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Cox, A.M. (2007) Reproducing knowledge: Xerox and the story of knowledge management. Knowledge Management Research & Practice, 5 (1). 3 - 12. ISSN 1477-8238
Abstract
This paper is a commentary on discursive transformations that occur in stories told about Xerox's photocopier technicians, comparing particularly Orr's brilliant ethnographic study and a later management case study. It argues that significant shifts take place in how knowledge is understood between these accounts so that what begins as elusive, oral, improvised and social becomes increasingly presented as encodable in a structured database, countable, auditable, individualistic. These ideological transformations seem much to do with Xerox's own historic need to rebrand itself, and simply to sell a commercial product. Thus, how knowledge is represented and what knowledge management might mean seems to be heavily influenced by corporate vested interests. The paper stresses the need to capture complexity in case studies if they are to promote a realistic or critical understanding of the organisation. © 2007 Operational Research Society Ltd. All rights reserved.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2007 Palgrave Macmillan. This is an author produced version of a paper subsequently published in Knowledge Management Research & Practice. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Keywords: | Xerox; Knowledge management; Case studies. |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Social Sciences (Sheffield) > Information School (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Dr Andrew M. Cox |
Date Deposited: | 24 Apr 2014 14:05 |
Last Modified: | 24 Apr 2014 14:05 |
Published Version: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.kmrp.8500118 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Palgrave Macmillan |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1057/palgrave.kmrp.8500118 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:78659 |
Available Versions of this Item
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Reproducing knowledge: Xerox and the story of knowledge management. (deposited 05 Aug 2009 15:18)
- Reproducing knowledge: Xerox and the story of knowledge management. (deposited 24 Apr 2014 14:05) [Currently Displayed]