Managing dynamic work teams for innovation: integrating knowledge management and organisation behaviour using the DFO model

Abstract

In knowledge-creating companies, teams must develop a systematic approach to integrate and create knowledge throughout the organisation to adapt to the changing environment. We employed the dynamic fractal organisation (DFO) model as an appropriate management model to propose the existence and development of dynamic teams aiming to enhance their knowledge-creating ability for sustainable innovation. The proposed framework highlights the significance of knowledge culture in promoting knowledge vision, trust between members, commitment and willingness for knowledge creation, teamwork orientation, and an ongoing contribution of distributed phronesis-based leadership that facilitates dynamic knowledge creation. A qualitative case study approach was employed based on empirical data from 24 in-depth interviews, triangulated with document analysis. Findings confirmed the existence of the dynamic knowledge-creating mechanism adopted by GenITeams that encourages teams to interact in a multi-layered networked setting. Results revealed that GenITeams could develop a management model that fosters innovation through continuous upward knowledge creation spiral.