Mitigating risks of knowledge transfer in organisation networks - evidence from case studies

The need to remain competitive is forcing organisations to look at alternate means of enhancing their efficiency. The competition between supply chains also necessitates organisations to innovate and contribute to their networks. This contribution could be through sharing knowledge. The commonly perceived notion is that organisations lose their competitive advantage once they share their knowledge. However, the risk of this sharing could be mitigated if the knowledge is internalised by the users as it continues to grow as an upward spiral. This internalised knowledge once institutionalised, can be transferred across the network, thereby minimising risks associated with its sharing. A proven strategic framework has been applied to validate this phenomena based on multiple case studies. With emerging economies becoming important participants in global networks, this would help in understanding how knowledge can be created, managed, and shared by firms across collaborative networks while mitigating risks due to its transfer.