Knowledge flows in the form of entanglement and -˜cuts’: an agential realist perspective on knowledge construction phenomena within an aircraft engine manufacturing workplace

Abstract

Organizational knowledge varies from explicit possessions to more tacit and sticky actions. As such, we argue that the entwined nature of tacit and explicit knowledge, the embodied and activity-based dimension of knowledge, as well as the characteristic of knowledge as possession, fit within an agential realist concept of phenomena, entanglement and -˜cuts’. We first validate the framework across a qualitative case study within an aerospace manufacturing context. Our findings also provide insights on the nature/dynamics of novice to expert level knowledge. The implications on knowledge management are briefly discussed.