Knowledge sharing in public sector organisations A case study of Swedish county councils
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Typ
Examensarbete för masterexamen
Master Thesis
Master Thesis
Program
International Project Management
Publicerad
2017
Författare
STREIJFFERT, NIKLAS
Modellbyggare
Tidskriftstitel
ISSN
Volymtitel
Utgivare
Sammanfattning
This study investigates how Swedish county councils preserve knowledge and manage knowledge sharing within their organisation. The study examines how these organisations cope with transferring knowledge among new recruits and employees as well as cope with project knowledge. The study was based on a qualitative research method with an abductive approach. A literature study was conducted and the theoretical framework covers key terms such as knowledge, knowledge management, knowledge management strategies, organisational knowledge and learning, organisational culture and leadership, knowledge management process, information technology, and techniques of knowledge management. A case study was performed and eight semi-structured interviews were conducted with open-ended questions. The interviews were conducted with facility managers, consultants, project managers and, head of division. Empirical findings show that when the organisations share knowledge to new employees this is most common done through mentorship, working in teams, and various introduction programs. In contrast, it also revealed that there are no such activities in some cases. Many employees possess years of experience and individual specific knowledge. It has also become more common for people to change jobs more frequently, which makes it more important to retain knowledge within the organisation. The organisations would like to have more contact with other regions. Unfortunately, this is an activity that misses out due to lack of time. Finally, it shows that there exists no formal knowledge sharing among projects. It was concluded that personalisation prevails over codification. Generation change is a common problem and is well aware of. Knowledge leaves the organisation with employees who are leaving. There is often no document management plan and tools are based on each person and project. Collaborate with other regions to some extent, but it is seen as an area with great development potential. No systematic process or standard to transfer knowledge between projects is present. Informal networks seem to be remarkably valuable for knowledge sharing and a project knowledge database is something that is requested. Two main barriers to knowledge sharing are lack of time and the uniqueness of a project. Recommendations suggest that better collaboration with other regions should be developed, implementation of lessons learned and knowledge sharing system. Finally, develop a unified document management plan and a culture that supports knowledge sharing.
Beskrivning
Ämne/nyckelord
Samhällsbyggnadsteknik , Civil Engineering