Fuzzy synthetic evaluation of the systemic obstacles to personalizing knowledge flows within and across projects

Abstract

Purpose With the recognition that knowledge is ingrained within certain social groups and settings, more recent literature in this field is now spotlighting this human focused or “social dimension” of knowledge management. However, this learning approach faces some constraints, especially, in project context. While the existing body of knowledge has focused on emphasizing the importance of the social processes and practices involved in this approach, there is glaring neglect of the intricacies involved when executing learning through this agency, especially in project settings. Hence, the purpose of this study is to identify and evaluate the systemic obstacles in personalizing knowledge flows within and across projects. Design/methodology/approach This study adopted a positivist philosophical stance couched within a deductive approach. A structured questionnaire was used to gather data from 203 construction professionals with “hands-on” experience in managing projects in the Ghanaian construction industry. Findings A mean score analysis showed that all the identified obstacles are significant factors that hinder the personalization of knowledge flows within and across projects. A structure detection analysis generated four principal obstacle components (POCs), explaining about 67.897% of the total variance of the obstacles in personalizing knowledge flows in temporary organizations. The complex web of obstacles was broken out into four broad thematic categories or POCs: obstacles at the individual level, obstacles at the team level, obstacles at the structural level and the limitations of project operations. A fuzzy synthetic evaluation modeling of the four POCs generated criticality indices for each POC exceeding 3.50 on a five-point rating scale, indicating that, all the four POCs as significant obstacles to personalizing knowledge flows within and across projects. Practical implications Implications are provided for project managers on the social dynamics of learning in project teams. Originality/value The research findings expand existing frontiers of knowledge by addressing the gap in the literature on the complexity of the personalization strategy within projects. The findings would also spark a broader discussion about the importance of developing integrated ways to structure learning in project environments. The culmination of the research will serve as a solid foundation for the development of a future project learning frameworks.