의무적 지식 올리기에서 자발적 지식 나눔으로; I사 조직 구성원들의 학습경험에 대한 현상학적 이해

With the intense globalization, acceleration of the change and the expansion of the information technology, the competition among companies is based on the knowledge within the organization (Orlikowski, 2002). Thus, organizations are starting to pay lots of attention to the great value of knowledge and focus on sharing and transferring some of the best practices within and across organizations. Despite these efforts aimed at improving organizational learning, the success rate of knowledge management projects was only about 50 percent (Ambrosio, 2000). This implies that different perspectives for knowledge management are required to get the desired outcome. Recently, some of researchers claim to focus on knowing practice rather than managing the knowledge. They asserted that except for suggested numerous techniques to manage knowledge, we need to understand why individuals cannot learn new knowledge well, why they cannot share the knowledge, and why individual knowledge cannot be extended to organizational knowledge. This study intends to understand how individuals share the existing knowledge, how psychological, relational and organizational factors influence on learning, and how they create the new knowledge. The description of the learning experience enables us to understand how members of the firm can generate and sustain knowledgeability in their organization. For these research objectives, phenomenology, one of the qualitative research methodologies, is conducted. As a result, eight essential themes and thirty-six sub-themes are derived; 1) knowledge is a essential tool for survival within the organizations, 2) obligatory knowledge posting is obligatory and cumbersome 3) knowledge posting or sharing has not been evaluated fairly 4) feel appreciate knowledge owners while using the system, 5) more valuable knowledge can be gained through personal network, 6) knowledge can be shared for my own benefit, 7) feel confidence in the organization’s direction, and 8) feel self-development through voluntary knowledge sharing. Participants perceive knowledge as indispensable for “survival within the organizations to which they belong.” Knowledge-sharing based on informational systems, however, is not a spontaneous process but an obligatory process. Participants’ disappointment with their organization can negatively affect when the evaluation of knowledge-sharing process is not conducted fairly. Although the inputting process is cumbersome, they can utilize it when needed, earn recognition from others as an expert, and get a sense of necessity and gratitude when colleagues share knowledge. Participants believe they learn knowledge through human network, especially from closer associates. Consequently, providing one’s own knowledge helps oneself. And also, in order to receive helpful knowledge when needed, one needs to provide knowledge, too. In addition, participants’ confidence in their organizations substantially affects the process by which they share and create knowledge. Through the voluntary knowledge exchanging knowledge using virtual networks, participants realize that they are learning entirely new knowledge as well. While organizational learning and the resultant long-term benefit is apparently based on members’ voluntary knowledge-sharing activity in KMS, the approach to promote this activity by obligating members under the systematic requirement may not be effective. Voluntary, rather than forced, sharing leads to conveyance of useful knowledge. Approach that requires members to share knowledge for the enhancement of the organization’s knowledge capacity may be effective only limitedly in encouraging members to share their knowledge actively and voluntarily.