Research interests

The primary focus of my research and writing is knowledge management and organizational learning. This work has concentrated on conceptual critique and refinement of key knowledge management concepts. There are four strands to this work:

1) Communities of practice: the concept “communities of practice” was critically reviewed drawing on sociological and related literature questioning the novelty of this concept, pointing out that it is similar to longstanding and conceptually richer notions; idealizations of ‘communities of practice’ as a means for managing work are likely to be misleading. (See Gourlay 1999)

2) Knowledge creation: Nonaka and Takeuchi’s (1995) model of knowledge creation is widely cited but is based on serious misconceptions. I have proposed an alternative framework that could facilitate shaping the direction of knowledge management research. A critique of other work by Nonaka and his colleagues by Andy Nurse contributed to a forthcoming joint publication. (See Gourlay 2000a, 2000b; 2001; 2003; forthcoming: Gourlay 2005/6 (Journal of Management Studies); Gourlay & Nurse 2005).

3) Tacit knowledge: This is a very important but intractable concept. My research has focused on conceptual critique and attempts to clarify its meanings, drawing on a wide range of research in various disciplines (cognitive science, psychology, philosophy, consciousness studies).

A bibliometric analysis of management tacit knowledge related literature using correspondence analysis and cluster analysis techniques has been initiated in collaboration with Robert Elves (Kingston LRC). Preliminary analyses show evidence of discipline and subject focus fragmentation. It is anticipated that extension to include synonyms for tacit knowledge will reveal an even more fragmented field which would go some way towards understanding why the concept is so elusive. (See Gourlay 2000; 2002; 2004; forthcoming 2005a, b)

4) Knowledge transfer: While tacit knowledge transfer is problematised, I have drawn attention to neglected aspects of explicit knowledge transfer, drawing on reading theory and information science. It is also clear these ideas can be linked with the concern to transfer ‘best practice’. To this end I have written a forthcoming book chapter, and begun exploring writing a joint publication on knowledge transfer in MNCs with Dr. Miao Zhang. (See Gourlay 2001e; 2003a).