Improvement of Knowledge Transfer in a Construction Consultancy Firm

Abstract: The construction industry is facing an alteration of generations in the years to come and even though knowledge transfer has been studied since the 1990’s many companies are still struggling to improve their knowledge strategy. For construction companies this is even more problematic due to the nature of the industry. The construction industry is characterized by project-based organizations where project members are changed in almost every project. Working under similar conditions are consultants, and some consultancies are notable for managing their knowledge well. By benchmarking three notable consultancies against a construction consultancy, some key success factors of the consultancies’ knowledge transfer were found and applied on the construction consultancy. The study is characterized by Hansen et al.’s (1999) codification and personalization strategies, which say that knowledge should either be stored in technical databases or shared through social interaction. A literature review of the three consultancies was conducted and the study of the construction consultancy was based on interviews and observations. The companies’ knowledge processes were then described and categorized into technical and social infrastructure. Where similar strategies have been used in the three consultancies, these have been analyzed to be their key success factors in knowledge management. These factors are summarized as: 1) Clear and standardized routines. 2) User friendly and up-to-date technical systems. 3) Global interaction and collaboration. 4) An organizational culture of knowledge sharing. Based on the four key success factors and previous literature on the subject some suggestions for improvement at the construction company were compiled. Even though the four studied organizations all are management consultants their way of working differs. Since three consultancies were studied it should provide a certain range of advice and recommendations that can be adapted to different organizations. The key success factors analyzed are also mostly connected to large, global organizations working under projected-based conditions, which also should be applicable to numerous companies. The findings are therefore believed to be useful for consultancies as well as construction companies.