KNOWLEDGE SHARING IN ACADEMIA AND IN THE CONSULTING INDUSTRY : A comparative study

Abstract: As we have shifted from a goods-centered logic to a service-centered logic, knowledge has become a key parameter for success. The management knowledge industry has expanded over the years, where knowledge constitutes the core product. Knowledge sharing has become an important process to develop new knowledge and to retain it in the organization. Academia and the consulting firms are two important actors in the management knowledge industry, with different approaches towards managing knowledge. Both spheres interact with each other. However, in recent years they have started to grow apart. The purpose of this study is to identify and analyze the differences in knowledge sharing between academia and the consulting industry. Our focus is on motivational factors and possibilities to share knowledge. The study is conducted through semi-structured interviews with professors from the Department of Business Studies at Uppsala University and senior consultants of four of the largest consulting firms in Sweden. We conclude that the two spheres are driven by different motivational factors. They also utilize different information channels for sharing knowledge. This stems from the fact that the spheres are inherently different with academia acting as a knowledge creator and is non-profitable, whilst the consulting industry more utilizes already existing knowledge and also has a demand to be profitable.