Local Embeddedness and Knowledge Management Strategies for Project-Based Multi-National Firms
Multinational, project-based organizations are faced with competing challenges of adapting to a local marketplace and integrating various offices globally. Case studies with 14 multinational real estate development, general contracting, and engineering firms revealed types of knowledge required for international operations, knowledge management strategies, and the level of embeddedness within the local project area. Eighty-nine interviews were recorded, transcribed, and imported into qualitative coding software. Analysis of the data built propositions regarding different levels of local project embeddedness and the relationship between embeddedness and knowledge management strategies. The findings indicate that firms with a low level of local embeddedness have more formal knowledge management platforms to share local knowledge, whereas firms with a high level of embeddedness, which require the most local knowledge, lack formal knowledge management strategies to share their knowledge across projects.
Javernick-Will, A. (2013). 鈥.鈥澛Engineering Management Journal.聽25 (3),聽16-26. doi:聽10.1080/10429247.2013.11431979