Integrating diverse knowledge through boundary spanning processes – The case of multidisciplinary project teams

It has been previously argued that knowledge heterogeneity compiled with geographic separation of team members hinder effective sharing and use of a team’s knowledge. The paper explores how multidisciplinary teams interact to overcome the barriers and take advantage of their ‘built in’ knowledge div...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of project management 2009-04, Vol.27 (3), p.206-215
Main Author: Ratcheva, Violina
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Boundaries
Information sharing
Integration
Knowledge
Knowledge diversity
Multidisciplinary project teams
Multidisciplinary teams
Project management
Self directed work teams
Studies
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Summary:It has been previously argued that knowledge heterogeneity compiled with geographic separation of team members hinder effective sharing and use of a team’s knowledge. The paper explores how multidisciplinary teams interact to overcome the barriers and take advantage of their ‘built in’ knowledge diversity. The findings of the research suggest that successful integration of multidisciplinary knowledge can be achieved through team’s boundary spanning activities and reaching to multiple professional and social communities. Three project boundaries have been identified, project action boundary, project knowledge boundary and project social boundary, which facilitate team members in articulating diverse knowledge perspectives. The findings suggest a need to reconceptualise the boundaries of multidisciplinary teams and to consider the processes of sharing diverse knowledge in a wider professional and social context.
ISSN:0263-7863
1873-4634
DOI:10.1016/j.ijproman.2008.02.008