Sharing Knowledge in Technology Deficient Environments: Individual Workarounds amid Corporate Restrictions

Abstract

In this paper, we draw on socio-technical theory to explore how Chinese professionals engage in informal knowledge focused activities facilitated by guanxi networks in the face of restrictive corporate IT policies. Following a short review of the global and Chinese literature on knowledge management and knowledge sharing, we describe our qualitative investigation into the informal work practices of employees in 16 China-located hotels of Ravine, a global hotel chain. These work practices include the development and maintenance of guanxi (relationships) with internal and external colleagues, and the leveraging of this guanxi in order to exchange information and knowledge. We document both the corporate IT restrictions and the workarounds that employees deploy as they strive to complete their work effectively. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of the research findings before concluding with recommendations for research and practice.

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