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1. Introduction
Cross-functional project teams are composed of individuals drawn from various functional units who possess specialized knowledge and skills relevant to the completion of projects ([11] Clark and Wheelwright, 1992; [24] Holland et al. , 2000; [57] Witt et al. , 2001).
Prior studies emphasize that the potential value of cross-functional teams will be realized if their members utilize their expertise and knowledge in conjunction with the knowledge and expertise of other members ([25] Hong, 2008; [43] Love and Roper, 2009). Knowledge sharing provides individuals with a better understanding of the know-how and skills of others, and makes them capable of responding to situational demands even though the complexity of the task is beyond the cognitive capabilities of each member ([53] Szulanski, 2000).
Nonetheless, achieving effective knowledge sharing in cross-functional project teams is proved to be problematic ([50] Sethi et al. , 2001). For example, broad organizational perspectives and social identities in cross-functional contexts exacerbate challenges in achieving effective knowledge sharing. The extant literature states that cross-functional team members could be identified more strongly with their functional unit, both socially and psychologically, than with their cross-functional group ([48] Pinto et al. , 1993; [32] Keller, 2001; [49] Randel and Jaussi, 2003). Allegiance to functional units often lead to the implications of treating knowledge as a private good, rather than the public good of the group ([56] Wasko and Faraj, 2000). This along with different functional objectives, priorities, and agendas that could be in conflict, make team members from different functional areas unable to exploit their diverse knowledge and expertise ([45] McDonough, 2000; [49] Randel and Jaussi, 2003).
This study is undertaken to provide researchers and practitioners with a model that can be used to explain the forces behind effective knowledge sharing behaviors in cross-functional projects. More specifically, this study draws upon the two inherent aspects of knowledge sharing (cooperative and competitive aspects), and it proposes a theoretical model that predicts effective knowledge sharing in cross-functional project teams. The proposed model postulates multi-dimensional cross-functional cooperation and competition as the two underlying forces that drive effective knowledge sharing behaviors. The model is tested using structural equation modeling (SEM) and the survey data collected from 115 IT project managers.
2. The notion of coopetitive knowledge sharing
The...