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Managing knowledge for business performance improvement
Edited by Giovanni Schiuma
1. Introduction
Studies on knowledge management have addressed knowledge codification as a strategy able to increase the efficiency in knowledge management at the organizational level and to support knowledge transfer across individuals and firms. On the contrary, personalization strategy is more useful where sticky knowledge is involved and interaction becomes the easiest process for knowledge exchange ([8] Brown and Duguid, 2000).
The trade-off between codification and personalization is particularly interesting to explore when services are concerned. Studies on services highlighted the opportunities of standardization of service provision to overcome the limits of low productivity ([3] Baumol and Bowen, 1966). Through standardized services firms can increase their efficiency based on codified processes that lead to codified outputs. The discourse of service standardization is justified by the fact that services have been usually described by high levels of customization, where interaction between provider and its customer is fundamental for service provision and, above all, for service innovation ([16] Gadrey and Gallouj, 1998). Hence, codification may appear to be a negative strategy that reduces the capability of the service provider to face customers' demand and to innovate through interaction.
This issue is even more interesting to explore when considering knowledge-intensive business services (KIBS). In fact, the value of KIBS firms lies in their capacity to offer tailored services to face their client's needs concerning access to technical, commercial, or scientific knowledge ([25] Muller and Doloreux, 2009). According to the literature, it is in the nature of KIBS firms to differentiate their offering to suit their client's requirements ([14] Den Hertog, 2000). Literature on KIBS has stressed the opportunities to create new knowledge and to transfer it from KIBS to customers specifically due to interactive mechanisms.
However, bespoke service provision can reduce the chances to exploit codification related to standardization for efficiency achievement. Scholars have in fact stressed the advantages of service standardization and specifically of KIBS ([31] Tether et al. , 2001). Through standardization, the service provider can increase productivity and adopt an industrial model of production similar to manufacturing firms, oriented to offer standard services for mass markets. From a knowledge management point-of-view, the service provider can invest towards codification to exploit the advantages of high...