ERP as an organizational innovation: key users and cross-boundary knowledge management

作者：Maas Jan Bert; van Fenema Paul C; Soeters Joseph

来源：Journal of Knowledge Management, 2016, 20(3): 557-577.

DOI：10.1108/JKM-05-2015-0195

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<jats:title content-type="abstract-subheading">Purpose</jats:title>
<jats:p>The purpose of this study is to provide more insight in the ways key users act as knowledge managers and boundary spanners during the enterprise resource planning (ERP) system usage phase. Despite the recognized importance of key users during the implementation phase of an ERP system, little is known about their role in the ERP usage phase.</jats:p>
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<jats:title content-type="abstract-subheading">Design/methodology/approach</jats:title>
<jats:p>To provide rich insight in the boundary-spanning mechanisms utilized by key users to share knowledge, a qualitative approach was applied. In this study, “abductive” theme coding for 58 interviews with key users, end-users and managers has been used. This paper found six mechanisms and characterized them as “crossing” structural, social or cognitive boundaries.</jats:p>
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<jats:title content-type="abstract-subheading">Findings</jats:title>
<jats:p>Six boundary-spanning mechanisms have been distinguished which have been applied by key users to overcome several knowledge management issues. Subsequently, these mechanisms lead to a model which describes three different roles that key users may fulfill to efficiently share and transfer knowledge during the ERP usage phase.</jats:p>
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<jats:title content-type="abstract-subheading">Research limitations/implications</jats:title>
<jats:p>Knowledge barriers during an ERP implementation and their accompanying six boundary-crossing mechanisms have been distinguished.</jats:p>
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<jats:title content-type="abstract-subheading">Practical implications</jats:title>
<jats:p>The recognition of the essential role that key users can fulfill during the usage phase of an ERP system is an important implication. Management has to take into account that tasks and responsibilities of key users have to be clear from the start and they may cautiously select employees who are suited to become key users.</jats:p>
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<jats:title content-type="abstract-subheading">Originality/value</jats:title>
<jats:p>The main contribution is the importance of the impact of key users on the effectivity of knowledge management during the ERP usage phase.</jats:p>
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• 出版日期2016