The employment of knowledge visualisation to facilitate tacit knowledge sharing

Abstract

This research explores how knowledge visualisation can support the sharing of tacit knowledge. One research question guides the study: How can knowledge visualisation facilitate tacit knowledge sharing? The research employed semi-structured interviews, non-participatory observations, and document reviews to collect data from 35 participants in 19 organisations and eight industries. Research data were analysed with thematic analysis, with the help of ATLAS.ti™ software. Moreover, in-depth case studies were conducted to verify data saturation. The findings from this research show that the participants have little accurate understanding of the terminology being used in the academic literature to describe knowledge and tacit knowledge, and that participants in different industries use dissimilar definitions and knowledge sharing toolkits. It was found that tacit knowledge is shareable in the form of natural language expressed by stories, metaphors and cases, for instance, and by other representations such as visual. While it may not offer the complete solution, Knowledge visualisation can facilitate tacit knowledge building and sharing by providing the big picture, rapid scanning of detail, and rich connections. It is concluded that knowledge visualisation is a powerful tool to support and to facilitate the sharing of tacit knowledge. Also, a new generation of knowledge represtations could usefully address extended questions on how tacit knowledge sharing can best be facilitated using knowledge visualisation