Managing Tacit Knowledge in Organisations. An Information Systems–Supported Knowledge Strategy for Detection, Description, and Safeguarding

Sammanfattning

This thesis examines how organisations can address tacit knowledge problems. The research question is: How can organisations address tacit knowledge problems by designing a structured knowledge management strategy, supported by information systems, for the detection, description, and safe guarding of knowledge? Tacit knowledge is linked to experience, judgement, and everyday work practices, but is often difficult to identify, explain, and preserve. This can create dependence on key individuals, low visibility of expertise, weak knowledge transfer, and knowledge loss when projects end or employees leave. The study follows an exploratory survey strategy based on eight semi structured interviews with experienced professionals in knowledge-intensive consulting roles. The interview material was analysed using qualitative content analysis with a combined inductive and deductive procedure. Inductive coding identified recurring problems, practices, and support needs, while deductive assignment linked the categories to detection, description, and safeguarding. The findings show that organisations do not mainly struggle because of a lack of documentation. The main challenges concern making critical tacit knowledge visible, describing it in usable forms, and safeguarding it across projects and personnel changes. Information systems and AI can support these efforts through search, retrieval, access, and summarisation, but their usefulness depends on alignment with work practices and organisational conditions. Based on these findings, the study develops an information systems supported strategy built on Knowledge Hubs, Knowledge Capsules, and lightweight safeguarding mechanisms. The thesis concludes that organisations should not aim for complete codification of tacit knowledge, but should create practical and structured support for its detection, description, and safeguarding.