Knowledge Management

Abstract

This thesis deals with the question of how a knowledge intensive organization works with knowledge embedded in people in an organization that regularly grows to more than a third of its size. The organization studied is the headquarters of The Volvo Ocean Race, which has a core organization consisting of eight people and swells to three times its size shortly before the boats start the race round the world. In every race the organization is living through two phases: a planning phase and a strategic phase. It is mainly during the planning phase that knowledge transfer takes place. However, during the operational phase some knowledge transfer will also take place, although not as carefully planned as in the first phase. Three enablers for knowledge transfer, used in both phases, are identified: o Know-who using networks o Informal knowledge transfer sharing by chatting o Learning by watching and using earlier own experiences These enablers are all used in the two phases, but adapted to suit the conditions of the specific working situation. In the planning phase, they are employed in a deliberate manner to serve the specific purpose of transferring knowledge. In the second phase, the enablers work without any deliberate intent, but rather as built in routine in the organization. The conclusion reached in this study is that without the careful planning during the first phase the enablers would not be built into the routines of the organization during the second phase. Thus there would probably be less knowledge transfer between the core organization and the newcomers, making it harder to enter the organization and making the gaps from those who leave larger.