organizational assets and are the key resources in gaining competitive advantage. Design/methodology/approach -This paper adopts the socialization, externalization, combination and internalization (SECI) model to examine the format of knowledge creation processes (KCP) and uses a model to demonstrate the relationship between KCP and IC and its components in the pharmaceutical industry. A valid instrument was adopted to collect the required data on KCP and and IC dimensions. Structural equation modeling was used to assess the measurement model and to test the research hypotheses using the data collected from 470 completed questionnaires. Findings -The results supported the research model and revealed that KCP has significant influence on the accumulation of human capital. The performance of human capital manifests significant impact on structural capital and relational capital. Practical limitations/implications -Given the strong association between KCP and IC, managers should define their own robust operations for knowledge creation to improve their IC accumulation. Originality/value -This research departs from the earlier research on KCP-IC by adopting the SECI model and a research model that facilitates the exploration of the relationship between KCP and IC dimensions in the pharmaceutical industry. The research results provided strong support for the KCP-IC relationship.
ABSTRACT This research was designed to identify critical success factors of business process reen... more ABSTRACT This research was designed to identify critical success factors of business process reengineering in an Iranian industry case study based on multivariate data analysis. Through developing a BPR model and implementation it on the case study, the business processes were managed and then its success was analyzed. This analysis initially, represents the success of applied changes, and then follows the CSFs of BPR in three main factors entitled belief to change, change of infrastructures, participation of people in change programs and decreasing of the resistance against the change.
ABSTRACT This paper aims at indicating the impacts of Structural Capital on implementation of e-b... more ABSTRACT This paper aims at indicating the impacts of Structural Capital on implementation of e-business. At first a review on intellectual capital models is presented. Consequently the impacts of structural capital on e-business is illustrated with a case study in order to show how three major dimensions of structural capital, relational capital, process capital, and innovation capital, would influence successful e-business model implementation. The result of the case study confirms that Iranian companies strongly need to consider all dimensions of structural capital before any attempt to enter e-business environment.
Organizational citizenship behavior is a voluntarily executed behavior emanated by one individual... more Organizational citizenship behavior is a voluntarily executed behavior emanated by one individual who undertakes to do more than what is elucidated in his/her job description and what is not directly designed by official reward systems in an organization, while it can bring about an improvement in efficiency and effectiveness levels in the organization’s performance. Besides, organizational justice is one of the most important introductions for driving into organizational citizenship behavior. Since creating motivation and provoking employees into work is a very important organizational issue, enormous attention should be paid to organizational justice as a provocation method. Present research intends to examine the relationship between organizational justice and organizational citizenship behavior in a non-profit organization . To investigate this relationship, an author-made questionnaire was designed and, after pertinent literature was studied and aspects of distributional justice were extracted, procedural justice and interactional justice were specified. A 79-item sample of statistical population was distributed. Replies were analyzed using statistical software. Results are indicative of a relationship among all three aspects of organizational justice and organizational citizenship behavior, whereby organizational citizenship behavior among employees is improved as organizational justice is increased. According to the Partial Least Squares approach patterned by the software Smart PLS, results show that organizational justice impacts on organizational citizenship behavior with 0.802.
This paper explored the multiple relationships between intellectual capital (IC) and
knowledge ma... more This paper explored the multiple relationships between intellectual capital (IC) and knowledge management (KM) in an Iranian university. For intellectual capital, three components were studied including: relational capital, structural capital and human capital. For knowledge management, five processes were considered, namely creation, acquisition, codification, sharing and application. The relationship of the components and processes were examined through structural equation modeling and test the research hypotheses. The knowledge management processes explain 81% of the changes in dependent variable of intellectual capital. A questionnaire was developed and validated by the experts. The reliability of the questionnaire measured by Cronbach›s alpha was 0.97. A total of 152 questionnaires were completed by faculties of a selected Iranian university. A significant positive relationship among the components was shown by the results. The Friedman test showed that human capital and knowledge creation had the highest priority among the intellectual capital components and knowledge management processes, respectively.
Abstract
Purpose-The purpose of this study is to identify, classify, and prioritize knowledge man... more Abstract Purpose-The purpose of this study is to identify, classify, and prioritize knowledge management (KM) barriers in Iran project-based organization (PBO) and present conceptual framework for improving it. Design/methodology/approach: After studying previous literature on the topic, initial barriers of knowledge management in project based organizations were extracted. Then, a list of barriers of knowledge management in the above mentioned organizations was finalized by interviewing experts in knowledge management. After that, the barriers were prioritized using a questionnaire. Finally, a conceptual framework for improving knowledge management barriers was presented. Findings: In this article, barriers of knowledge management in project based organizations have been divided into five categories: individual, organizational, technological, contextual, and inter-project. Then a three-layered conceptual framework was presented for improving the barriers of knowledge management in project-based organizations. Practical implications: The prepared and prioritized list of barriers of knowledge management in project based organizations is a stepping stone and a guideline to managers in project based organizations in order to be able to identify barriers of knowledge management in their own organizations and resolve them, and improve knowledge management in their organizations. It also serves as a useful base for researchers to expand further research in barriers of knowledge management in project based organizations. Originality/value: This article is probably the first article which has identified barriers of knowledge management through interview and questionnaires carried out in 50 active project based organizations which had knowledge management section. The article also presented a three-layered framework for improving barriers of knowledge management, which can be applied step by step considering the level of importance.
Purpose: The main objective of this research is to design a model to outline the structure of com... more Purpose: The main objective of this research is to design a model to outline the structure of communities of practice corresponding to organizational context. Design/methodology/approach: This research utilizes both descriptive and prescriptive approaches since we are looking for a comprehensive relational model to deal with the problem of selecting suitable CoPs (Communities of Practice) concerning organizational context. Thus this study applies interviewing and fuzzy Delphi methods to explore the model.
Findings: The work provides a new and comprehensive relational model of CoPs and organizational variables affecting CoPs structure. In this model, three basic concepts of the literature were developed. First, the components concerning types of communities of practice were identified and then the organizational variables related to CoPs were determined. Finally, we extracted the relationships between the organizational variables and the components of communities of practice.
Practical implications: From a practical perspective, the relationships among the components concerning types of communities of practice and the organizational variables may provide a model which can effectively guide firms how to promote, design and manage communities of practice within organizational contexts.
Originality/value: The results of this study contribute to CoPs literature in terms of identification of two variables (CoPs components and organizational variables) to produce a matrix for the construction of a holistic CoPs model. The significant finding of this research is the guidance it provides for designing a relational model involving relations between organizational variables and CoPs components.
Citation: Jafari, Mostafa, Fathian, Mohammad, Jahani, Alireza and Peyman Akhavan (2008), Explorin... more Citation: Jafari, Mostafa, Fathian, Mohammad, Jahani, Alireza and Peyman Akhavan (2008), Exploring the contextual dimensions of organization from knowledge management perspective, Vine: The journal of information and knowledge management systems, Vol. 38, No. 1, pp. 53 -71. Abstract Purpose -The most research of Knowledge Management merely pays attention to it's relation with dimensions of the organizations especially contextual dimensions. The purpose of this work is to explore the contextual dimensions of organizations for finding the interactions between of these dimensions and Knowledge Management and to identify the critical success factors, drivers and constraints, relevant to the implementation of Knowledge Management in the Tehran business environment. Design/methodology/approach -A new exploration based on research experiences of the Knowledge Management is formalized as an extension of the model by Daft. The present article reports the empirical findings of a survey conducted among managers and experts in Tehran. In this survey we give them a questionnaire that contains some questions related to the mentioned dimensions and asked about relations of them and Knowledge Management critical success factors for better implementation based on Factor Analysis. The questionnaire reflects insights gained from a mix of individual choice models developed by various researchers and Delphi technique. Findings -This research finds seven critical success factors, Collaboration and knowledge workers, Technology Deployment, Learning Culture, Flat Structures, Supply Chain Integration, Comprehensive strategies and Flexible Organizations, which related to the conceptual Dimensions of organizations and also drivers and constraints of Knowledge Management Implementation. Research limitations/implications -This framework reflects the Interactions between contextual dimensions and Knowledge management. It may need further research to be used for structural dimensions of the organizations. Originality/value -Using this research, organizations that interested in implementing Knowledge management may be familiar with the impacts of Knowledge Management implementation and contextual dimensions on each other for achieving the desirable outcomes.
The main objective of this book is to investigate knowledge acquisition (KA) techniques and expl... more The main objective of this book is to investigate knowledge acquisition (KA) techniques and explore the impact of different variables on the KA process in action. The book may be of high value to researchers in knowledge management and especially in KA area and it gives valuable information and guidelines that will help researchers to select appropriate KA techniques. The entire book is covered with real case studies for better understanding. In addition, final chapters propose necessary checklists to do a KA project step by step. Enjoy your KA practices in action through this book.
The purpose of the present study is investigating, comparing evaluation frameworks of learning ob... more The purpose of the present study is investigating, comparing evaluation frameworks of learning objects and deriving the more important indices. After doing so, comparison, correspondence and analysis of the frameworks are done. Realizing the most important indices, the e-content of the two lessons of M.Sc courses in one of the foresaid centers has been evaluated. In this research, we pursue the analytic approach of literature review in offering theoretic bases to practical application of the theory, and then by two-round Delphi technique, important criteria and their significance were identified by experts. The purpose of this study is to show the important scales for the evaluation of the learning objects, having the most important role in e-content of E-Lesson and the use of case-study for detecting weak points and improvable aspects. The findings reflect that most of the performed studies have focused on quality of the objects and on correspondence of the e-learning standards with objects formulation and there isn't sufficient study in strategic and planning aspects of learning, having crucial role in learning quality and effectiveness of the E-content of E-lessons. In addition, in these studies, the classification of the scales is not based on specified aspects for learning objects evaluation. The present study answers the following questions: Which factors affect the design and formulation of the quality of learning objects? Onto which aspects one must pay attention to effective designing of E-content of E-Lessons? Which scales of learning objects are the main highly referred ones evaluation in previous studies? Which aspects are the improvable and challenging ones, not being focused enough?
This paper aims to empirically explore the effects of human capital on structural capital in Iran... more This paper aims to empirically explore the effects of human capital on structural capital in Iranian ebusiness. A questionnaire-oriented survey from senior and top manager in Iranian information technology companies was utilized for regression analysis. The findings indicate that human capital significantly influences the three dimensions of structural capital which consists of relational capital, process capital and innovational capital. The study also provides empirical evidence that these three dimensions are internally correlated.
Knowledge management is the process through which corporate knowledge is used to improve organiza... more Knowledge management is the process through which corporate knowledge is used to improve organizational performance. Essentially it looks at managing internal knowledge processes, developing the efficient usage of all information required for corporate decisions. Competitive intelligence (CI) is a process for gathering usable knowledge about the external business environment. The aim of this paper is to demonstrate the synergy between Competitive Intelligence, Knowledge Management. As practices; both CI and KM have the same fundamental requirements. Each need a strategic purpose, each depends on having a corporate culture that encourages people to create and share information and knowledge, each requires skills and competencies to carry out the processes involved, and each is facilitated by the same technology tools. But they have some differences. In this paper we show these differences and similarities.
As both knowledge management and enterprise recourse planning, get the curtail role in organizati... more As both knowledge management and enterprise recourse planning, get the curtail role in organizations, also there is a trend to implement both systems at organizations, there are bulk of literature on the relationship between knowledge management and enterprise resource planning. There are two main points of views. One of them is process-based view that considers knowledge management such as enterprise resource planning long term organization process, that is needed to measure the effects and benefits in long time, not immediately after implementation, and both systems has some affects on each other. Another point of view is project-based, that consider knowledge management smoothing tool for implementation of enterprise recourse planning. This study compares these two points of views with references to literature.
This paper is to discuss a knowledge management strategy map based on Kaplan and Norton's strateg... more This paper is to discuss a knowledge management strategy map based on Kaplan and Norton's strategy maps. In this way, KM strategies are reviewed first and then Kaplan and Norton's strategy map concepts are introduced as an overall methodology for extracting KM strategy maps. The required context will be explored for deploying both knowledge creating and knowledge application strategies in the organization based on four balanced perspective of knowledge management considered in this paper. The authors determined these four issues as balanced dimensions in the knowledge management strategies. These balanced dimensions are intellectual capital, KM processes, value creating dimension and KM performance dimension. Finally, a list is determined that includes various measures for each perspective. The identified critical success factors of the four balanced dimension can also act as a guideline for KM experts in the organizations. This helps to ensure that the essential issues are covered during design and implementation phase of knowledge management strategies.
The main target of this research is to discuss two important strategic management disciplines in ... more The main target of this research is to discuss two important strategic management disciplines in some Iranian SMEs. Change management and knowledge management will be discussed simultaneously for taking insight into the topic. Based on review of recent literature, this paper has identified major factors of both knowledge and change management disciplines in the field. For the research methodology, a structured survey has been implemented by the authors. The outcome of the research can be implemented as a guideline for change management during KM programs. This study provides an integrated perspective of critical issues for both knowledge and change disciplines in the organizations especially in SMEs of developing countries. It gives invaluable information and guidelines which hopefully will help the leaders to mange essential changes for accomplishing knowledge management through their organizations.
In today's competitive environment, holding companies are usually unable to successfully compete ... more In today's competitive environment, holding companies are usually unable to successfully compete in production of goods and services due to technological sophistication. Therefore, for success of holding companies, selecting appropriate strategic alliance partner is a critical factor. Accordingly, the aim of the paper is to propose a systematic approach for an effective partner selection. Firstly, the underlying motivation and reasons for a strategic alliance building are presented using a SWOT analysis. Criteria of partners’ evaluation are attained on the basis of combining strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Due to uncertainty of criteria, they are weighted using fuzzy quantitative strategic planning matrix (FQSPM). Because of a large number of criteria obtained from the SWOT-FQSPM analysis, criteria are diminished based on their weights using the Gap analysis with fuzzy data ranking. In the next step, it is proposed to apply four ranking algorithms including the Fuzzy Additive Ratio Assessment (ARAS-F), the Fuzzy Complex Proportional Assessment (COPRAS-F), the Fuzzy Multi-Objective Optimization by Ratio Analysis (Fuzzy MOORA), and the Fuzzy Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal solution (Fuzzy TOPSIS) to evaluate strategic partners. Finally, the results are combined with the help of the Borda method to choose the best alternative. To illustrate the efficiency of the proposed approach, a real partner selection problem at a holding industries factory in Iran is presented.
Purpose-The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between quality of work life and... more Purpose-The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between quality of work life and knowledge-sharing behaviors in an Iranian research center.
Purpose The present paper attempts to identify factors and variables affecting designing and assi... more Purpose The present paper attempts to identify factors and variables affecting designing and assimilating technology in knowledge-based centers and aerospace industries, to study their relations and; ultimately, to provide a model based on research data. Methodology Structural equation modeling (SEM) using AMOS software was employed to study the relations among latent variables. Initially, we assure the right structure of devised measure and, then, by introducing a concept called " invariance " , we show that the devised measure structure in both aerospace industries and knowledge-based centers measures the same traits. Finally, the relations among latent variables in both knowledge-based centers and aerospace industries are studied and compared through SEM. Findings Findings indicate that there is a significant and positive relationship between knowledge management and successful technology transfer effectiveness. Further relational and organizational capabilities as a key factor and facilitator plays a mediating role between knowledge management and technology transfer effectiveness. Practical implications According to direct impact of knowledge management on successful technology transfer, it is appropriate that domestic managers in research centers and aerospace industries pay more attention to technology transfer and pave the ground for executing its processes and mechanisms. Originality/value In the model provided in the theoretical literature, the sequence of technology transfer is more addressed while the capabilities of technology sender (university), technology receptor (industry), knowledge management, and its influence role in technology transfer from university to industry are not considered.
Purpose -This paper aims to explore the relationship between knowledge creation and intellectual ... more Purpose -This paper aims to explore the relationship between knowledge creation and intellectual capital (IC) through an empirical study in the pharmaceutical industry. In the current economy, knowledge and IC are considered as the most important organizational assets and are the key resources in gaining competitive advantage. Design/methodology/approach -This paper adopts the socialization, externalization, combination and internalization (SECI) model to examine the format of knowledge creation processes (KCP) and uses a model to demonstrate the relationship between KCP and IC and its components in the pharmaceutical industry. A valid instrument was adopted to collect the required data on KCP and and IC dimensions. Structural equation modeling was used to assess the measurement model and to test the research hypotheses using the data collected from 470 completed questionnaires. Findings -The results supported the research model and revealed that KCP has significant influence on the accumulation of human capital. The performance of human capital manifests significant impact on structural capital and relational capital. Practical limitations/implications -Given the strong association between KCP and IC, managers should define their own robust operations for knowledge creation to improve their IC accumulation. Originality/value -This research departs from the earlier research on KCP-IC by adopting the SECI model and a research model that facilitates the exploration of the relationship between KCP and IC dimensions in the pharmaceutical industry. The research results provided strong support for the KCP-IC relationship.
ABSTRACT This research was designed to identify critical success factors of business process reen... more ABSTRACT This research was designed to identify critical success factors of business process reengineering in an Iranian industry case study based on multivariate data analysis. Through developing a BPR model and implementation it on the case study, the business processes were managed and then its success was analyzed. This analysis initially, represents the success of applied changes, and then follows the CSFs of BPR in three main factors entitled belief to change, change of infrastructures, participation of people in change programs and decreasing of the resistance against the change.
ABSTRACT This paper aims at indicating the impacts of Structural Capital on implementation of e-b... more ABSTRACT This paper aims at indicating the impacts of Structural Capital on implementation of e-business. At first a review on intellectual capital models is presented. Consequently the impacts of structural capital on e-business is illustrated with a case study in order to show how three major dimensions of structural capital, relational capital, process capital, and innovation capital, would influence successful e-business model implementation. The result of the case study confirms that Iranian companies strongly need to consider all dimensions of structural capital before any attempt to enter e-business environment.
Organizational citizenship behavior is a voluntarily executed behavior emanated by one individual... more Organizational citizenship behavior is a voluntarily executed behavior emanated by one individual who undertakes to do more than what is elucidated in his/her job description and what is not directly designed by official reward systems in an organization, while it can bring about an improvement in efficiency and effectiveness levels in the organization’s performance. Besides, organizational justice is one of the most important introductions for driving into organizational citizenship behavior. Since creating motivation and provoking employees into work is a very important organizational issue, enormous attention should be paid to organizational justice as a provocation method. Present research intends to examine the relationship between organizational justice and organizational citizenship behavior in a non-profit organization . To investigate this relationship, an author-made questionnaire was designed and, after pertinent literature was studied and aspects of distributional justice were extracted, procedural justice and interactional justice were specified. A 79-item sample of statistical population was distributed. Replies were analyzed using statistical software. Results are indicative of a relationship among all three aspects of organizational justice and organizational citizenship behavior, whereby organizational citizenship behavior among employees is improved as organizational justice is increased. According to the Partial Least Squares approach patterned by the software Smart PLS, results show that organizational justice impacts on organizational citizenship behavior with 0.802.
This paper explored the multiple relationships between intellectual capital (IC) and
knowledge ma... more This paper explored the multiple relationships between intellectual capital (IC) and knowledge management (KM) in an Iranian university. For intellectual capital, three components were studied including: relational capital, structural capital and human capital. For knowledge management, five processes were considered, namely creation, acquisition, codification, sharing and application. The relationship of the components and processes were examined through structural equation modeling and test the research hypotheses. The knowledge management processes explain 81% of the changes in dependent variable of intellectual capital. A questionnaire was developed and validated by the experts. The reliability of the questionnaire measured by Cronbach›s alpha was 0.97. A total of 152 questionnaires were completed by faculties of a selected Iranian university. A significant positive relationship among the components was shown by the results. The Friedman test showed that human capital and knowledge creation had the highest priority among the intellectual capital components and knowledge management processes, respectively.
Abstract
Purpose-The purpose of this study is to identify, classify, and prioritize knowledge man... more Abstract Purpose-The purpose of this study is to identify, classify, and prioritize knowledge management (KM) barriers in Iran project-based organization (PBO) and present conceptual framework for improving it. Design/methodology/approach: After studying previous literature on the topic, initial barriers of knowledge management in project based organizations were extracted. Then, a list of barriers of knowledge management in the above mentioned organizations was finalized by interviewing experts in knowledge management. After that, the barriers were prioritized using a questionnaire. Finally, a conceptual framework for improving knowledge management barriers was presented. Findings: In this article, barriers of knowledge management in project based organizations have been divided into five categories: individual, organizational, technological, contextual, and inter-project. Then a three-layered conceptual framework was presented for improving the barriers of knowledge management in project-based organizations. Practical implications: The prepared and prioritized list of barriers of knowledge management in project based organizations is a stepping stone and a guideline to managers in project based organizations in order to be able to identify barriers of knowledge management in their own organizations and resolve them, and improve knowledge management in their organizations. It also serves as a useful base for researchers to expand further research in barriers of knowledge management in project based organizations. Originality/value: This article is probably the first article which has identified barriers of knowledge management through interview and questionnaires carried out in 50 active project based organizations which had knowledge management section. The article also presented a three-layered framework for improving barriers of knowledge management, which can be applied step by step considering the level of importance.
Purpose: The main objective of this research is to design a model to outline the structure of com... more Purpose: The main objective of this research is to design a model to outline the structure of communities of practice corresponding to organizational context. Design/methodology/approach: This research utilizes both descriptive and prescriptive approaches since we are looking for a comprehensive relational model to deal with the problem of selecting suitable CoPs (Communities of Practice) concerning organizational context. Thus this study applies interviewing and fuzzy Delphi methods to explore the model.
Findings: The work provides a new and comprehensive relational model of CoPs and organizational variables affecting CoPs structure. In this model, three basic concepts of the literature were developed. First, the components concerning types of communities of practice were identified and then the organizational variables related to CoPs were determined. Finally, we extracted the relationships between the organizational variables and the components of communities of practice.
Practical implications: From a practical perspective, the relationships among the components concerning types of communities of practice and the organizational variables may provide a model which can effectively guide firms how to promote, design and manage communities of practice within organizational contexts.
Originality/value: The results of this study contribute to CoPs literature in terms of identification of two variables (CoPs components and organizational variables) to produce a matrix for the construction of a holistic CoPs model. The significant finding of this research is the guidance it provides for designing a relational model involving relations between organizational variables and CoPs components.
Citation: Jafari, Mostafa, Fathian, Mohammad, Jahani, Alireza and Peyman Akhavan (2008), Explorin... more Citation: Jafari, Mostafa, Fathian, Mohammad, Jahani, Alireza and Peyman Akhavan (2008), Exploring the contextual dimensions of organization from knowledge management perspective, Vine: The journal of information and knowledge management systems, Vol. 38, No. 1, pp. 53 -71. Abstract Purpose -The most research of Knowledge Management merely pays attention to it's relation with dimensions of the organizations especially contextual dimensions. The purpose of this work is to explore the contextual dimensions of organizations for finding the interactions between of these dimensions and Knowledge Management and to identify the critical success factors, drivers and constraints, relevant to the implementation of Knowledge Management in the Tehran business environment. Design/methodology/approach -A new exploration based on research experiences of the Knowledge Management is formalized as an extension of the model by Daft. The present article reports the empirical findings of a survey conducted among managers and experts in Tehran. In this survey we give them a questionnaire that contains some questions related to the mentioned dimensions and asked about relations of them and Knowledge Management critical success factors for better implementation based on Factor Analysis. The questionnaire reflects insights gained from a mix of individual choice models developed by various researchers and Delphi technique. Findings -This research finds seven critical success factors, Collaboration and knowledge workers, Technology Deployment, Learning Culture, Flat Structures, Supply Chain Integration, Comprehensive strategies and Flexible Organizations, which related to the conceptual Dimensions of organizations and also drivers and constraints of Knowledge Management Implementation. Research limitations/implications -This framework reflects the Interactions between contextual dimensions and Knowledge management. It may need further research to be used for structural dimensions of the organizations. Originality/value -Using this research, organizations that interested in implementing Knowledge management may be familiar with the impacts of Knowledge Management implementation and contextual dimensions on each other for achieving the desirable outcomes.
The main objective of this book is to investigate knowledge acquisition (KA) techniques and expl... more The main objective of this book is to investigate knowledge acquisition (KA) techniques and explore the impact of different variables on the KA process in action. The book may be of high value to researchers in knowledge management and especially in KA area and it gives valuable information and guidelines that will help researchers to select appropriate KA techniques. The entire book is covered with real case studies for better understanding. In addition, final chapters propose necessary checklists to do a KA project step by step. Enjoy your KA practices in action through this book.
The purpose of the present study is investigating, comparing evaluation frameworks of learning ob... more The purpose of the present study is investigating, comparing evaluation frameworks of learning objects and deriving the more important indices. After doing so, comparison, correspondence and analysis of the frameworks are done. Realizing the most important indices, the e-content of the two lessons of M.Sc courses in one of the foresaid centers has been evaluated. In this research, we pursue the analytic approach of literature review in offering theoretic bases to practical application of the theory, and then by two-round Delphi technique, important criteria and their significance were identified by experts. The purpose of this study is to show the important scales for the evaluation of the learning objects, having the most important role in e-content of E-Lesson and the use of case-study for detecting weak points and improvable aspects. The findings reflect that most of the performed studies have focused on quality of the objects and on correspondence of the e-learning standards with objects formulation and there isn't sufficient study in strategic and planning aspects of learning, having crucial role in learning quality and effectiveness of the E-content of E-lessons. In addition, in these studies, the classification of the scales is not based on specified aspects for learning objects evaluation. The present study answers the following questions: Which factors affect the design and formulation of the quality of learning objects? Onto which aspects one must pay attention to effective designing of E-content of E-Lessons? Which scales of learning objects are the main highly referred ones evaluation in previous studies? Which aspects are the improvable and challenging ones, not being focused enough?
This paper aims to empirically explore the effects of human capital on structural capital in Iran... more This paper aims to empirically explore the effects of human capital on structural capital in Iranian ebusiness. A questionnaire-oriented survey from senior and top manager in Iranian information technology companies was utilized for regression analysis. The findings indicate that human capital significantly influences the three dimensions of structural capital which consists of relational capital, process capital and innovational capital. The study also provides empirical evidence that these three dimensions are internally correlated.
Knowledge management is the process through which corporate knowledge is used to improve organiza... more Knowledge management is the process through which corporate knowledge is used to improve organizational performance. Essentially it looks at managing internal knowledge processes, developing the efficient usage of all information required for corporate decisions. Competitive intelligence (CI) is a process for gathering usable knowledge about the external business environment. The aim of this paper is to demonstrate the synergy between Competitive Intelligence, Knowledge Management. As practices; both CI and KM have the same fundamental requirements. Each need a strategic purpose, each depends on having a corporate culture that encourages people to create and share information and knowledge, each requires skills and competencies to carry out the processes involved, and each is facilitated by the same technology tools. But they have some differences. In this paper we show these differences and similarities.
As both knowledge management and enterprise recourse planning, get the curtail role in organizati... more As both knowledge management and enterprise recourse planning, get the curtail role in organizations, also there is a trend to implement both systems at organizations, there are bulk of literature on the relationship between knowledge management and enterprise resource planning. There are two main points of views. One of them is process-based view that considers knowledge management such as enterprise resource planning long term organization process, that is needed to measure the effects and benefits in long time, not immediately after implementation, and both systems has some affects on each other. Another point of view is project-based, that consider knowledge management smoothing tool for implementation of enterprise recourse planning. This study compares these two points of views with references to literature.
This paper is to discuss a knowledge management strategy map based on Kaplan and Norton's strateg... more This paper is to discuss a knowledge management strategy map based on Kaplan and Norton's strategy maps. In this way, KM strategies are reviewed first and then Kaplan and Norton's strategy map concepts are introduced as an overall methodology for extracting KM strategy maps. The required context will be explored for deploying both knowledge creating and knowledge application strategies in the organization based on four balanced perspective of knowledge management considered in this paper. The authors determined these four issues as balanced dimensions in the knowledge management strategies. These balanced dimensions are intellectual capital, KM processes, value creating dimension and KM performance dimension. Finally, a list is determined that includes various measures for each perspective. The identified critical success factors of the four balanced dimension can also act as a guideline for KM experts in the organizations. This helps to ensure that the essential issues are covered during design and implementation phase of knowledge management strategies.
The main target of this research is to discuss two important strategic management disciplines in ... more The main target of this research is to discuss two important strategic management disciplines in some Iranian SMEs. Change management and knowledge management will be discussed simultaneously for taking insight into the topic. Based on review of recent literature, this paper has identified major factors of both knowledge and change management disciplines in the field. For the research methodology, a structured survey has been implemented by the authors. The outcome of the research can be implemented as a guideline for change management during KM programs. This study provides an integrated perspective of critical issues for both knowledge and change disciplines in the organizations especially in SMEs of developing countries. It gives invaluable information and guidelines which hopefully will help the leaders to mange essential changes for accomplishing knowledge management through their organizations.
In today's competitive environment, holding companies are usually unable to successfully compete ... more In today's competitive environment, holding companies are usually unable to successfully compete in production of goods and services due to technological sophistication. Therefore, for success of holding companies, selecting appropriate strategic alliance partner is a critical factor. Accordingly, the aim of the paper is to propose a systematic approach for an effective partner selection. Firstly, the underlying motivation and reasons for a strategic alliance building are presented using a SWOT analysis. Criteria of partners’ evaluation are attained on the basis of combining strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Due to uncertainty of criteria, they are weighted using fuzzy quantitative strategic planning matrix (FQSPM). Because of a large number of criteria obtained from the SWOT-FQSPM analysis, criteria are diminished based on their weights using the Gap analysis with fuzzy data ranking. In the next step, it is proposed to apply four ranking algorithms including the Fuzzy Additive Ratio Assessment (ARAS-F), the Fuzzy Complex Proportional Assessment (COPRAS-F), the Fuzzy Multi-Objective Optimization by Ratio Analysis (Fuzzy MOORA), and the Fuzzy Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal solution (Fuzzy TOPSIS) to evaluate strategic partners. Finally, the results are combined with the help of the Borda method to choose the best alternative. To illustrate the efficiency of the proposed approach, a real partner selection problem at a holding industries factory in Iran is presented.
Purpose-The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between quality of work life and... more Purpose-The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between quality of work life and knowledge-sharing behaviors in an Iranian research center.
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Papers by Peyman Akhavan
knowledge management (KM) in an Iranian university. For intellectual capital, three
components were studied including: relational capital, structural capital and human capital.
For knowledge management, five processes were considered, namely creation, acquisition,
codification, sharing and application. The relationship of the components and processes
were examined through structural equation modeling and test the research hypotheses. The
knowledge management processes explain 81% of the changes in dependent variable of
intellectual capital. A questionnaire was developed and validated by the experts. The reliability
of the questionnaire measured by Cronbach›s alpha was 0.97. A total of 152 questionnaires
were completed by faculties of a selected Iranian university. A significant positive relationship
among the components was shown by the results. The Friedman test showed that human capital
and knowledge creation had the highest priority among the intellectual capital components and
knowledge management processes, respectively.
Purpose-The purpose of this study is to identify, classify, and prioritize knowledge management (KM) barriers in Iran project-based organization (PBO) and present conceptual framework for improving it.
Design/methodology/approach: After studying previous literature on the topic, initial barriers of knowledge management in project based organizations were extracted. Then, a list of barriers of knowledge management in the above mentioned organizations was finalized by interviewing experts in knowledge management. After that, the barriers were prioritized using a questionnaire. Finally, a conceptual framework for improving knowledge management barriers was presented.
Findings: In this article, barriers of knowledge management in project based organizations have been divided into five categories: individual, organizational, technological, contextual, and inter-project. Then a three-layered conceptual framework was presented for improving the barriers of knowledge management in project-based organizations.
Practical implications: The prepared and prioritized list of barriers of knowledge management in project based organizations is a stepping stone and a guideline to managers in project based organizations in order to be able to identify barriers of knowledge management in their own organizations and resolve them, and improve knowledge management in their organizations. It also serves as a useful base for researchers to expand further research in barriers of knowledge management in project based organizations.
Originality/value: This article is probably the first article which has identified barriers of knowledge management through interview and questionnaires carried out in 50 active project based organizations which had knowledge management section. The article also presented a three-layered framework for improving barriers of knowledge management, which can be applied step by step considering the level of importance.
Design/methodology/approach: This research utilizes both descriptive and prescriptive approaches since we are looking for a comprehensive relational model to deal with the problem of selecting suitable CoPs (Communities of Practice) concerning organizational context. Thus this study applies interviewing and fuzzy Delphi methods to explore the model.
Findings: The work provides a new and comprehensive relational model of CoPs and organizational variables affecting CoPs structure. In this model, three basic concepts of the literature were developed. First, the components concerning types of communities of practice were identified and then the organizational variables related to CoPs were determined. Finally, we extracted the relationships between the organizational variables and the components of communities of practice.
Practical implications: From a practical perspective, the relationships among the components concerning types of communities of practice and the organizational variables may provide a model which can effectively guide firms how to promote, design and manage communities of practice within organizational contexts.
Originality/value: The results of this study contribute to CoPs literature in terms of identification of two variables (CoPs components and organizational variables) to produce a matrix for the construction of a holistic CoPs model. The significant finding of this research is the guidance it provides for designing a relational model involving relations between organizational variables and CoPs components.
knowledge management (KM) in an Iranian university. For intellectual capital, three
components were studied including: relational capital, structural capital and human capital.
For knowledge management, five processes were considered, namely creation, acquisition,
codification, sharing and application. The relationship of the components and processes
were examined through structural equation modeling and test the research hypotheses. The
knowledge management processes explain 81% of the changes in dependent variable of
intellectual capital. A questionnaire was developed and validated by the experts. The reliability
of the questionnaire measured by Cronbach›s alpha was 0.97. A total of 152 questionnaires
were completed by faculties of a selected Iranian university. A significant positive relationship
among the components was shown by the results. The Friedman test showed that human capital
and knowledge creation had the highest priority among the intellectual capital components and
knowledge management processes, respectively.
Purpose-The purpose of this study is to identify, classify, and prioritize knowledge management (KM) barriers in Iran project-based organization (PBO) and present conceptual framework for improving it.
Design/methodology/approach: After studying previous literature on the topic, initial barriers of knowledge management in project based organizations were extracted. Then, a list of barriers of knowledge management in the above mentioned organizations was finalized by interviewing experts in knowledge management. After that, the barriers were prioritized using a questionnaire. Finally, a conceptual framework for improving knowledge management barriers was presented.
Findings: In this article, barriers of knowledge management in project based organizations have been divided into five categories: individual, organizational, technological, contextual, and inter-project. Then a three-layered conceptual framework was presented for improving the barriers of knowledge management in project-based organizations.
Practical implications: The prepared and prioritized list of barriers of knowledge management in project based organizations is a stepping stone and a guideline to managers in project based organizations in order to be able to identify barriers of knowledge management in their own organizations and resolve them, and improve knowledge management in their organizations. It also serves as a useful base for researchers to expand further research in barriers of knowledge management in project based organizations.
Originality/value: This article is probably the first article which has identified barriers of knowledge management through interview and questionnaires carried out in 50 active project based organizations which had knowledge management section. The article also presented a three-layered framework for improving barriers of knowledge management, which can be applied step by step considering the level of importance.
Design/methodology/approach: This research utilizes both descriptive and prescriptive approaches since we are looking for a comprehensive relational model to deal with the problem of selecting suitable CoPs (Communities of Practice) concerning organizational context. Thus this study applies interviewing and fuzzy Delphi methods to explore the model.
Findings: The work provides a new and comprehensive relational model of CoPs and organizational variables affecting CoPs structure. In this model, three basic concepts of the literature were developed. First, the components concerning types of communities of practice were identified and then the organizational variables related to CoPs were determined. Finally, we extracted the relationships between the organizational variables and the components of communities of practice.
Practical implications: From a practical perspective, the relationships among the components concerning types of communities of practice and the organizational variables may provide a model which can effectively guide firms how to promote, design and manage communities of practice within organizational contexts.
Originality/value: The results of this study contribute to CoPs literature in terms of identification of two variables (CoPs components and organizational variables) to produce a matrix for the construction of a holistic CoPs model. The significant finding of this research is the guidance it provides for designing a relational model involving relations between organizational variables and CoPs components.