For nearly two decades, consulting firms, technology companies, R&D-driven corporations and other knowledge-intensive organizations have made significant investments in "knowledge management" initiatives. These initiatives are intended to facilitate the capture and transfer of company expertise as a way to spur learning and innovation.
But recent research indicates that knowledge sharing efforts often fail to result in improved task outcomes inside organizations--and may even hurt project performance. However, organizations that plan carefully before launching a knowledge-sharing initiative, and support these efforts along the way, have a much better chance of adding value, the researchers say.
Source: Knowledge @ Wharton, http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu