• International Area Studies Review
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.99-121
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• 2018

This study investigated the factors influencing the knowledge acquisition of Thai local partners from advanced foreign partners through international joint ventures(IJVs). For this purpose, this study initially identified three dimensions of characteristics in the context of IJVs that would influence local partners' knowledge acquisition - a local partners' own characteristic (absorptive capacity), a relationship characteristic with IJVs (proximity to the equal equity ownership), and a relationship characteristic with foreign partners (trust), and examined their effects on local partners' knowledge acquisition. The study further investigated the moderating effects of the tacitness of knowledge on the relationships between those characteristics and knowledge acquisition. Based on the data collected from Thai IJV local partners, results revealed that a local partners' own characteristic, absorptive capacity, and a relationship characteristic with IJVs, proximity to the equal equity ownership, had a strong positive effect on local partners' knowledge acquisition. Results further showed that the tacitness of knowledge strengthened the relationships between absorptive capacity and knowledge acquisition and between trust and knowledge acquisition, but not the relationship between proximity to the equal equity ownership and knowledge acquisition.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.19 no.9
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• pp.454-464
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• 2018

The OECD estimates that a high concentration of intangible capital is in the richest countries of the world. Studies show that intangibles have a positive relation with economic growth. However, different types of intangibles can have different impacts on economic performance. Therefore, this paper attempts to distinguish the differences within the intangibles in influencing economic growth by analyzing three different characteristics of the intangibles. Three main types of intangibles (computerized information, innovative property and economic competencies) are analyzed based on the degree of tacitness, the process of creation and diffusion, and the level of embedded value-added. This research uses Polanyi's classification of tacitness of knowledge, the Nonaka-Takeuchi Model and the "smiling curve" to find that not only investing more in intangible capital but also developing more "tacit" type of intangibles are important for economic growth.

• Journal of the Economic Geographical Society of Korea
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.350-361
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• 2008

Place matters to knowledge creation according to the recent literature on economic geography and its related disciplines. This basic insight is not incorrect. But there is some vagueness in the discussions on this theme and there seems to appear a variety of geo-determinism on the competitiveness of SMEs in manufacturing industries. This paper reexamines that thinking on the basis of the realities of innovative manufacturing SMEs in a periphery of Japan, south of Kyushu Island. As a result, it is possible to classify face-to-face contacts into two kinds of communication. One is the communication, through which a supplier of a way of solution (knowledge) can grasp problems (information) of its customer in detail. The other is the communication, through which one can get some new idea. Information can spread world wide, but not always quickly and ubiquitously, because it often contains tacitness and secret, even if a large part of the information are coded in some form. Details of the information can be communicated only with the help of five senses. And it is necessary for the information receiver to listen to the sender carefully with the help of the other senses. In this meaning, tacitness does matter. Knowledge, namely ability to understand and power to bring some idea in practice, is always connected with some place, either at workshop of supplier or of customer in the case of manufacturing industries. However, not places but human beings possess the knowledge, and human beings can be mobile. Therefore, it is not restricted to a place.

• Information Systems Review
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.113-135
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• 2004

This paper defines appraisal items and weights of the items for the purpose of developing an appraisal instrument that objectively measures employee's effectiveness of knowledge contribution. Deductive research is used for the development of appraisal items and delphi method for the development of weights of the items. In the deductive research the term, "effectiveness of knowledge contribution" is first defined. Then knowledge contribution activities are classified as "dimension of explicit contribution" and " dimension of tacit contribution" due to the characteristics of knowledge. Each dimension is divided again by components. The dimension of explicit contribution is divided according to the content of knowledge, and the dimension of tacit contribution is divided according to the extent of tacitness of knowledge contribution. The total components of dimensions are 7. The dimension of explicit contribution is composed of factual knowledge and procedural knowledge. The factual knowledge is made up of "procedural knowledge outcome" and "other factual knowledge". The procedural knowledge is made up of "procedural knowledge manual" and "lessons-learned procedural knowledge". The dimension of tacit contribution is composed of "agency", "model" and "Q&A". The basic framework for measuring 7 components of knowledge contribution is quantitative and qualitative approach. This paper is premised on the assumption that the outcomes of employee's knowledge contribution activities are recorded in the knowledge management systems in order to evaluate them objectively. The appraisal items are defined as follows: at the dimension of explicit contribution, in quantitative approach, "the upload number" or "performance number", and in qualitative approach, other employee's "referred number" and other employee's "content and format satisfaction evaluation"; at the dimension of tacit contribution, "demanded number of performance" After the development of appraisal items by the deductive method, delphi method was used for the analysis of the weights of the items with the total degree of knowledge contribution, 100. This research does not include the standard marks of the appraisal items. It is because when companies apply this appraisal instrument, they could use their own standard appraisal marks of the appraisal items considering their present situations and companies' goals. Through this almost desert-like research about the appraisal instrument of employee's knowledge contribution effectiveness, it proposes a cornerstone in the research field of appraisal instrument, which provides a standard for employee's knowledge contribution appraisal, and appraisal items that make organizational knowledge to be managed more systemically in business sites.