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Converting tacit knowledge into explicit knowledge in organisations: a communication challenge

a communication challenge

M.M. Hugo-Burrows
University of Stellenbosch
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Converting tacit knowledge into explicit knowledge in organisations: a communication challenge. (2022). Communicare: Journal for Communication Studies in Africa, 21(1), 61-81. https://doi.org/10.36615/jcsa.v21i1.1830
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  • Submited: October 24, 2022
  • Published: October 31, 2022

Abstract

Business organisations are increasingly viewing knowledge as their most valuable and
strategic resource to remain competitive. Every organisation has both explicit knowledge,
referring to carefully analysed and defined knowledge, and tacit knowledge, referring
to complex knowledge, difficult to specify and often unrecorded. Tacit knowledge
becomes embedded in an individual's personal expertise and cannot be expressed through
the normal use of words. But it is precisely the tacit knowledge that often delivers a
sustainable competitive advantage, as it is this part that competitors have difficulty
in replicating. Many organisations are realizing that they must explicitly manage their knowledge
resources and capabilities, and they have initiated a range of knowledge management
programmes. An important managerial responsibility resides in managing the knowledgetransfer
context, including the assessment of all knowledge possessed by a firm. This
necessitates the conversion of tacit knowledge into explicit knowledge. This article looks at the tacit knowledge literature and focuses on the existing methods of converting tacit knowledge into implicit knowledge in organisations. A pilot survey
on existing tacit knowledge articulation in a large South African province is discussed.
This has pointed towards a more comprehensive research project, with the aim of
providing a model for tacit knowledge communication strategies in South African
multicultural firms.

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How to Cite
Converting tacit knowledge into explicit knowledge in organisations: a communication challenge. (2022). Communicare: Journal for Communication Studies in Africa, 21(1), 61-81. https://doi.org/10.36615/jcsa.v21i1.1830

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