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This case study focuses upon research surrounding knowledge management (KM) practice and implementation (organisational change). The case study utilises research and impact from the Systems Thinking and Organisational Change Research Group (SYTOC), which existed in Derby Business School between 2007 and 2012.
Impact included enhanced business process and practice for many organisations through the significant dissemination of the research. The core group of SYTOC includes Longbottom, Dexter, Marshall and Seddon, visiting professor and a leading authority on change in the public sector.
Loughborough University research into the threats and opportunities presented by the growth of shared service centres has directly influenced the strategies and practices of a wide range of organisations confronted by changes in the provision of business support services. It has influenced the educational policy of the world's largest professional body of its kind, the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, which has acknowledged the work as "an exemplar" that has had a "profound effect" on the industry. Through a pioneering forum for sharing business knowledge, it has also helped to shape the working methods of global companies, including Rolls-Royce, national organisations, including the Post Office, and numerous SMEs and new firms.
Eden Farm Ltd (a medium-sized company that produces frozen foods in the north east of England) approached Durham University Business School (DUBS) to work together from 2005. The impact of this collaboration was that DUBS research provided the company with (i) a changed approach to the management of resources, resulting in improved service delivery; (ii) the development of new and improved work processes; (iii) improved effectiveness in workplace practices; and (iv) better access to financial opportunities. Indeed, turnover and profitability increased well ahead of the sector average between 2008 and 2012 — growth that the company attribute to improvements from the application of DUBS research.
According to the International Co-operative Alliance (ICA), co-ops provide 100 million jobs globally, and there are 6000 in the UK with an annual turnover of £37 bn. Research into what constituted the distinctive features of co-operative management practice within membership based co-operative and mutual businesses helped to establish a changed development agenda for the international co-operative movements. This work supported the International Co-operative Alliance Statement of Co-operative identity and demonstrated that co-operatives should be recognised as different from other forms of small business. Dr Peter Davis's work in the Unit for Membership Based Organisations at Leicester's School of Management led to policy and educational initiatives that have been globally adopted, cited and emulated.
The development and practice of strategic human resource management at two multinational enterprises has been transformed by University of Glasgow research on employer branding, corporate reputation management and employee engagement, impacting on more than 94,000 employees across 90 countries.
Development of the UK construction industry was hampered by a focus on individual projects, with two drawbacks: limited transfer of lessons learned from one project to the next, and limited focus on systemic innovation and wider commercial opportunities.
Drawing on their research, our Innovation and Entrepreneurship Group helped construction companies — including Laing O'Rourke (LOR), Arup, and Mace — overcome these obstacles by adopting a `systems integration' model to capture and utilise lessons learned, and by developing Executive Education programmes to make project engineers aware of wider commercial and innovation issues. These improvements enhanced delivery of major projects such as the Olympic Park and Crossrail.
The Group changed firm behaviour, re-orientated project management practices, and translated lessons learned into organisational capabilities at LOR, Arup, and Mace.
Beneficiaries were the UK construction and consulting engineering sector, who as a result were better equipped to innovate and compete globally, and their clients, such as the UK Olympic Delivery Authority and Crossrail.
UWE research has informed the implementation of HR policy to support front-line managers more effectively in their role as people managers in diverse organisations (e.g. Selfridges, the Royal United Hospital, Bath, and the MOD). This research has provided empirical evidence that front-line managers (such as team leaders) are critical to organisational effectiveness and makes recommendations on the supportive conditions necessary to improve their behaviour in people management. It has also directly influenced the policies and learning materials of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, as well as advisory materials produced by ACAS, and a variety of public policy documents that have informed organisations' HR practice in supporting and developing front-line managers.
Dr Alan Dixon's research, undertaken in East and Southern Africa, has examined how local people develop wetland management knowledge, and how local institutional arrangements facilitate wetland management that balances livelihood needs with the maintenance of ecosystem services. In Ethiopia, research findings have been applied by the Ethio-Wetlands and Natural Resources Association, enhancing the livelihoods of 2000+ households. In Malawi and Zambia, the `Striking a Balance' project implemented wetland-catchment management initiatives with 300+ households, alleviating poverty amongst local communities. On-going research and field implementation activities continue to inform the wetland-livelihoods policy-making agenda of governments and local and international NGOs.
Multi-disciplinary research in strategic management and marketing at Northumbria University's Newcastle Business School has helped Renown Engineering Group (RE) to reposition itself from a "product manufacturer" to a "knowledge based high margin service provider". The direct impact of the university/RE partnership is a significant £4 million increase in sales; a 30% increase in sales margins and a significant increase in profits. Applying insights from the same body of research the Business School has also assisted NE-based companies TASS and Modrec (through different KTPs) to implement successful business and brand development as well as product and market diversification strategies and helped Sunderland City Council (SCC) develop their branding tools and values.
This interdisciplinary research work in the areas of Knowledge Management (KM), e-Business, enterprise systems, Customer Relationship Management (CRM), and Supply Chain Management resulted in socio economic impact through improved organisational performance in 90 companies in the North West, resulting in process improvements, enhanced productivity, marketability, increased revenues, employment, reduced costs, enhanced knowledge capital, profitability, and sustainability. This positive regional impact included an ERDF funded project (£1.4m), 5 KTPs (£500,000), an ESRC project, and other bespoke collaborative company projects. This research work in collaboration with industry encompassed a knowledge sharing regional network that included BAE Systems, Daimler, Northwest Aerospace Alliance, APPH Group — BBA Aviation, Hyquip Limited, Alliance Learning Limited, Darts Corner Limited etc.