Navigating Knowledge Management in a Technical Consulting Firm : Current Practices and Future Perspectives

Sammanfattning: Knowledge management and the strategy surrounding it has been highlighted as keys for achieving and maintaining competitive advantage, particularly for knowledge-intensive firms. Consulting firms are knowledge-intensive firms that generate revenue solely through offering the knowledge of their consultants, arguably making knowledge management even more crucial in their competitive fields. In some cases, consultants do not collaborate with their consultancy colleagues in their everyday work, but rather meet only in team activities and social contexts, making the sharing and maintaining of knowledge an even tougher challenge. It is thereby of interest to investigate various types of consulting firms to evaluate how they manage knowledge and how important it is. The purpose of this study is to enhance the understanding of knowledge management in consulting firms through analysing the case of a technical consulting firm. The study focused particularly on two dimensions: knowledge sharing activities and knowledge management strategy. Fifteen interviews were conducted, and the data was analysed through thematic analysis supported with models and frameworks from the knowledge management literature. The findings of the study point out that whilst not having stated a clear knowledge management strategy, the firm utilises a personalization strategy with a focus on encouraging knowledge sharing in personal contexts whilst putting less effort into documenting knowledge. Supporting the strategy, the firm houses a helpful and learning culture where seeking support from colleagues is encouraged and teaching your colleagues is part of personal development plans. The consulting teams’ collective meetings were seen as important boosters of knowledge sharing along with structured learning from colleagues, whilst the time constraints from client obligations were mutually deemed the main inhibitor. The suggested improvements for the firm were to first make a clear strategy regarding the knowledge management. Furthermore, an increasedcodification and to document highly demanded, novel knowledge was suggested, as well as simplifying the search for the right competence within the firm when a colleague needed help. Lastly, it was suggested that they look at improving the utilization of senior’s experience to support new recruits and reinforce their competence development.