Cultivating Communities of Practice for Developing Employees' Expertise in Organizations

본 연구에서는 기업내 조직구성원간 지식의 공유와 창조를 통한 전문성을 상호간 지원 및 개발하고 조직의 경쟁우위를 유지하기 위한 학습공동체의 구축 및 활성화를 위하여 학습공동체의 현황과 실태, 성과를 파악하고, 학습공동체의 구축에 필요한 지원요인과 장애요인, 향후 과제를 모색하는 데 목적을 두었다.To make or maintain successful and highly competent organizations in this rapidly changing environment, it is necessary to acquire, share, and create knowledge. While several enterprises provide support programs that have as their goals the storing, sharing, and creation of knowledge using info-communication technologies, it is difficult to save the dynamic knowledge of those who create, share, and use this knowledge. As such, communities of practice have emerged as a means to achieve the effective sharing, use, and creation of knowledge within organizations. While most research on communities of practice began at the concept level and focused on case studies in small-sized units, the suggestions garnered from these case studies have proven ill equipped to provide detailed directions on how to use these communities of practice to develop the expertise of employees in the actual work field through the sharing and creation of knowledge. Furthermore, no factors necessary for the establishment and invigoration of communities of practices were suggested using this method. This paper was aimed at supporting and developing the expertise of employees in organizations by sharing and creating knowledge. Moreover, this paper attempted to understand the present state, as well as the accomplishments, of communities of practice in order to establish and invigorate their future activities. In addition, this paper attempted to identify the supporting factors, obstacles, as well as the future tasks associated with the construction of communities of practice. To attain the objectives of this research, this paper first defined the term communities of practice, and selected the direction and range of the research through consultations with related specialists. By analyzing previous research and theories related to communities of practice, this paper was able to present a proper definition of the term, factors supporting the creation of such communities, potential obstacles, as well as their accomplishments to date and future tasks. In addition, both quantitative research, in the form of a survey, and qualitative case studies, in the form of interviews and the observations of those responsible for the establishment of communities of practice within organizations, were used. Based on an analysis of the results, this paper strove to collect the opinions of specialists on how to strengthen these communities of practice. Lastly, based on the study results attained from the above-mentioned case studies and the analysis of specialists opinions, this paper suggested measures to construct and support communities of practice in conjunction with the parties concerned with knowledge management. This paper also developed checklists to aid in the construction of these communities of practice in order to increase the members of these communities ability to use the knowledge they have acquired in their current work duties. 1. Results of the case studies The case studies undertaken as part of this research were separated into qualitative and quantitative case studies. With regards to the qualitative case studies, interviews were carried out with the leaders of supporting organizations, and relevant materials were collected from seven enterprises that have implemented communities of practice. For the quantitative case studies, a survey of 153 sponsors, leaders, and members of communities of practice from 9 different companies was conducted. The results of the study can be summarized as follows: A. The qualitative case studies First, in most cases the establishment of communities of practice was carried out as a part of an enterprises strategy or as part of in-depth efforts to achieve knowledge based management structures and organizations. More often than not the overarching objective was to help share individuals knowledge and create organizational knowledge through the sharing of such information. These communities of practice are based on the belief that the competitiveness of enterprises is based on the acquirement, sharing, and creation of knowledge, regardless of the size and type of industry. However, most of these communities of practice within organizations have their origins in the desire to share knowledge. As for the usage of knowledge, the matter was for the most part left up to the discretion of the individuals who participated in the communities of practice. Second, an analysis of the structure of these communities of practice revealed that the majority are of the informal type managed based on the autonomy of participants through individual networks. However, individual participants failed to realize the importance of their participation in these communities of practice. As the structure of a community of practice becomes more formal, individuals identity as a member of this community increases. Of special note, as the degree of support and informality of communities of practice increased, enterprises began to organize communities of practice based on their own strategies, or designated a responsible department, such as, the knowledge creation team, to carry out management, evaluation, and compensation related matters in a manner conducive to the promotion of these communities of practice. Third, communities of practices activities can be separated into four different categories: finding solutions to everyday work duty related problems; the performance of strategic projects for enterprises; the development of individual expertise; as well as activities related to social interactions and coordination efforts. However, their activities are mostly focused on the organization of knowledge-based communities in order to contribute to improvements in the efficiency of enterprise strategies as well as replacing the informal style of social interaction common within enterprises with more formal types. Fourth, the communities of practice led to improvements in the handling of work duties, in the sharing of knowledge and information between employees, and also helped increase cooperation among the latter. However, with regards to efficiency indicators, these were limited to the subjective evaluation of their achievements based on such factors as the number of members, as well as actual participants, and the level of knowledge acquired. Fifth, with regard to the factors that helped bring about successful results within communities of practice, as well as potential obstacles, these were found to be related to the themes that were selected by members as being important, the role of the leadership group, and the participation of the supporting department. In addition, whenever CEOs and managers, the main sponsors of communities of practice, demanded short-term results that they could see with their own eyes, worries arose regarding a potential decrease in the desire to participate in such communities of practice as well as in their ability to achieve their ultimate goals. As a result, some individuals tended to regard participation in communities of practice as simply an additional work duty. Sixth, with regard to the future tasks needed to develop communities of practice, the conclusion was reached that work duty related projects, such as, the management and development of human resources, and management strategies, should be integrated. Furthermore, in order to obtain the objectives of communities of practice indicators must be properly selected. Moreover, specialists must be utilized to expand and invigorate these communities. Lastly, with regard to the type of community of practice implemented, this was heavily influenced by the size and type of the industry in question. As such, various types of communities of practice were suggested based on organizational support factors such as time and costs. B. The quantitative case studies First, concerning participation in these communities of practice, the results of the survey indicates that individuals participate in 1.76 communities of practice on average. Their reasons for participating in these communities were mainly to acquire specialized knowledge and skills related to their work duties, or to further develop their expertise. Second, with regards to the communities of practices activities, most respondents answered that they were motivated by the possibility of engaging in exchanges, studies, and research on the subjects they were interested in furthering their expertise in; an answer that meshes with the primary reasons for participation identified above. Third, many participants did not consider the establishment of a personnel management system, the provision of resources, such as the necessary time, financing, and information, or other activities designed to increase participation in communities of practice as being part of their work duties. In addition, only 7% of the members who attended these communities regularly reported that they had received benefits related to the personnel management system. Moreover, only 12.2% of people surveyed reported that their companies had provided them with leadership education programs or with the time needed to participate in community-related activities. Nevertheless, the achievements resulting from the sharing and creation of knowledge should be linked with the incentives provided for in the personnel management system. Fourth, with regards to the level of satisfaction with the activities of these communities of practice, most respondents were found to be generally satisfied, scoring on average 3.71 (with the top score possible being 5.00). However, the level of understanding and cooperation between the support team and participants in the communities of practice, and between the latter and the directors in the actual work field, were found to be very low. Fifth, as to the effectiveness of these communities of practice, most respondents were found to be generally satisfied, with the average score being 3.51. A comparison of effectiveness at the individual and organizational levels revealed that those who had participated in activities related to the communities of practice were found to have progressed more at the individual than at the organizational level. Sixth, as suggested in the qualitative case studies, indicators, such as, the understanding of concepts, and the number of participants, which in reality have no direct relationship with the measuring of the effectiveness of communities of practice, have nonetheless been used for such measurements. In the future more weight should be given to such indicators as the measurement of the value and usefulness of the knowledge acquired, both at the individual and organizational level, when assessing the efficiency of communities of practice. Seventh, with regards to supporting factors influencing the successful implementation of communities of practice, individual related factors were found to be the most influential, scoring 4.09; with the role of support teams (3.98), and organizational culture (3.94) coming next. Other factors, including resources, coordination of business strategies, and vision were found to be less influential. As most enterprises are increasingly striving to coordinate their business strategies, more emphasis should be placed on strengthening individual and leadership factors in order to assure the success of communities of practice. Eighth, concerning the potential obstacles to the operation of communities of practice, the lack of leadership (3.75), lack of resources (3.64), lack of support (3.62), and individual characters (3.55) were found to be highly influential, while management (3.38) and cooperation (3.46) between communities of practice were found to be less so. Lastly, with regards to the tasks needed to develop communities of practice in the future, most participants answered that it was necessary to foster a better understanding of communities of practice, to assure the provision of the necessary resources, and to assure that the sponsors played a leadership role in the process. On the subject of supporting organizations, the survey participants suggested that programs related to the communities of practice should be designed with the users convenience in mind, and that more support should be provided for the education programs needed to properly manage communities of practice. Concerning the future tasks that the leaders and members of communities of practice must undertake, the respondents answered that there was a need to solidify the core membership and leadership, and to further develop communication skills. Furthermore, as 99% of domestic enterprises do not yet have communities of practice, the government and related organizations should: provide the necessary costs to construct future communities of practice; provide the infrastructure needed for knowledge management in a manner simplifying its common use; introduce successful cases to the general public; and develop guidance for the managers of the communities of practice. 2. Schemes to cultivate communities of practice Based on the results of the analysis of previous research on the subject, as well as the qualitative and quantitative case studies, measures to construct and invigorate communities of practice have been suggested for every level of implementation of communities of practice within organizations. At the input level of communities of practice, an appropriate strategy should be developed. To assure the smooth operation of the activities of communities of practice it is necessary to have the related teams, leaders, and core members in place. In addition, it is necessary to construct a variety of communities of practice; such as, strategic communities of practice focused on a top-down business strategy, or communities of practice focused on individual social interaction; while also taking into consideration individual and organizational demands. Moreover, it is also important to attract the support of management and the participation of members of the organization. At the processing level, it is necessary to select important themes, issues, and objectives, all of which should mesh with the core values and changes in the environment of the organization in question, and to pursue a variety of activities that can help to facilitate the sharing and creation of knowledge. It is also vital that supporting teams provide the necessary education, guidance, and information in order to assure proper leadership. Furthermore, there is also a need to provide monitoring and consultation services in relation to the activities at regular intervals. Supporting teams should also educate the members that while it is important to share knowledge, it is also important to use knowledge. In addition, supporting teams should provide members with the necessary time and resources to participate in communities of practice. At the output level, the performance of communities of practice should be measured using various evaluation methods. Furthermore, the sharing and creation of knowledge should be strengthened by linking the achievements of these communities to benefits provided by the personnel management system and increased compensation.연구요약 I. 서 론 1 1. 연구의 필요성과 목적 1 2. 연구의 내용 및 구성 3 가. 연구의 내용 3 나. 연구의 구성 4 3. 연구의 방법 5 4. 연구의 기대효과 및 활용방안 7 5. 연구의 제한점 7 6. 용어의 정의 8 Ⅱ. 학습공동체의 이론과 선행 연구의 분석 11 1. 학습공동체의 의미와 특징, 구성요소 11 2. 학습공동체의 이론적 배경 15 3. 학습공동체의 종류, 목적, 테크놀로지 17 가. 학습공동체의 종류 17 나. 학습공동체 구성원의 역할 19 다. 학습공동체 테크놀로지 20 4. 학습공동체와 다른 조직과의 비교 20 5. 학습공동체의 장·단기 이익 22 6. 학습공동체의 연구사례 23 7. 학습공동체의 지원요인과 장애요인 25 8. 성공적 학습공동체 구축을 위한 과제 27 가. 경영층(지원조직)의 도전 과제 28 나. 공동체의 도전 과제 29 다. 기술적 도전 과제 31 라. 구성원(개인)의 도전 과제 31 Ⅲ. 조사의 설계 33 1. 조사 모형 33 2. 조사 방법 33 가. 질적 사례연구 : 심층면담 및 관찰 34 나. 양적 사례연구 : 설문조사 34 Ⅳ. 조사의 결과 43 1. 질적 사례연구의 결과 43 가. S정보통신의 사례 43 나. S보험의 사례 49 다. L정보통신의 사례 53 라. L정유의 사례 57 마. H제지의 사례 60 바. H보험의 사례 62 사. S정유의 사례 66 아. 조사결과의 함의 71 2. 양적 사례연구의 결과 76 가. 설문응답자의 특성 76 나. 학습공동체의 현황과 실태(전반적) 78 다. 학습공동체의 세부요소별 실태 92 라. 학습공동체의 성과 101 마. 학습공동체의 지원요인과 장애요인 110 바. 학습공동체의 향후 과제 126 사. 조사결과의 함의 128 3. 질적·양적 사례연구 결과의 함의 131 Ⅴ. 학습공동체의 구축방안 135 1. 학습공동체의 구축 방안 개요 135 2. 학습공동체의 구축 방안(세부 단계별) 137 가. 투입단계의 학습공동체 구축 방안 137 나. 프로세스 단계의 학습공동체 구축 방안 140 다. 산출단계의 학습공동체 구축 방안 143 Ⅵ. 결 론 145 1. 연구의 요약 145 2. 제 언 148 참고문헌 151 Abstract 155 학습공동체 구축을 위한 체크리스트 165 기업별 학습공동체 세부 사례내용 172 설문지 188 면담 매뉴얼 20