A model for self-assessment of skills to identify tacit knowledge stock and enable knowledge transfer

A model for self-assessment of skills to identify tacit knowledge stock and enable knowledge transfer

The theory of Resource Based View (RBV) posits the use of internal resources for competitive advantage which is often evaluated using four questions on value (V), rarity (R), imitability (I) and organisation (O), also known as the VRIO framework. This research focuses on the organisational resource of tacit knowledge which is characterised by knowledge that is difficult to transfer. Identification and transfer of tacit knowledge stock is one of the major research problems in the knowledge management discipline. The purpose of this research is to explore whether tacit knowledge stock can be identified using self-assessment of skills to enable knowledge transfer. The research questions of this study include: RQ 1: To what extent can self-assessment of skills help to identify tacit knowledge stock? And, RQ 2: What role does identifying tacit knowledge stock play in knowledge transfer?

Using Design Science Research (DSR) methodology, an artefact is developed, implemented and evaluated to answer the research questions. The artefact is represented as a model that expresses the relationships between three constructs namely: (i) self-assessment of skills, (ii) tacit knowledge stock and (iii) knowledge transfer. The model is operationalised using a software tool based on the Skills Framework for the Information Age (SFIA). The model is evaluated via semi-structured interviews with twenty-one staff of the Information Technology (IT) department in a case study organisation. This research found that knowledge transfer could be enabled by the identification of tacit knowledge stock. Other enabling factors that affected tacit knowledge transfer were also identified, namely, sender’s prior understanding of the receivers’ tacit knowledge stock, sender’s willingness to transfer knowledge, person-organisation fit, similar knowledge area, organisational culture and self-awareness of tacit knowledge stock. This research argues that the self-assessment of skills is a useful method of identifying tacit knowledge stock. Majority of the research participants found that the self-assessment of skills was effective for identifying tacit knowledge stock at an individual level as compared to an organisational level.

The major contribution of this research is the development of the model that can be used to facilitate tacit knowledge transfer based on self-assessment of skills. This model extends the literature of the knowledge management discipline by explaining the relationship between tacit knowledge stock and transfer based on self-assessment of skills. The evaluation of the model confirms its practical application in knowledge-intensive organisations that intend to understand tacit knowledge stock in order to facilitate tacit knowledge transfer.