Title: Diffusion of organisational innovation: knowledge transfer through social networks

Authors: Philippe Byosiere, Denise J. Luethge, Alain Vas, M. Paz Salmador

Addresses: Doshisha Business School, Doshisha University, Karasuma, Imadegawa-dori, Kamigyo-ku, Kyoto 602-8580, Japan. ' Drake University, 2507 University Avenue, Des Moines, IA 50311. ' IAG-Louvain School of Management, Universite Catholique de Louvain, 1 Place des Doyens, B-Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium. ' Facultad de Economicas y EmpresarialesModulo 8, Ciudad Universitario de Cantoblanco, 28049 Madrid, Spain

Abstract: This paper discusses the linkages between Social Network Theory (Granovetter, 1973) and Organisational Knowledge Theory (Polanyi, 1966; Nonaka, 1994; Nonaka et al., 2001) as it relates to the diffusion of organisational innovation within large organisations. The focus is on examining these theoretical interrelationships in three case studies, delving into major change projects in three large telecommunications firms. The findings indicate that weak ties are vital when the focus is on explicit knowledge, while strong ties are vital when the focus is on tacit knowledge. Further, a model is posed to expand this theoretical interrelationship to include a third dimension: the knowledge source.

Keywords: knowledge transfer; organisational innovation; social network theory; organisational knowledge theory; knowledge management; telecommunications industry; organisational change; explicit knowledge; tacit knowledge; knowledge source; Europe; R&D; research and development; technology management.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTM.2010.030166

International Journal of Technology Management, 2010 Vol.49 No.4, pp.401 - 420

Published online: 06 Apr 2013 *

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