Bekoeva D.D., Gorohova E.Y.
Managing Knowledge
Transformation in Multinational Organizations
Summary. The present article
is devoted to the main social mechanisms of knowledge transformation and
knowledge exchange in multinational organizations. These mechanisms contain
socialization, externalization, internalization and combination. We
substantiate the need of considering a number of specific features of the
personnel of a multinational organization when dealing with these social
mechanisms of knowledge transformation and knowledge exchange (the need of
managed and consistent employees’ adaptation to a new cultural environment,
taking into account the period of foreign specialist’s residence in the country
and tenure of employment and other). We suggest several methods in the frames
of knowledge transformation and knowledge exchange managing in the
multinational organization including arrangement of conditions for free and
continual communication and interaction of the employees, giving possibility of
teaming up with others (working in pair or in three) and other. It is concluded
that knowledge exchange in the multinational organization is a comprehensive
many-sided process that requires actualizing knowledge about the mechanisms of
knowledge transformation.
In the present-day world there are more and
more organizations that extend their business outside the borders of the
country of origin, that appear on the international scene, establish offices
and joint ventures around the world. In the offices where employees of
different nationalities work together there appear a unique resource and
potential – collective knowledge, skills, experience of the multinational
personnel which can substantially enrich the organization activities if managed
consistently and efficiently. In this article we suggest an approach to solving
some problems concerned with knowledge transformation and knowledge exchange
managing in a multinational organization.
Team-work and also new knowledge acquiring and
creation require active information exchange between employees of a
multinational organization. Knowledge substantially transforms during its
transfer, knowledge form is changing, new knowledge is being created and
enriched, and knowledge may be increased quantitatively and qualitatively1.
In order to effectively manage the process of knowledge and information
exchange in the organization it is important to know the mechanisms of
knowledge transformation. We note that knowledge transformation takes place not
only during its transfer and exchange but also during its creation, acquiring,
application. However cultural specificity of knowledge transformation during
knowledge transfer from a representative of a national culture to a
representative of another national culture, or during knowledge exchange
between them, is of particular importance in a multinational organization.
The main mechanisms of knowledge transformation
can be specified if regarded in a multinational organization.
1. Socialization. During formal and informal
cooperation of the employees of a multinational organization tacit knowledge is
transferred from employees to employees or an exchange of tacit knowledge takes
place2.
This process can be regarded as transformation of tacit (subjective) knowledge
of an individual to tacit (subjective) knowledge of another individual. This
conversion takes place during one individual observation of another individual
work (of the one who is more experienced, competent, knowing); during one
individual imitation of another individual work (of the one who is more experienced,
competent, knowing) by way of involuntary imitation or purposeful modeling;
during involuntary empathy or subjective comprehension of another individual
experience3.
Supervisor can not directly manage or control individual tacit knowledge
transformation into tacit knowledge of other individuals as far as this process
is mostly involuntary or half-realized. However indirect managing is possible
mostly through arranging conditions for such transfer and transformation. We
suggest using the following methods in the frames of managing human resources
in a multinational organization:
·
arranging conditions for free and continual intercourse and team-work:
individual working places at a short distance from each other, decent time
regulations and limits (attention to the result but not to the process),
minimal control of an individual work time devotion, permission to talk on any
topic during working time and during tasks fulfillment (control of the result
but not of the process);
·
arranging possibility for employees to observe each other’s work, to
move with ease from individual working place to the working place of a
colleague, to come to other departments and watch colleagues from other
department at work (it is particularly important for inexperienced or new
employees). It will do an inestimable good to a foreign specialist who has to
adapt to personnel and work in new environment;
·
giving possibility to employees to work in pairs or in threes at first
time or to be taught and trained working in pairs or in threes. A working pair
where foreign and native employees cooperate serves several purposes in the
organization (on the assumption of employees’ compatibility, sympathy,
comfortable communication).
Firstly, working in
pair the employees get to know each other closely, that further adaptation of
the newcomer, helps transferring tacit cultural knowledge (subjective, not
realized) from the representative of one culture to the representative of
another culture (including nonverbal signs, frames, scripts, scenarios, mental
models).
Secondly,
professional knowledge transferring on a not-realized level takes place (as an
example, one employee can have a personal working base of external contacts
with representatives of different organization, another employee who has access
to it and can freely read the correspondence gets subjective notion about each
contact and may also use these knowledge in his work).
Thirdly, there
takes place involuntary transferring of knowledge about knowledge of each other
(metaknowledge). It helps the employees to turn for advice to each other in
further work and also to give necessary information to each other even before a
request.
Fourthly, there
takes place transferring stereotypes of social knowledge – a stereotype of
communication with a representative of a foreign culture is built (an image of
a generalized representative of a foreign culture is formed). This process is
an advantage and a disadvantage of working in pair. This can be turned into an
advantage if intercultural communication will not be limited to the intercourse
with one representative, but the employee of the local office is given an
opportunity to get to know representatives of other age groups, different
status groups within this foreign culture. In any case a foreign / native specialist
learns to communicate in a multinational environment, therefore working in pair
is a sort of training (social and psychological) for future cooperation in a
working group.
·
inclusion of a more experienced employee into a group of less
experienced employees4.
This method is used by global companies (for example, «LEGO») when establishing
a branch office in a country: the personnel of the branch office consist of
native country employees, then one or two experienced specialists are included
to the branch office team from the head office (these specialists may be even
not of management level) in order to transfer main office values and knowledge
to the branch establishment.
2. Externalization is the second mechanism of
knowledge transformation that is based on tacit knowledge conversion into
explicit knowledge5.
There can be used the following method to effect this conversion: the receiver
of the knowledge can formalize the subjective knowledge of the sender.
One employee (the sender) transfers his subjective knowledge to another
employee (the receiver) on a not realized or half-realized level during
communication or being watched or imitated. And the employee who receives this
tacit knowledge transforms it from a sphere of not realized processes to the
sphere of realization so that the knowledge is identified and formalized. This
can be made by way of writing down one’s observations so that it could be
further formed as technological card or instruction. Also there can be made
video / audio recordings of the experienced employee work. If the information
is too voluminous, too difficult for recording it at the moment, this
information could be identified in verbal form and stored individually by the
employees who received it. In order to organize knowledge formalization and
knowledge recording the organization should stimulate these processes: firstly,
arranging appropriate conditions that could facilitate cooperation, secondly,
encourage and/or oblige employees to record subjective individual knowledge.
For example, if there is an opportunity to include a foreign specialist into a
working group of native employees on a limited period of time, these native
employees could get a task to record the received knowledge during joint work
and learning and then to use it in further work.
It is important to make this process open, to
inform the both sides of the process of the aim of such formalization, to be
sure that neither side has objections to this approach. Manager should clear up
the advantages of such work: the advantages for the employer conveying his
knowledge are the possibilities to teach others, to raise his authority, to
realize his tacit knowledge, to bring value to the organization and other; the
advantages for the employer formalizing and recording new knowledge are the
possibilities to learn, to do creative work of formalizing unique experience of
the foreign specialist and forming it as a new technology, to get experience of
communicating the foreign specialist and other.
3. Internalization is the third mechanism of
knowledge transformation that is based on formalized knowledge conversion into
subjective tacit knowledge. The process takes place when formalized knowledge
is implemented in practice. A foreign specialist acts quite often as a
consultant and transfers knowledge during presentations, speeches, conferences,
discussions. If the employees of the local office fulfills tasks under his
direct control or supervision and tries to implement new methods of work, new
knowledge is gradually internalizing and converting into subjective experience
of each employee using formalized knowledge in practice. This process can be
managed by way of stimulating implementation of new knowledge introduced by a
foreign specialist into a working group of the local office (or implementation
of new knowledge gained in local office by a foreign specialist – if there is
an objective to transfer local knowledge to a foreign office). During this
temporary supervision of the specialist transferring his knowledge, check-up of
work and knowledge adoption by the employees of the local office takes place
and correction should follow in case of their incorrect subjective
interpretation of the received knowledge.
4. Combination is the forth mechanism of
knowledge transformation which is based on formalized knowledge conversion into
new formalized knowledge. In this process knowledge reforming takes place and
this is aimed to improve existing methods of work. For example, a foreign
specialist transfers his knowledge to employees of the local office during discussions,
presentations, meetings and then the received knowledge is adapted with
consideration of local conditions, rules, laws by local specialists for solving
local problems and making adapted instructions and technologies.
To crown it all, we have considered four main
mechanisms of knowledge transformation in multinational organizations. The
easier knowledge is transferred from one employee to another and return back
during feedback, the better the personnel and the organization develop. In this
respect knowledge exchange better illustrates the processes of knowledge
transferring in the organization than knowledge conveyance, because exchange
presupposes feedback: knowledge is conveyed from the sender to the receiver and
than returns back enriched by the receiver’s understanding and interpretation,
the sender and the receiver exchange their roles.
As it was already mentioned, knowledge
transformation takes place not only during knowledge exchange but also during
knowledge creation, acquiring and implementing in an organization. In this
respect we may point out perspective directions for future investigation,
namely, description of methods and mechanisms of knowledge transformation of
multinational organization personnel during joint or individual creation, acquiring,
implementing of knowledge and also searching for possibilities to raise these
processes effectiveness. Carrying out researches and solving problems in the
sphere of knowledge transformation gives new possibilities of raising
effectiveness of cooperation, individual work and also joint and individual
learning in multinational organizations.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
3. Milton N. Knowledge
Management: For Teams and Projects. – Oxford: Chandos Publishing (Oxford)
Limited, 2005;
4. Neve T.O. Right Questions to Capture
Knowledge // Electronic Journal of Knowledge
Management, Vol. 1, № 1, 2003. – P. 47 – 54.
5. Sveiby K.E. Transfer of
Knowledge and the Information Processing Professions // European Management
Journal, Vol. 14, No. 4, 1996. – P. 379 – 388.
6. Мильнер Б.З., Смирнова В.Г., Румянцева З.П., Блинникова А.В.
Управление знаниями в корпорациях. – М.: Дело, 2006. – С. 69 – 71.
7. Холден Н. Дж. Кросс-культурный менеджмент: концепция когнитивного
менеджмента. – М.: ЮНИТИ-ДАНА, 2005.
8. Шелер М. Проблемы социологии знания. // Парадигмы социологии знания:
Хрестоматия. – М.: Наука, 2007. – С. 108 – 125.
1 Мильнер Б.З., Смирнова В.Г., Румянцева З.П.,
Блинникова А.В. Управление знаниями в корпорациях. – М.: Дело, 2006. – С. 69 –
71.
2 Neve T.O. Right Questions to Capture Knowledge // Electronic
Journal of Knowledge Management, Vol. 1, № 1, 2003. – P. 47 –
54.
3 Шелер М. Проблемы социологии знания. // Парадигмы
социологии знания: Хрестоматия. – М.: Наука, 2007. – С. 108 – 125.
4 Milton N. Knowledge Management: For Teams and
Projects. – Oxford: Chandos Publishing (Oxford) Limited, 2005; Холден Н. Дж.
Кросс-культурный менеджмент: концепция когнитивного менеджмента. – М.:
ЮНИТИ-ДАНА, 2005.