Conference on Creating, Retaining, and Transferring Knowledge in Organizations, Carnegie Mellon University, September 7 - 9, 2001

Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh PA

Investigators

Abstract

Over the past decade knowledge management has become a subject of keen interest among academics and practitioners alike. Book publications on the topic have increased dramatically as managers and executives from a broad spectrum of organizations have recognized the importance of creating, retaining, and transferring knowledge for firm survival and competitive advantage. Academic journals have also published more on knowledge management by scholars from a variety of research traditions. Areas of inquiry span levels of analysis (group, organization, network, population), substantive topics of interest (e.g., technology transfer, innovation and creativity), and intellectual traditions (e.g., organizational behavior and theory, strategic management, economics, psychology, and sociology). As a result, we now have an eclectic mix of findings on knowledge management in organizations. Because research has tended to accumulate within focused areas of inquiry, there has been relatively little consideration for how developments in one area relate to another. Consequently, important tensions exist between areas of inquiry and opportunities to leverage insights across areas remain unexploited. The study of knowledge management is at a point where future research stands to benefit greatly from surveying existing research in particular areas and from integrating findings across those areas. To this end, a two-day conference on "Creating, Retaining, and Transferring Knowledge in Organizations" will be organized at Carnegie Mellon University on September 7-9, 2001. The goals of the conference are to: (1) synthesize what is known about managing knowledge in organizations, (2) identify gaps and inconsistencies in our understanding of the management of organizational knowledge, (3) define future research directions on the management of knowledge in organizations, and (4) disseminate research findings about knowledge creation, retention, and transfer. The conference is being coordinated with a special issue of Management Science. Authors of the most promising manuscripts after the first round of reviews will be invited to present their work at the Carnegie Mellon Conference. The best papers from the conference will be published in the Management Science special issue. The conference will play a critical role in synthesizing existing knowledge and developing new knowledge about the creation, retention, and transfer of knowledge in organizations. The conference will provide contributors with feedback about their work and thereby improve the quality of research in the area. The interactions at the conference will also facilitate connections among researchers from different areas of inquiry and thereby stimulate future research on knowledge management.