Internet technology in support of the concept of “communities-of-practice”: the case of Xerox (original) (raw)
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The emergence of the Web has brought proximity and favored partnership among different groups viewing to cooperate in the generation of knowledge and in the process of innovation. Among the organizational forms of cooperation, the communities of practice (COPs) have been notable as a propitious activity for joining work groups aiming at creating and sharing knowledge as well as problem solving (Wenger et al., 2002). For some authors, communities of practice have always been part of the informal structure of any organization. However, IT has made it possible to exchange knowledge and ideas at an unprecedented pace. The aim of this paper is to analyze the formation and performance of communities of practice as a tool for enterprise innovation. The methodology used in this paper is based on a case study of a multinational company whose performance as an innovative enterprise has been outstanding. La aparición de la Web ha traído la proximidad y ha favorecido la asociación entre diferen...
Virtual Communities of Practice: Theory, Measurement and Organizational Implications
Communities of Practice (CoPs) are informal groups people form around shared problems or disciplines. As natural drivers of knowledge-sharing and innovation, they are the cornerstone of Knowledge Management programs, and are viewed by organizational scholars as a key element of the knowledge-based view of the firm. Nowadays, employees and organizations face considerable turmoil from phenomena such as globalization, rapid technological change, and the increasingly mobile workforce. This hinders employees from regular engagement in face-to-face CoPs, thus increasing the need for virtual CoPs that engage effectively over the Internet. This book reports a systematic search for Usenet-based CoPs that displayed all the traits of co-located CoPs as described in seminal studies. The study used surveys and content analyses as measurement instruments, and found four fully compliant virtual CoPs. The implication for employees is that they can enhance their professional skills through virtual CoP engagement. Organizations, in turn, can foster this engagement in extra-organizational CoPs to tap the rich knowledge ecologies in which businesses work today and keep abreast of fast changing fields.
From the computerization movement to computerization: a case study of community of practice
Proceeding of the Conference on the Computerization Movement in Memory of Rob Kling, University of California, Irvine, March, 2005
We find mixed results when assessing how the expectations of the computerization movement fit with our case study of a high-tech organization that is heavily computerized. In the organization, "internetworking technologies" are the main local -as well as global -means of communication. We find that hyperconnectivity fosters collaboration, community of practice, and commitment to the organization. Yet the evidence only partially supports the "death of distance" and "democratization technological action" frames of Rob Kling and associates. The organization is a local virtuality, with email and instant messaging primarily supporting local, withindepartment connectivity. The organization remains a hierarchy, although extensive networking occurs within organizational constraints.
Electronic ‘Knowledge Factories’ versus Micro-environment of Innovation: Who Will Win?
Foresight and STI Governance
T he end of the 20th century was marked by several studies that revealed the collective mechanisms of the knowledge development as a joint activity in working teams. Thus, the idea that acquiring knowledge was an unproblematic transfer of what is already available and can be unilaterally transferred and assimilated was rejected [Lave, Wenger, 1991]. The aim of this paper is to study the opportunities persented by electronic network platforms for using the collective nature of knowledge in the interests of further developing knowledge and innovation through online communication of professionals. Based on a literature review on the development of knowledge, the paper compares the basic principles of knowledge application in formulating new decisions during real joint activity and during online communication within specialized platforms for 'knowledge exchange'. The author argues that electronic networking platforms contribute to the fragmentation of knowledge representation of participants, eluding a common sense and purpose. Thus, such platforms blur the boundary between knowledge and information. The article indicates that the desire to increase the effectiveness of collective creativity via online communication risks not developing competencies, discretion, and exploration of others' experiences. Instead, this desire leads to strengthening external control and separation of functions into primary routine operations when an individual participant is valued not for his/ her knowledge and previous experience, but for his/ her communicative capabilities. The produced effect is akin to the industrial revolution of the machine era; when this effect is widespread, there are risks that knowledge workers will be turned into easily replaceable, piecemeal workers. To avoid this, electronic platforms should either learn to recreate the conditions of offline micro-environments of innovation, or not claim to fulfil the role of knowledge production.