They, Us & Myself - We Become Better and Everything Goes Better
Abstract: Knowledge sharing is a key element in professional service firms (PSFs), as it is the knowledge that ultimately constitutes the core of their business. However, knowledge sharing is mainly voluntary and cannot be detached from the professionals engaging in it. Thus, it appears pertinent to appreciate professionals’ perspective and perception of knowledge sharing, as well as to understand their willingness to share knowledge. For this purpose, we choose to research lawyers as a classical example of professionals. Through a hermeneutic approach, we further put the willingness to share knowledge into its wider context. We explore the interdependencies between the lawyers’ power within the firm, their identification with profession and organisation and, ultimately, how these concepts facilitate understanding the willingness to share knowledge. Our research portrays how the lawyers identify strongly with their profession, but even more strongly with the organisation they work for. In combination, these two identifications induce professionals’ willingness to share knowledge. Moreover, due to their strong organisational identification, lawyers’ understanding of knowledge as a source of power does not inhibit their willingness to share knowledge. By contrast, power increases when knowledge becomes visible through sharing, and thus augments professionals’ willingness to engage in knowledge sharing.
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