INFLUENCE OF KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT ON COMPETITIVE …
Transcript of INFLUENCE OF KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT ON COMPETITIVE …
INFLUENCE OF KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT ON COMPETITIVE
ADVANTAGE IN AMONG LAW FIRMS IN NAIROBI
BY
ELIAS KIBATHI MURIMI
A RESEARCH PROJECT SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT FOR
THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF THE MASTER OF BUSINESS
ADMINISTRATION DEGREE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS, UNIVERSITY OF
NAIROBI
OCTOBER, 2018
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DECLARATION
This research project is my original work and has not been presented for award of any
degree in any University for examination purposes.
Signature ___________________ Date: ________________
KIBATHI ELIAS MURIMI
REG. NO: D61/84173/2015
This research project has been submitted with my approval as the University Supervisor.
Signature………………………………… Date………………………………….
DR. REGINA KITIABI
Lecturer, School of Business, University of Nairobi
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
DECLARATION............................................................................................................... ii
TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................................................ iii
LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................................... vi
LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................ vii
ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONMYS ...................................................................... viii
ABSTRACT ...................................................................................................................... ix
CHAPTER ONE ............................................................................................................... 1
INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................. 1
1.1 Background Of The Study......................................................................................... 1
1.1.1 The Concept Knowledge Management .............................................................. 3
1.1.2 Competitive Advantage ...................................................................................... 4
1.1.3 Influence Of Knowledge Management On Competitive Advantage.................. 5
1.2 Research Problem ...................................................................................................... 6
1.3 Objective Of The Study............................................................................................. 8
1.4 Value Of The Study................................................................................................... 9
CHAPTER TWO ............................................................................................................ 10
LITERATURE REVIEW .............................................................................................. 10
2.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................. 10
2.2 Theoretical Review ................................................................................................. 10
2.2.1 Resource-Based View Of The Firm ................................................................. 10
2.2.2 Knowledge-Based View Of The Firm .............................................................. 12
2.3 Knowledge Management In Organizations ............................................................. 14
2.4 Competitive Advantage ........................................................................................... 17
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2.5 Knowledge Management And Competitive Advantage.......................................... 18
2.6 Empirical Research Gaps ........................................................................................ 20
2.7 Research Gap........................................................................................................... 24
CHAPTER THREE ........................................................................................................ 26
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY .................................................................................. 26
3.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................. 26
3.2 Research Design ...................................................................................................... 26
3.3 Target Population .................................................................................................... 27
3.4 Sampling Procedures ............................................................................................... 27
3.5 Data Collection ........................................................................................................ 27
3.6 Data Analysis And Presentation .............................................................................. 28
CHAPTER FOUR ........................................................................................................... 30
RESEARCH FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION ............................................................. 30
4.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................... 30
4.1.1 Response Rate................................................................................................... 30
4.2 Background Of The Respondents ........................................................................... 31
4.2.1 Designation Of The Respondents ..................................................................... 31
4.2.2 Respondents Level Of Academic Qualification ............................................... 31
4.2.3 Respondents Working Period ........................................................................... 32
4.2.4 Period The Law Firm Has Been In Operation .................................................. 33
4.3 Knowledge Management......................................................................................... 33
4.3.1 Extent To Which Knowledge Sharing Has Been Adopted In Law Firm ......... 33
4.3.2 Extent To Which Law Firm Adopt The Knowledge Management .................. 35
4.3.3 Ways Through Which Law Firm Has Influenced Knowledge Management ... 37
4.4 Knowledge Management And Achieving Competitive Advantage ........................ 38
4.4.1 Knowledge Application Influence Achieving Of Competitive Advantage ...... 38
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4.4.2 Extent of Achiving Competitive Advantage ................................................... 40
4.4.3 Ways That Knowledge Management Influence Competitive Advantage ........ 44
4.4.4 Correlation Analysis ....................................................................................... 44
4.5 Regression Analysis ................................................................................................ 45
CHAPTER FIVE ............................................................................................................ 48
SUMMARY OF THE FINDINGS, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
........................................................................................................................................... 48
5.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................. 48
5.2 Summary ................................................................................................................. 48
5.3 Conclusion ............................................................................................................... 51
5.4 Recommendation ..................................................................................................... 52
5.5 Limitations .............................................................................................................. 53
5.6 Recommendation for further studies ....................................................................... 54
REFERENCES ................................................................................................................ 55
APPENDICES ................................................................................................................. 59
Appendix 1: Introduction letter ................................................................................. 59
Appendix II: Questionnaire ....................................................................................... 60
Appendix III: Knowledge Gaps .................................................................................... 64
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LIST OF TABLES
Table 4.1: Response rate .................................................................................................. 30
Table 4. 2: Respondents Working Period ......................................................................... 32
Table 4. 3: Period the law firm has been in operation ...................................................... 33
Table 4. 4: Extent to which knowledge sharing has been adopted in law firm ................ 33
Table 4. 5: Extent to which law firm adopt the knowledge management ......................... 35
Table 4.6: Extentof Knowledge Application and Achieving of Competitive Advantage 38
Table 4. 7: Extent to which with the given influence competitive advantage .................. 40
Table 4. 8: Correlation between Knowledge Management and Competitive Advantage . 45
Table 4. 9: Regression Model Summary........................................................................... 45
Table 4. 10: Goodness of Fit ............................................................................................. 46
Table 4. 11: Beta Regression Coefficients ........................................................................ 46
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LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 4. 1: Respondents Level of Academic Qualification ............................................. 31
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ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONMYS
HR - Human resources
KBV -Knowledge-Based View
KM - Knowledge Management
RBV - Resource Base View
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ABSTRACT
Companiesarepersistentlystrivingtocreatemechanismsfordifferentiatingthemselvesfromthe
ircompetitorswithingivenmarkets.Byrealizingthemajorvalueofintellectualresources,lawco
mpanieshavebeguntomanagerationallyandimprovethemtopromotingcontinuouslearning.T
hisemphasizeontheimportanceofknowledgemanagementasaconceptoforganizationalknowl
edge,aimedateffectiveapplicationofknowledgetomakequalitydecisions.Thestudyfindingsre
vealedthatknowledgemanagementhadimprovedcompetitivenessofemployeesontheirdutiesi
ntheaviationtraininginstitutesandimproveemployeeproductivity.Thisstudysoughttofillthee
xistingknowledgegapbyestablishingtheextenttowhichknowledgemanagementactasastrateg
ictoolforachievingcompetitiveadvantageinlawfirmsinNairobiCounty.Theobjectiveofthestu
dywastodetermineinfluenceofknowledgemanagementoncompetitiveadvantageinlawfirmsi
n,NairobiCounty,Kenya.Thedesignofthisresearchwasdescriptivecrosssectionalsurveyresea
rch.Thetargetpopulationofthestudywas356lawfirmoperatinginNairobiCounty,Kenya.Thest
udyadoptedsimplerandomsamplingtechniquetoselectasampleof20%outofpopulation.Thesa
mplesizewas71LawfirmsinNairobiCounty.Thisresearchusedprimarydata.Thestudyusedqu
estionnaireasaninstrumenttocollectdata.Dataanalysiswasdoneusingdescriptivestatisticswh
erequantitativedatawasanalyzedusingmeansandstandarddeviation.Datawaspresentedusing
frequencytables.Contentanalysiswasusedforqualitativedata.Inferentialanalysiswascarriedo
ut.Thestudyconcludesthatthatknowledgemanagementisadisciplineinanorganizationwhich
whenadoptedplaysanimportantsupportingfunctionbyprovidingacoordinatingmechanismto
enhanceconversionofresourcesintocapabilities.Thestudyconcludesthatadoptionofknowled
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gesharingenablethefirmstohavethecapabilitytogeneratenewknowledgewithintheorganizati
onenhancingthecompetitiveadvantage.Creatingrelationshipsandallianceswithdifferentpart
nerspositivelyinfluenceorganization’sabilitytoacquireknowledge..Therecommendationsfo
rthestudyincludethatlawfirmstofullydevelop,shareandapplyknowledgewithintheorganizati
ontogainandsustainacompetitiveadvantage.Abilitytodistributeandshareknowledgeiscritical
fortheuseandleverageofknowledgeresourceswhichareconsideredimportantresourcestomost
organizations.
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CHAPTERONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1BackgroundoftheStudy
Organizationsoperateinanenvironmentcharacterizedbyuncertainty,instabilityandchangetha
tcreatevariouschallenges.Suchenvironmentincludesmanyfactorsasincreasedglobalization,r
apidtechnologicalchange,andthegrowingneedforqualifiedemployeesandimprovedperform
ance(VanhalaandStavrou,2013).Thisforcesorganizationstotryandexploittheresourcesatitsd
isposalinordertoachieveacompetitiveadvantage.Furthermore,giventhatthetwenty-
firstcenturyislabeledasthecenturyofknowledge,itisclearthatsuccessfulorganizationsarethos
ethatareabletoimproveanddeveloptheirknowledge.Knowledgemanagement(KM)isaboutde
veloping,sharingandapplyingknowledgewithintheorganizationtogainandsustainacompetiti
veadvantage(Janszen2000).AccordingtoSouthon,ToddandSeneque(2002),alawfirmaccessi
bilitytocompetenthumanresourceandthereforethebestknowledgeintheirchosenfieldsprovid
eoutstandingclientservicesuchasclearandtimelybilling,anabilitytorespondtotheunexpected,
andanabilitytocreateinnovativesolutions.
InthesettingofmodernbusinessBarney(2001),companiesarepersistentlystrivingtocreatemec
hanismsfordifferentiatingthemselvesfromtheircompetitorswithingivenmarkets.Themanage
mentofinformationasakeytograspingandretainingcompetitiveadvantagehasrecentlyevolved
intothemorestrategicallyfocusedmanagementofknowledge(Spender,GroenandJeroen,2010
).Thisisinformedbyresourcebasedviewandlearningtheories.Theresourcebasedviewtheorye
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mphasizestheorganizationalneedforsuperiorcoordinationandintegrationoflearningbyemplo
yeesinsidetheorganizationandarguesthatheterogeneousknowledgebasesandcapabilitiesamo
ngfirmsarethemaindeterminantsofsustainedcompetitiveadvantageandsuperiorcorporateper
formance.Thelegalfirmconsistsofacommunityofindividualswhocreateandtransferknowled
gequicklyandefficiently.AsHunter,BeaumontandLee(2002),notesalawfirmisgenerallycom
posedoflawyers,paralegals,managers,supportpersonnelandadministrators.Thesediverseocc
upationshavedistinctfunctions,thatworktogethertoachievethedesiredoutcomeofprovidingq
ualitylegalservicesandaddingvaluetothefirm.Itisalsoimportanttonotethat,dependingonthesi
zeofthelawfirm,itsorganizationalstructuremayvarysignificantly.AccordingtoHunter,Beau
montandLee(2002),lawfirmhasauniquesetofdistinctcharacteristicsandoperatingprocedures
thatcanplayanimportantroleinthecreationandimplementationofaKMstrategy.Byrealizingth
emajorvalueofintellectualresources,lawcompanieshavebeguntomanagerationallyandimpro
vethemtopromotingcontinuouslearning.Thisemphasizeontheimportanceofknowledgemana
gementasaconceptoforganizationalknowledge,aimedateffectiveapplicationofknowledgeto
makequalitydecisions.
Humanresourceshaveacentralroleandthefirstplaceknowledgeinformation,contributetothec
ompanyasarevenuecontributionofproductsandservices,preserveandincreasethereputation,t
hroughthereductionofoperatingcostsandgainingcompetitiveadvantage.Thesuccessoforgani
zationslargelydependsoncontinualinvestmentinlearningandacquiringnewknowledgethatcr
eatesnewbusinessesandimproveexistingperformances.ThelegalindustryinKenyaforinstanc
econtinuestobeverycompetitive,assuchforalegalfirmtosurviveithastohaveawelllaidoutstrat
egytogiveitdirectionandpurposeinitsoperations.Allthesecoupledtogetherposeaverybigchall
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engeforthelegalpractitionerinKenya.Ontheothersidehowever,thelegalprofessioncontinuest
ooffertremendousopportunities,whereifwellusedcanharnessforsuccess.
1.1.1TheConceptKnowledgeManagement
Knowledgemanagementcanbedefinedastheprocessoftransforminginformationandintellectu
alassetsintoenduringvalue.Itconnectspeoplewiththeknowledgethattheyneedtotakeaction.B
yapplyingknowledgemanagementintoorganization,itcanintegrate,identify,manageandshar
eallofthedepartment’sinformationassets.AccordingtoDarroch(2005),knowledgemanageme
nthasemergedasanewdisciplineinanorganization,anditplaysanimportantsupportingfunction
byprovidingacoordinatingmechanismtoenhanceconversionofresourcesintocapabilities.Mal
hotra(2005)arguedthatknowledgemanagementisafunctionofthegenerationanddisseminatio
nofinformation,developingasharedunderstandingoftheinformation,filteringsharedundersta
ndingsintodegreesofpotentialvalue,andstoringvaluableknowledgewithintheconfinesofanac
cessibleorganizationalmechanism.
Knowledgemanagementsystemsmustconnectpeopletoenablethemtothinktogetherandtotake
timetoarticulateandshareinformationandinsightstheyknowareusefultoothersintheircommu
nity(Lang2001).Theroleofknowledgemanagementandtheprocessformanagingithasbecome
vitalforthesurvivaloftheorganization.Althoughanevolvingparadigminmanagement(Gourla
y,2001),knowledgemanagementcontinuestoserveasastrategicbusinessfunctionintheorganiz
ationandhasanimpactonhumancapital,teamwork,andoverallorganizationalperformanceand
effectiveness(CavusgilandHult2005).Knowledgemanagementinthelawfirmcontextinvolve
safirm’sabilitytoidentify,capture,andleveragetheinternalknowledgeofindividualsatthefirm
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andtocombinethisknowledgewithknowledgederivedfromvendorsandotherexternalsourcest
oenhancetheabilityofalllawfirmstafftocreateandshareknowledgeacrossthefirm,toprovideex
cellentclientservice,andtocompeteinanincreasinglyaggressiveprofessionallegalservicesenv
ironment(Todd,etal.,2003).
1.1.2Competitiveadvantage
Acompanyhasacompetitiveadvantagewheneverithasanedgeoveritsrivalsinsecuringcustome
randdefendingagainstcompetitiveforces(Thompson&Strickland,2002).Sustainablecompeti
tiveadvantageisbornoutofcorecompetenciesthatyieldthelongtermbenefittothecompany.Co
mpetitiveadvantageisalsodefinedasthestrategicadvantageonebusinessentityhasoveritsrival
entitieswithinitscompetitiveindustry.Achievingcompetitiveadvantagestrengthensandpositi
onsabusinessbetterwithinthebusinessenvironment.
AccordingtoVinson,andMcVandon(2008),competitiveadvantagecanbedevelopedfromapar
ticularresourcesandcapabilitiesthatthefirmpossessesthatarenotavailabletocompetitors.Thet
ransformationofavailableskillsandresourcesintoastrategicpositioncanonlytakeplaceunderc
onditionsthatprovideacustomerbenefit,andnormallyrequiresthetransformationofmultipleco
mpetitivemethods.Theabilitytoimplantacostleadership,differentiation,orfocusstrategyisde
pendentonafirm’sabilitytodevelopaspecificsetofcompetitivemethods.Thisbecomesthebasis
fortheachievementofthefirmtobeabletoperformaboveaverageindustryperformance(Ingo,20
07).
Competitiveadvantageoccurswhenanorganizationacquiresordevelopsanattributeorcombina
tionofattributesthatallowsittooutperformitscompetitors.Performanceisoneofthemostcritical
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areasoflawfirmmanagement,whichmanymanagementscholarsandpractitionershavefocused
onimprovingviastrategicvariablessuchasKMpractices(Tiyan,2013).Paststudieshaveconcep
tualizedfirms’competitivenesswithoutperformingrivalinthemarketonreturnonassets,salesgr
owth,newproductsuccess,marketshareandsalesgrowth,andoverallcustomersatisfaction.Info
rmationtransferhasbecomesuchaprominentpartofthemodernbusinessworldthatitcanalsocon
tributetocompetitiveadvantagebyoutperformingcompetitorsinthemarket(Porter,1997b).
1.1.3InfluenceofKnowledgemanagementonCompetitiveadvantage
Organizationscanacquirenewknowledgeusingseveralmethodssuchasthroughcongenitallear
ningwhichreferstoinheritedknowledgefromthefoundersofafirm,experientiallearningwhichi
sknowledgeacquiredfromexperienceandvicariouslearningwhichisknowledgeacquiredfrom
otherindividualsandbusinesseswhereKhandelwalandGottschalk,(2003)notedthatcreatingre
lationshipsandallianceswithdifferentpartnerscanpositivelyinfluenceanorganization’sability
toacquireknowledge.Althoughacquiringusefulknowledgeisanimportantprocessofknowled
gecreation,manyconsiderthattherealcompetitiveadvantagecomesfromthecapabilityofanorg
anizationtogeneratenewknowledgewithintheorganization.Inthiscontext,thekeysuccessfact
orhasbeenshiftedfrominformationprocessingtoknowledgecreationandcontinuousinnovatio
n(Malhotra,2000).Knowledgecreationisnotasystematicprocessthatcanbetightlyplannedand
controlled.ItcanevenbeconsideredastheleastsystematicprocessofKM.Theprocessiscontinuo
uslyevolvingandemergentandmotivation,inspirationandpurechangeplayanimportantrole.
OrganizationsandHRprofessionalscontinuouslyfocusingtheireffortsonattractingthebestem
ployeeswhopossessanabundanceofknowledgeandskillinordertoenhancetheoverallvalueoft
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hecompany.Companiestheninvestlargeamountsofcapitaltofurtherincreaseemployees’know
ledge,viatrainingandcontinuouseducationprograms.ModernKnowledgemanagementpracti
ceemphasizesthecreationofnewknowledgeandthetimelyapplicationoforganizationalknowle
dgetomaintainstrategicadvantage(Grant,1991).
Theperformanceofalegalfirmdependsontheextenttowhichtheuseofknowledgemanagementi
sputinplaceinordertomeettheinformationandknowledgeneeds.Knowledgemanagementther
eforefocusesuponlongrangeobjectivesandshort-
termpriorities.KMcanplayanimportantroleinachievingtheseobjectivesbecauseithasthepote
ntialtoincreaseefficiencyandeffectivenesswithinthefirm.Inthefastchangingbusinessenviron
ment,knowledgehasbecomethemainstayofeveryorganizationincreatingandsustainingcomp
etitivedifferentiationandadvantage(Geiger,&Schreyogg,2012).Atthesametime,theemergin
gknowledge-basedeconomyencouragesindividualstobemoreself-
seekingintheircareerobjectivesandaspirationsachievebreakthroughinbusinessperformancet
hroughthesynergyofpeople,processes,andtechnologytoserveasthesourceandstockofknowle
dgeandtheflowofknowledge,knowledgecreation,sharingandapplicationtocreateandorsustai
norganizationalvalueandcompetitiveadvantage(Wemby,2010).
1.2ResearchProblem
Serviceenterprisesindevelopingcountriesparticularoperateinenvironmentscharacterizedbyi
ncreasedneedforknowledgetocreateandsustaincompetitiveadvantage.Therehasbeenincreas
einrivalryinthelegalindustryoverrecentyears(Jashapara,2011).Theintensiverivalryandthrea
tofnewentrantsintothemarketisincreasing,thussustaininggrowthandmarketleadershipisincr
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easinglychallenging.Inorderforlawfirmtosucceedinhighlydynamicbusinessenvironment,iti
scriticalthattheyembraceKnowledgemanagementintheirbusinessoperations.Thechangingc
ustomersneedhasforceddifferentcompaniestoadoptvariouscompetitivestrategies.Ingo(2007
)indicatedthatknowledgemanagementinalargeCanadianlawfirmthathadinvestedsignificantl
yinknowledgemanagementstrategy,technologies,andprocesses.SinceKMinvolvesvaluable
processeswhichcaninfluencetheproductivity,financialperformance,staffperformance,innov
ation,workrelationshipsandcustomersatisfactionandfinallyorganizationalperformance,stud
yingtheinfluenceofKMoncompetitiveadvantageinlegalfirmsiscritical
LawfirmsinKenyaareoperatinginacompetitiveenvironment.Lawfirmsarefacinghighcompet
itionfromlocalandinternationallegalfirms,goingglobalaswellastheconsolidationoflawfirms.
Thelegalfirmsfacesmorepressuretoachieveandmaintainacompetitiveadvantage.Thishasledt
ofirmsadoptingstrategiessuchasofferingdifferentproactivevalueaddedservicestoitsclientsan
dembracingcontinuouslearningoflawyerstoprovidequalityservicestoclients(Kiprono,2013)
.Inabidtogainmorecustomersandimproveontheirproductivity,lawfirmsaresharinginformati
on,investingonknowledgeandtalentmanagementremainmoreefficient,responsiveandeffecti
veandprovisionofproactivecost-
effectiveservicestogaincompetitiveadvantage(Mugambi&Kwasira,2015).Legalpractitione
rshavecurrentlyembarkedonspecializationleadingtolawfirmdifferentiatingitslegalservicess
uchasfocusingonconstitutionallaw,electionslaw,internationallaw,environmentallaw,minin
glaw,companylaw,intellectualpropertylaw,procurementlawratherthanfocusingongeneralpr
actitioners.DespitelawfirmsinKenyaadoptingknowledgemanagement,theextenttowhichitin
fluencesachievingofcompetitiveadvantagehasnotbeendetermined.
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PreviouslocalstudieshaveoneffectsofknowledgemanagementonperformanceoffirminKeny
a.ForinstanceNyawade(2005)didastudyonemployeeperceptionofknowledgemanagementpr
acticesusingacasestudyofBATKenyaandestablishedthatemployeesperceivedknowledgema
nagementpracticestoberestrictiveandprohibitiveofemployeecreativityandinnovation.Muga
mbiandKwasira(2015)carriedoutastudyoninfluenceofknowledgemanagementpracticesonp
erformanceofLawFirmsinNakuruTown.Thestudyestablishedthatknowledgesharing,acquis
ition;sharingandimplementationpracticesinfluencedperformanceoflegalfirms.Afurtherstud
ybyTiyan(2013)carriedastudytodeterminetheextentofapplicationofknowledgemanagement
asacompetitivestrategyamongAviationTrainingInstitutionsinNairobi.Thestudyfindingsrev
ealedthatknowledgemanagementhadimprovedcompetitivenessofemployeesontheirdutiesin
theaviationtraininginstitutesandimproveemployeeproductivity.Thisstudysoughttofilltheexi
stingknowledgegapbyestablishingtheextenttowhichknowledgemanagementactasastrategic
toolforachievingcompetitiveadvantageinlawfirmsinNairobiCounty.Thestudysoughttoansw
erthequestiontowhatextentdoesknowledgemanagementinfluencetheachievingofcompetitiv
eadvantageinlawfirminNairobiCounty?
1.3ObjectiveoftheStudy
Theobjectiveofthestudywastodetermineinfluenceofknowledgemanagementoncompetitivea
dvantageinlawfirmsin,NairobiCounty,Kenya.
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1.4ValueoftheStudy
Thefindingsofthestudywillbesignificanttomanagementoflawfirmswhowillgaininsightonthe
extenttowhichknowledgemanagementasastrategictoolinfluenceachievingofcompetitiveadv
antage.Thisstudywilloutlinetheknowledgemanagementstrategiesandextenttowhichitinflue
ncesachievingofcompetitiveadvantage.
Themanagementoflawfirmswillfindtheresultsofthestudyusefulasmanagerswillgainorganiz
ationsingaininganewinsightonknowledgemanagementandtheresultanteffectonlawfirmperf
ormanceandonwhathastobedonetoimprovetheorganizations’bottom-
linebyhavingasatisfiedclientsthoroughcompetitiveadvantage.
Tothepolicymakers,thefindingsprovideinformationontheinfluenceofknowledgemanageme
ntonachievingachievecompetitiveadvantage.Thiswillinfluenceformulationofpoliciesgover
ningoperationoflawfirmsandformulatemeasurethatwouldinfluenceefficientapplicationofkn
owledgemanagementtoenhanceachievingofcompetitiveadvantageamonglawfirmsinKenya.
Thestudywillbesignificanttoresearchersandscholarswhowillgainin-
depthunderstandingontheextentknowledgemanagementascompetitivetoolforachievingcom
petitiveadvantageinlawfirmandthekindsofchallenges,andindeterminationofresponsesandac
hievingqualityjustice,thisisbeingtheresearcher’sfieldofspecialization,interestandexperienc
e.Thestudywillbeimportantinaddingtothebodyofknowledgeinlawindustryandwillbeimport
antforcarryingoutfurtherstudiesintheindustry.
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CHAPTERTWO
LITERATUREREVIEW
2.1Introduction
Thischapterfocusesonreviewingtheavailableliteratureonthevariousaspectsofknowledgema
nagementthatinfluencetheperformanceoffirms.Thereviewdelvesintovarioustheoriesandem
piricalfindingsthatactasafoundationforthisresearchstudy.Thetheoriesandfindingsfrompasts
tudiesrevealthecorevariablesforthestudy.
2.2TheoreticalReview
Thissectionpresentsacriticalreviewofmajortheoreticalargumentsregardingthelinkagesbetw
eentheresearchvariables.
2.2.1Resource-BasedViewoftheFirm
Accordingtotheresource-
basedview(RBV),afirmmaybeperceivedasanaggregationofresourceswhicharetranslatedby
managementintostrengthsandweaknessesofthefirm(Lerner&Almor,2002).RBVholdsthatc
ompaniesgainsustainablecompetitiveadvantagesbydeployingvaluableresourcesandcapabili
tiesthatareinelasticinsupply(Grunert&Hildebrandt,2004).Thisperspectivecontendsthatafir
m’scompetitiveadvantageareduetotheirendowmentofstrategicresourcesthatarevaluable,rar
e,costlytoimitate,andcostlytosubstitute.Itassumesthatorganizationsmustbesuccessfulinobta
iningandmanagingvaluedresourcesinordertobeeffective.Intheresource-
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basedperspective,organizationaleffectivenessisdefinedastheabilityoftheorganizationineith
erabsoluteorrelativeterms,toobtainscarceandvaluedresourcesandsuccessfullyintegrateand
managethem(Dess,Lumkin,Eisner,McNamara&Kim,2012).
TheRBVofthefirmapproachrecognisesthestrategicimportanceofsocialandbehaviouralintera
ctionsintheconceivabilityof,thechoiceandtheimplementationoftheorganization’sstrategies.
TheRBVcombinestwoperspectives;theinternalanalysisofphenomenawithinacompany,anda
nexternalanalysisoftheindustryanditscompetitiveenvironment(Dess,Eisner,McNamara&K
im,2012).Furthermore,firm’sresourcesmustbeevaluatedintermsofhowvaluable,rare,andhar
dtheyareforcompetitorstoduplicate.Otherwise,thefirmattainsonlycompetitiveparity.Thesei
ntangibleresourcesarefrequentlyfoundintheorganizationintheformoftacitknowledge(Makhi
ja,2003).
Resourcesarefinancial,physical,social,orhuman,technological,andorganizationalfactorstha
tallowacompanytocreatevalueforitscustomers.Companyresourcesareeithertangibleorintan
gible(Jones&Hill,2009).Intangibleresourcesarenon-
physicalentitiesthatarethecreationofmanagersandotheremployees,suchasbrandnames,there
putationofthecompany,theknowledgethatemployeeshavegainedthroughexperience,andthei
ntellectualpropertyofthecompany,includingthatwhichisprotectedthroughpatents,copyright
s,andtrademarks.Tangibleresourcesarephysicalandincludeland,buildings,plant,equipment,i
nventory,andmoney.Mathews(2003)viewsresourcesaseithertangibleorintangible.Physicalr
esourcesmayoriginatereturnsaboveaveragelevels,butaretheintangibleresources,developedt
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hroughauniquehistoricalsequenceandhavingasociallycomplexdimension,thatareabletocrea
teandsustaincompetitiveadvantageofthefirm(Makhija,2003).
RBVassumesresourceheterogeneitybetweencompetingfirms,andfurthercontendsthattheser
esourcesarenotmobile,whichmakeslongterm,sustainablecompetitiveadvantagepossiblebas
edoninternalconfigurationofstrategicallyrelevantresources(Grunert&Hildebrandt,2004).T
hemorefirm-
specificanddifficulttoimitatearesource,themorelikelyacompanyistohaveadistinctivecompet
ence.Adistinctivecompetenceisauniquefirm-
specificstrengththatenablesacompanytobetterdifferentiateitsproductsand/orachievesubstan
tiallylowercoststhanitsrivalsandthusgainacompetitiveadvantage.Aresourcethatleadstodisti
nctivecompetencesisinimitable,valuable,unique,andnon-
substitutable(Jones&Hill,2009).Acompanymayhavefirm-
specificandvaluableresources,butunlessithasthecapabilitiestousethoseresourceseffectively,
itmaynotbeabletocreateadistinctivecompetence(Jones&Hill,2009).
2.2.2Knowledge-BasedviewoftheFirm
Theknowledge-
basedviewconsidersafirmtobeadistributedknowledgesystemcomposedofknowledge-
holdingemployees,andthisviewholdsthatthefirm'sroleistocoordinatetheworkofthoseemplo
yeessothattheycancreateknowledgeandvalueforthefirm.Barneyassertedobservedthatknowl
edgeandcapabilities-basedviews(KBV)instrategyhavelargelyextendedresource-
basedreasoningbysuggestingthatknowledgeistheprimaryresourceunderlyingnewvaluecreat
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ion,heterogeneity,andcompetitiveadvantage(ascitedbyFelin&Hesterly,2007).FelinandHest
erly(2007)contendthatresearchandpracticearerepletewithempiricalandanecdotalevidenceof
theprimacyofindividualsasthelocusofknowledgeandsourceofnewvalue.Anorganizationalca
pability(Tsai,Li,Tsai&Lin,2012)isoftenestablishedbyabundleofrelatedknowledgewhichinc
ludesknowledgeitemsandthelevelofsuchitems.
Knowledge-
basedview(KBV)considersknowledgeasthemostimportantsourceforfirms’competitiveadva
ntage.FelinandHesterly(2007)arguesthatknowledgeisacrucialresourceoffirm’sstrategies,an
dstressestheoriginofcompetitiveadvantageastheintegrationofabundleofknowledgerathertha
nindividualknowledge.Additionally,Knowledgeaidsfirmsinstrategicdevelopmentofproduc
tsandmarketandprovidesanalternativewayofachievingdifferentiationandcompetitiveadvant
age.ViewedfromRBV,theKMprovidestheresourcesthatmakefeasibleinnovationandcontinu
ousimprovementoffirms’KMcapability.Insummary,theRBVillustratesthatfirmscandifferen
tiatethemselvesonthebasisoftheirKMS.Whileeachoftheindividualknowledgeassetsiscompl
extoacquireanddifficulttoimitate,firmsthatachievecompetitiveadvantagethroughKMShave
alsolearnedtocombinetheirknowledgeassetstoeffectivelycreateanoverallKMcapability.Thi
sstudywillattempttolookathowtheknowledge-
basedviewofthefirmcontributedtowardstheachievingcompetitiveadvantageinthelawfirms.
Theknowledge-
basedviewconsidersafirmtobeadistributedknowledgesystemcomposedofknowledge-
holdingemployeesthestudywillthereforelookathowknowledgeassetsleadtocompetitiveadva
ntageandfirmsurvival.
14
2.3KnowledgeManagementinOrganizations
Organizationshaveexperiencedmanychangestothewaystheyoperateasaresultofsuchfactorsa
stheshifttoaknowledgeeconomyandtheincreasedstreamliningofworkactivitiesbecauseoftec
hnologicalinnovations.Furthermore,theshiftinfocusfromproductstoserviceshasencouraged
greaterrecognitionoftheimportanceoftheknowledgeheldwithinanorganization(Spender,201
3).Anyorganizationthatdesirestoattaincompetitiveadvantagehastolearnbetterandfasterfrom
theirsuccessesandfailures(Stankosky,2012).Knowledgeacquisitionasprocessofobtainingne
wknowledgeandinformationcontributetocompetenciesamonglawstaffinlawfirms.Thisnew
knowledgecanbeacquiredfrominternalsourcesorexternalsourcestotheorganization.Howeve
r,regardlessofthesourcethemostimportantdeterminanttothisprocessisthemotivationtofindan
dcreatenewknowledgebyemployees(Kim&Lee,2010).KnowledgeAcquisitionencompassth
eprocessofacquiringandlearningappropriateknowledgefromvariousinternalandexternalreso
urces,suchasexperiences,experts,relevantdocuments,plansandsoforth.Interviewing,ladderi
ng,processmapping,conceptmapping,observing,educatingandtrainingarethemostfamiliarte
chniquesforknowledgeacquisition(Kharabsheh&Aqrabawi,2013).
Organizationscanacquirenewknowledgeusingseveralmethodssuchasthroughcongenitallear
ningwhichreferstoinheritedknowledgefromthefoundersofafirm,experientiallearningwhichi
sknowledgeacquiredfromexperience,andvicariouslearningwhichisknowledgeacquiredfro
motherindividualsandbusinesseswhereSpender(2013)notedthatcreatingrelationshipsandall
ianceswithdifferentpartnerscanpositivelyinfluenceanorganization’sabilitytoacquireknowle
dge.Althoughacquiringusefulknowledgeisanimportantprocessofknowledgecreation,manyc
15
onsiderthattherealcompetitiveadvantagecomesfromthecapabilityofanorganizationtogenera
tenewknowledgewithintheorganization.Inthiscontext,thekeysuccessfactorhasbeenshiftedfr
ominformationprocessingtoknowledgecreationandcontinuousinnovation(Malhotra,2000).
Knowledgecreationisnotasystematicprocessthatcanbetightlyplannedandcontrolled.Itcanev
enbeconsideredastheleastsystematicprocessofKM.
KnowledgemanagementthroughKnowledgestorageinvolvesboththesoftorhardstylerecordi
ngandretentionofbothindividualandorganizationalknowledgeinawaysoastobeeasilyretrieve
d(Gholami,Asli,Nazari-
Shirkouhi&Noruzy,2013).Knowledgestorageutilizestechnicalsystemssuchasmoderninfor
mationalhardwareandsoftwareandhumanprocessestoidentifytheknowledgeinanorganizatio
n,thentocodeandindextheknowledgeforlaterretrieval.AccordingtoWiig(2000),thereisapopu
larmisconceptionisthatKMfocusesonrenderingthatwhichistacitintomoreexplicitortangiblef
orms,thenstoringorarchivingtheseformssomewhere,usuallysomeformofintranetorknowled
geportal.
Seniormanagementisthenmystifiedastowhyemployeesarenotusingthiswonderfulnewresour
ce.Infact,knowledgemanagementisbroaderandincludesleveragingthevalueoftheorganizatio
nalknowledgeandknow-
howthataccumulatesovertime(MugambiandKwasira,2015).Thisapproachisamuchmoreholi
sticanduser-
centeredapproachthatbeginsnotwithanauditofexistingdocumentsbutwithaneedsanalysistob
etterunderstandhowimprovedknowledgestoragemaybenefitspecificindividuals,groups,andt
16
heorganizationasawhole.Successfulknowledgestorageisexemplifiedingatheredanddocume
ntedknowledgeintheformoflessonslearnedandbestpracticesandthesethenformthekernelofor
ganizationalstories(Fombad,2015).
Theabilitytodistributeandshareknowledgeiscriticalfortheuseandleverageofknowledgeresou
rceswhichareconsideredimportantresourcestomostorganizations(Geiger&Schrevogg,2012
).AccordingtoresearcherssuchasInkpenandDinur,(2010)manyfactorsaffecttheprocessofsha
ringknowledgeinanorganizationwhichincludethecultureoftheorganization,theattitudesandv
aluesofindividualstowardsknowledgesharingandthenatureofthetechnologyusedtosharekno
wledge.Indeed,organizationalculturehasbeendefinedasthespecificcollectionofvaluesandno
rmsthataresharedbypeopleandgroupsinanorganizationandthatcontrolthewaytheyinteractwi
theachotherandwithstakeholdersoutsidetheorganization.Further,researchershaveshownthat
twofacetscompriseknowledgedistribution,whichareknowledgedisseminatingwhichrefersto
anindividual’sdesiretoshareknowledge;andknowledgereceivingwhichreferstotherequestin
gofindividualstosharewhattheyknow(DuPlessisandDuToit,2006).
Organizationsseektousearangeofauthoritativesources,includingknowledgeheldbyindividua
landwithinknowledgesystemsmaintainedbytheorganization.Explicitknowledgecanbedocu
mented,categorised,transmittedtoothersasinformation,andillustratedtoothersthroughdemo
nstrations,explanationsandotherformsofsharing.However,tacitknowledgeisdifficulttodupli
cate,replaceorinterpret,asitisgroundedinablendofexperience,researchandinductionwhichm
ayhavebeenrefinedovermanyyears(Spender,2006).Alearningorganizationproactivelycreate
s,acquires,andtransfersknowledge(Mohammad&Shoaib,2015).Newideasareaprerequisitef
17
oralearningorganization;indeedit’sonthebasisofnewknowledgeandinsightsthattheorganizat
ionchangesitsbehaviour.Strategicknowledgemanagementensurescorporatestrategicknowle
dgegrows,learnsandmaturesalongsideitsindividualmembers.
2.4Competitiveadvantage
Thenewparadigmofinternationalcompetitivenessisadynamicone,basedoninnovation.Comp
etitivenessattheindustrylevelarisesfromsuperiorproductivity;eitherintermsoflowercoststha
nrivalsortheabilitytoofferproductswithsuperiorvalue(valueadding)thatjustifiesapremiumpr
ice.Competitiveadvantage,then,restsnotonstaticefficiencyoronoptimizingwithinfixedconst
raints,butonthecapacityforinnovationandimprovementthatshifttheconstraints.’(Porter&van
derLinde,1995b)
AccordingtoPorter(1997),competitiveadvantagedefinestheuniquenessofanorganizationver
sesitscompetitorsandcompetitivestrategyoftheorganizationistheroadmaptowardsgainingco
mpetitiveadvantage.Ithasbeennotedthatknowledgemanagement(KM)strategyisbecomingth
ebasicbuildingblockoforganization.OrganizationsarerealizingthatKMisavaluableinstrume
ntinimprovingperformance.MohammadandShoaib(2015)statedthatmanagersimplementK
Mprogramstogainadvantage,increaseproductivity,andremaincompetitive.Withinthiscontex
t,anorganization’sabilitytoeffectivelyimplementknowledgebasedstrategiesbecomesincreas
inglysignificantforthedevelopmentandsustenanceofacompetitiveadvantage(SmithandRupp
,2003).Afirmcandevelopacompetitiveadvantagethrougheitherbecomingacostleaderorbyusi
ngdifferentiation(Porter1997).Onceanorganizationpossessessuchsourcesandknowshowtotr
ansferthemintoacompetitiveadvantageitcanreasonablyexpecttobesuccessful.Whileacostlea
18
dershipadvantageisgainedbyperformingmostactivitiesatalowercostthancompetitorswhilest
illmanagingtoofferaparityproduct,differentiationadvantageisbuiltbyperformingvalueaddin
gactivitiesthatleadtoperceivedsuperiorityalongdimensionsthatarevaluedbycustomers.Diffe
rentiationadvantagecanfurthertakemanysubforms,amongwhichasuperiorproduct/service,th
etotalityofsupply,speedthatisfastdeliveryofproducts,flexibilityandthepositiveimageofacom
pany(Saini,2013)
Primarilyduetothewaylawyersarecompensated,thereismuchdebateoverwhetherornotcaptur
ingefficienciescanactuallybenefitthefirm.AccordingtoWilkesmannetal.(2009),‘clientloyalt
yisdecreasingascompaniesincreasinglybasepurchasesoflegalservicesonamoreobjectiveasse
ssmentoftheirvalue,definedasbenefitsnetofprice.’Analogoustomanyotherindustries,increas
edcompetitionhasforcedsomelawfirmstocompeteinpricewars.Asaresult,certainservicesarec
urrentlybeingofferedatmuchlowerprices(Agbim,ZeverandOriarewo,2014).Lawfirmsthatca
ptureefficienciesintheirpracticescompeteeffectivelyinthemarket(Kharabsheh&Aqrabawi,2
013).Sourcesofcompetitiveadvantageinlawfirmsincludehighqualityinformation,superiorco
mmunication,andachievinglowercoststhanitsrivalsandmanagementoftacitknowledgefromr
etiring(Porter,1980).
2.5KnowledgeManagementandCompetitiveAdvantage
Knowledgeisthefundamentalbasisofcompetitionand,inparticularly,tacitknowledgecanbeas
ourceofadvantagebecauseitisunique,imperfectlymobile,imperfectlyimitableandnon-
substitutable.However,themereactofprocessingknowledgeitselfdoesnotguaranteestrategica
19
dvantage,instead,knowledgehastobemanaged.LeeandChoi(2003)developamodelthatinclud
essevenKMenablers(bothsocialandtechnical)asbeingpositivelyrelatedtoafirm’sknowledge
creationprocesseswhich,intum,arepositivelyrelatedtothefirm’sinnovationsanditsoverallper
formance.Theresultsindicatedthattrustisanimportantenablerofknowledgecreation,technolo
gyisanenablerofonekindofknowledgecreationprocess,andfirminnovativenessiscriticalforac
hievingbetterrelativeperformance.
InordertofullyrealizetheadvantagesofKMwithintheindustry,itisessentialtounderstandthestr
uctureoflawfirms,thestakeholdersinvolved,andthemotivationbehindthecreationofalawfirm.
AccordingtoTiyan(2013),lawfirmsaresimilartosocialcommunitieswhichspecializeinspeeda
ndefficiencyincreatingandtransferringlegalknowledge.Whenthisstatementisbrokendownin
toseparatecomponentsandexaminedfurther,itexemplifiesthe‘ideal’firm.Theidealfirmconsis
tsofacommunityofindividualswhocreateandtransferknowledgequicklyandefficiently.Unfor
tunately,becauseofthestakeholdersinvolved,thisisnotalwaysthecase.AsKharabshehandAqr
abawi(2013)notes,alawfirmisgenerallycomposedoflawyers,paralegals,managers,supportpe
rsonnelandadministrators.Thesediverseoccupationshavedistinctfunctions,yettheseindividu
alsmustworktogethertoachievethedesiredoutcomeofaddingvaluetothefirm.Itisalsoimportan
ttonotethat,dependingonthesizeofthelawfirm,itsorganizationalstructuremayvarysignificant
ly.However,Hunter(2002)alsostatesthateachlawfirmhasauniquesetofdistinctcharacteristics
andoperatingproceduresthatcanplayanimportantroleinthecreationandimplementationofaK
Mstrategy.
20
EmbracingthepropositionthatafirmneedsstrongKMinordertorealizeacompetitiveadvantage
,LiaoandChuang(2007)focusontheextenttowhichafirm’ssocialandtechnicalKMresourcesar
erelatedtoitsKMprocesscapabilities,thedegreetowhichtheseprocesscapabilitiesarerelatedto
thefirm’sspeedandmagnitudeofinnovation,andtheextenttowhichthesetwoinnovationdimen
sionsarerelatedtofirmcompetitivenessintermsofmarketsharegain,salesgrowth,profitability,
operationalefficiency,andservicequality(Saini,2013).Fombad(2015)assertedthatlawfirmsi
nBotswanaofferaparticularlyinterestingcontexttodetermineeffectsknowledgeacquisitionan
dleveragingknowledgethroughknowledgemanagementleadtocompetitiveadvantage,enhan
cingcosteffectivenessandsystematicharnessingoflegalknowledge.
Moreover,managementofknowledgeiscritical.Kalling(2003)arguesthatthemereactofproces
singknowledgedoesnotguaranteestrategicadvantagerather;knowledgehastobemanagedforl
awfirmstoachievecompetitiveadvantage.AccordingtoKing(2008)havenotedthatthesuccessf
ulimplementationofknowledgemanagementpracticesinlawfirmsmayresultsininnovativenes
ssuitability,enhancelearning,improvequalityoflawservicerender,improvelawfirmstaffcomp
etences,improvelawfirmcustomerservices,ledtocostreductionthrougheliminationofredunda
ncyandboostrevenueforthefirms
2.6EmpiricalResearchGaps
MugambiandKwasira(2015)carriedoutastudyoninfluenceofKnowledgemanagementonperf
ormanceoflegalfirmsinNakuruCounty.Theobjectiveofthestudywastoestablishtheinfluence
ofknowledgemanagementpracticesonlegalfirms.Thestudypopulationwas162registeredlawf
irmsinNakuruCounty.Thestudyadoptedadescriptivesurveyresearchdesignasthestudyhasqu
21
alitativeandquantitativeapproaches.Datacollectionwasdonethroughclose-
endedquestionnairesasimplerandomsamplingtechniquewasusedinselectingthesampledlawf
irms.Acorrelationanalysiswasdonetodeterminestrengthofassociationbetweenknowledgem
anagementpracticesandcompetitiveadvantageinlegalfirmsinNakuruCounty.Thestudyrevea
ledthatknowledgesharing(r=0.664)hadasignificantinfluenceonperformanceoflegalfirmswh
ileknowledgeimplementation(r=0.213)hadtheleastinfluenceonperformanceoflegalfirms.Th
isstudyhoweverfailedtoindicatetheextentknowledgemanagementinfluenceachievementofc
ompetitiveadvantageinlawfirmsinNairobiCounty.
Agbim,ZeverandOriarewo(2014)assessedtherelationshipbetweenknowledgeacquisitionan
dcompetitiveadvantageinhospitalityindustryfocusingonhotelsinBenueState,Nigeria.Thestu
dyadoptedex-post-
factoresearchdesignandmultistagesamplingtechniquetoselectsamplerespondentsfromthese
lectedhostels.Datawascollectedusingquestionnaire.Dataanalysistechniquelinearregression
statisticalmethodwasadoptedtotesttheresearchhypothesis.Itwasrevealedthatknowledgeacq
uisitionhasasignificantinfluenceonachievingcompetitiveadvantageinhotelsinBenueEstate
Nigeria.Thisstudyhoweverfocusedondeterminingeffectsofknowledgemanagementoncomp
etitiveadvantageinhospitalityindustry.Theincreaseintheacquisitionofknowledgehumanreso
urce,theuseofInformationandCommunicationTechnology(ICT)inlegalservicedelivery,andt
heupsurgeinthenumberoflawfirmsinNairobiCountymotivatetheundertakingofthecurrentstu
dyusingdescriptiveresearchsurveymethod.
22
MohammadandShoaib(2015)carriedoutastudyonimpactofknowledgemanagementpractices
,Knowledgeacquisition,knowledgeconversion,knowledgeapplicationandknowledgeprotect
iononorganizationalperformanceinBanksinPakistan.Thestudyadopteddescriptivesurveyres
earchdesign.Datacollectionwasdoneusingaquestionnaire.Thetargetpopulationwas256bank
s.Datawasanalyzedusingcorrelationandregressionanalysistechnique.Theresultsfoundthatk
nowledgeacquisition,knowledgeconversion,knowledgeapplicationandknowledgeprotectio
nledtosignificantprovisionofqualityfinancialservicestocustomers,highcustomersatisfaction
,efficiencyinresourceutilization,moreprofitsandoverallimprovedbanks’performance.Thisst
udyhoweverfocusesonknowledgemanagementinbanksandperformance.Thecurrentstudyw
ouldfocusondeterminingtheinfluenceofknowledgemanagementonachievingcompetitivead
vantageinlawfirmsindevelopingcounties,Kenya.
Gichuki(2014)carriedoutastudytodeterminetheknowledgemanagementpracticesadoptedby
hotelsinthecoastalregion,Kenyainachievingcompetitiveadvantageandthefactorsthatinfluen
ceadoptionofknowledgemanagementforcompetitiveadvantagebyhotels.Thestudyusedades
criptivesurveydesign.Primarydatawascollectedbytheuseofastructuredquestionnairefrom47
respondentsfromalltheselectedhotels.Descriptivestatisticswasusedtodeterminetheextentto
whichknowledgemanagementpracticeshavebeenadopted.Thestudyrevealedthatknowledge
creation,knowledgeacquisition,knowledgefiltering,knowledgestorageandrepresentation,kn
owledgeapplicationandknowledgedistributionandexchangeledtodevelopmentofinnovative
hospitalityproductsandreducehotellossofvaluableknowledgeandgaincompetitivenessinthe
market.Thisstudyhoweverfocusesonknowledgemanagementandextentitachievecompetitiv
eadvantageinhotels.Thecurrentstudywillfocuswhetherknowledgemanagementhasledtoachi
23
evementofcompetitiveadvantageinlegalfirmsduetoincreaseinlawfirmsandcompetitivenessi
nlegalsectorsinKenya.
Gholami,etal,(2013)conductedastudytoinvestigatetheinfluenceofknowledgemanagementp
racticesonorganizationalperformance.Theaimofthisstudywastoinvestigatetheinfluenceofk
nowledgemanagementpracticesonorganizationalperformanceinsmallandmediumenterprise
s(SMEs)usingstructuralequationmodeling.Anumberof282seniormanagersfromtheseenterp
riseswerechosenusingsimplerandomsamplingandthedatawereanalyzedwiththestructuraleq
uationmodel.Theresultsshowedthatknowledgeacquisition,knowledgestorage,knowledgecr
eation,knowledgesharing,andknowledgeimplementationhavesignificantfactorloadingonkn
owledgemanagement.Itfurthershowedthatproductivity,financialperformance,staffperform
ance,innovation,workrelationships,andcustomersatisfactionhavesignificantfactorloadingo
norganizationalperformance.Finally,theresultsofthisstudysuggestedthatknowledgemanage
mentpracticesdirectlyinfluencetheorganizationalperformanceofSMEs.
Saini(2013)carriedoutastudyexaminingimpactofKnowledgeManagementPracticesoncomp
etitivenessofSMEsinIndia.Thestudyadoptedastructuralequationmodelingapproach.Thereh
asbeenatransformationofaneraofinformationscarcitytoinformationsurplus,sothekeyglobalp
ressuresonmanagementareknowledgeidentification,creationanddissemination.Thedevelop
mentofknowledgemanagementrepresentedoneofthemostsignificantmanagementmovement
sinsuchenvironment.Aconceptualmodelwasdevelopedfromthereviewedtheoreticalframew
orklinkingknowledgemanagementpracticesandorganizationalperformance,usingdescriptiv
estatisticsandstructuralequationmodelingtechnique.Thestudyusedprimarydatacollectedfro
24
mthreeSMEsinsoftware,pharmaceuticalandtextilesinNorthIndia.Thestudyrevealedthatkno
wledgemanagementpracticeshaveasignificantinfluenceonorganizationalperformance,com
petitivenessandemployeeretentionratesintheselectedSMEs.
KharabshehandAqrabawi(2013)examinetherelationshipbetweenknowledgemanagementpr
acticesandafirm’sdifferentiationstrategy.Thestudyusedquestionnairesurveyof16pharmace
uticalcompanieswhereatotalof121filledquestionnaireswerecollected.Multipleregressionan
alysiswasusedtoexaminetheimpactofKMPsoncompetitiveadvantageinthesefirms.Thestudy
establishedthatinformationsharingtoshareknowledgehasapositiverelationshipwithafirm’sdi
fferentiationstrategyandachievingcompetitiveadvantageinpharmaceuticalcompanies
Fombad(2015)investigatedinfluenceofadoptionofknowledgemanagementonachievingcom
petitiveedgeinlawfirmsinBotswana.LawfirmsinBotswanaofferaparticularlyinterestingcont
exttodetermineeffectsknowledgeacquisitionandleveragingknowledgethroughknowledgem
anagementleadtocompetitiveadvantagethestudyadoptedbothquantitativeandqualitativerese
archmethodsandthesurveyresearchdesign.Asurveywasperformedonall115registeredlawfir
msand217lawyersinBotswana.Interviewswasusetocollectdata.Theresultsrevealedthatenabl
ingenvironmentadoptionofknowledgemanagementenhancescosteffectivenessandsystemati
charnessingoflegalknowledge.
2.7ResearchGap
Knowledgemanagementinlawfirmsinvolvesanumberoftoolsandservicesformoreeffectively
managing,sharingandusingknowledgeinavarietyofareas.KimandLee,(2010)consideredwhe
therimplementationofacentralizedknowledgemanagementsystemthatemphasizedthecollect
25
ionofattorneyworkproductinacentralrepositoryresultedinlawyerslosingpowerwithintheorg
anizationtoadministrators.Studieshavereportedthatknowledgemanagementpracticesdevelo
pedthedesiredcompetenciesmorequicklythanthefirm’sconventionaltraining.Further,studies
showthatassociationsamonglawfirmsthatengagedinknowledgesharing,lawyers’attitudesab
outtheirpersonalcontributionstoknowledgesharing,andtheuseofinformationtechnologywer
estrongerpredictorsofknowledgesharingthanlawyers’positiveattitudestowardit.Studiessuch
asIngo(2007)opinedthatlargeCanadianlawfirmhadinvestedsignificantlyinknowledgemana
gementstrategy,technologies,andprocessesattainingoninformationculture,influencetheprod
uctivity,financialperformance,staffperformance,innovation,workrelationships,customersat
isfaction,andfinallyorganizationalperformance.However,studiesoninfluenceofKMpractice
sonachievingcompetitiveadvantageinlegalfirmsinKenyaareinadequate.Thismotivatetheun
dertakingofthecurrentstudytodeterminewhetherthereexistasignificantrelationshipbetweenk
nowledgemanagementpracticesandcompetitiveadvantageinlawfirmsinNairobiCounty.
Itisbecomingapparentthatknowledgemanagementandthechangingbusinessenvironmentare
compellinglawfirmstorethinktheirstructures,roles,missionandthemannerinwhichtheycondu
cttheirbusinessineffortstoachievecompetitiveadvantageinthecompetitivelawindustry.Lawf
irmsinKenyahaveadoptedstrategicknowledgemanagement.However,theextenttowhichitsin
fluenceachievingofcompetitiveadvantageremainslessstudied.Thisstudywillfilltheresearchg
apbyansweringthequestion,whatistheinfluenceofknowledgemanagementoncompetitiveadv
antageinlawformsinKenya?
26
CHAPTERTHREE
RESEARCHMETHODOLOGY
3.1Introduction
Thischaptersetsoutvariousstagesandphasesthatwasfollowedincompletingthestudy.Itinvolv
esablueprintforthecollection,measurementandanalysisofdata.Inthissectiontheresearcheride
ntifiestheproceduresandtechniquesthatwasusedinthecollection,processingandanalysisofdat
a.Specificallythefollowingsubsectionsinclude;researchdesign,targetpopulation,sampling,d
atacollectionandfinallydataanalysis.
3.2ResearchDesign
Thedesignofthisresearchwasdescriptivecrosssectionalsurveyresearch.Descriptivesurveyre
searchdesignisconcernedwithfindingoutthewhat,whereandhowofaphenomenon.Theresearc
hdesignandmethodologyentailedcollectingdatausefulinanalysisandcomingupwithrelevantr
ecommendationsandconclusions.Neuman,(2011)notedthatadescriptivesurveyresearchdesi
gnattemptstocollectdatafrommembersofapopulationanddescribesexistingphenomenabyask
ingindividualsabouttheirperception,attitudes,behaviourorvalues.
Descriptivesurveyresearchdesignhelpincollectingqualitativeandquantitativedatathatwasus
edinansweringtheresearchquestionofthestudyonhowdoesknowledgemanagementpracticesi
nfluenceachievingofcompetitiveadvantagesamonglawfirmsinNairobi.
27
3.3TargetPopulation
Targetpopulationinstatisticsisthespecificpopulationaboutwhichinformationisdesired.Acco
rdingtoYin(2014),apopulationisawell-
definedorsetofpeople,services,elements,eventsandgroupofthingsorhouseholdsthatarebeing
investigated.Thetargetpopulationofthestudywas356lawfirmoperatinginNairobiCounty,Ke
nya.
3.4SamplingProcedures
Samplingisthatpartofstatisticalpracticeconcernedwiththeselectionofanunbiasedorrandoms
ubsetofindividualobservationswithinapopulationofindividualsintendedtoyieldsomeknowle
dgeaboutthepopulationofconcern,especiallyforthepurposesofmakingfairgeneralizationofre
sultsbacktothepopulationfromwhichtheywerechosen(Willis,2009).
Thestudyadoptedsimplerandomsamplingtechniquetoselectasampleof20%outofpopulation
of356lawfirmsoperatinginNairobiCounty.Thesamplesizewas71LawfirmsinNairobiCounty
.Mugendaandmugenda(2003)indicatedthatasamplesizeof20%ofthepopulationwasadequate
forthestudy.Asamplepopulationof71wasthereforeselectedforthestudy.
3.5DataCollection
Thisresearchusedprimarydata.Thestudyusedquestionnaireasaninstrumenttocollectdata.The
questionnairesincludedbothopenandclosedendedinlinewiththeobjectivesofthestudy.Afivep
ointlikertscalewasusedforclosedendedquestions.Thequestionnairescontainedthreesections
each.Thefirstsectionaddressdemographicinformationoftherespondentswhilethesecondsecti
28
onaddressknowledgemanagementpracticesadoptedatLawfirmsinNairobiKenyawhilethethi
rdsectionaddresstherelationshipbetweenknowledgemanagementpracticesandcompetitivea
dvantageatLawfirmsinNairobiCounty.Seniorstaffofthelawfirmweretherespondentsofthest
udy.
3.6DataAnalysisandPresentation
Afterfieldwork,thecollecteddatawaspreparedforstatisticalanalysis.Thedatawascheckedforc
larity,legibility,relevanceandappropriateness.Moreover,thequestionnaireswereeditedforco
mpletenessandconsistency.Codingwasdoneonthebasisofthelocaleoftherespondents.Quantit
ativedatawasanalyzedusingStatisticalPackageforSocialSciences(SPSSVersion21)forMicro
softwindows,whichincludesdescriptiveanalysis.Dataanalysiswasdoneusingdescriptivestati
sticswherequantitativedatawasanalyzedusingmeans,standarddeviationandfrequencytables.
Datawaspresentedusingfrequencytables.Contentanalysiswasusedforqualitativedata.Qualit
ativedatawasanalysisusingcontentanalysisandpresentedinthematicapproachbasedonthemat
icareaofthestudyonknowledgemanagementandachievingcompetitiveadvantageatlawfirmsi
nNairobi,Kenya.
Inferential analysis was carried out. The study was present a correlation matrix analysis
to examine the strength and direction between knowledge management on competitive
advantage the correlation factor will range from -1≤ 0 ≥1. The acceptance confidence
level was 95% or significance level of 0.05. The study further was undertaken regression
analysis to determine whether there exists a significant relationship between knowledge
29
management on competitive advantage. The results were accepted at 95% confident level
in order to provide for drawing conclusions about the population from the study sample.
30
CHAPTER FOUR
RESEARCH FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
4.1 Introduction
The chapter presents the research findings and discussion. It reports the response rate,
pilot results, background information of the respondents and descriptive results.
4.1.1 Response Rate
The study targeted 71 respondents from senior staffs of 71 Law firms operating in
Nairobi County. Out of 71 administered questionnaires, only 66 responded in time for
data analysis. This translated into 92% response rate and considered appropriate to derive
the inferences regarding the objectives of the research. This excellent response rate can
be attributed to the fact that the researcher administered the questionnaires personally and
took ample time to conduct the study.
Table 4.1: Response rate
Frequency Percent
Filled questionnaires 66 92
Unfilled questionnaires 5 8
Total 71 100
31
4.2 Background of the Respondents
This section contains the analysis of information on respondent. The respondents were
characterized in different categories like theirs designation, level of education, working
period and the length of operation of the law firms they work in.
4.2.1 Designation of the respondents
Respondents were requested to indicate the designation of the respondents. From the
findings, most of the respondents indicated that respondents were associates, law clerks,
paralegals and legal receptionist. Most of the respondents were legal secretaries,
administrative personnels, marketing directors, technology experts. This implies that data
collection was done from individual who belong to the law firms and the information
they gave was valid.
4.2.2 Respondents level of academic qualification
Figure 4. 1: Respondents level of academic qualification
32
Respondents were requested to indicate the level of the academic qualification. Majority
55% of the respondents indicated that they had degree level of academic qualification.
Most 45% of the respondents indicated that they had master level of academic
qualification. The figures are enough evidence that law firms had educated employees.
Consequently majority of staffs are people with degree and masters level of education
implying that they understood the required information and gave reliable response
4.2.3 Respondents Working Period
Table 4. 2: Respondents Working Period
Frequency Percentage
2-5 years 32 49
6-8 years 13 19
Less than 2 years 15 23
Over 8 years 6 9
Total 66 100
The study sought the period in which the respondents have been working in the law
firms. From the findings, 49% of the respondents have been working in the law firms for
2 to 5 years, 23% of the respondents have been working in the law firms for less than 2
years, 19% of the respondents have been working in the law firms for 6 to 8 years while
9% of the respondents have been working in the law firms for over 8 years. This implies
that the study got the raw data from respondents who majority had been working in the
33
law firms for more than 2 years and therefore had a vast experience on the knowledge
management in law firms.
4.2.4 Period the law firm has been in operation
Table 4. 3: Period the law firm has been in operation
Frequency Percentages
1-2 years 8 23
3-4 years 17 26
Less than 1 year 15 12
4-5 years 26 39
Total 66 100
The respondents were requested to indicate the period in which law firm has been in
operation. From the findings, 39% of the respondents indicated that the law firms have
been in operation for 4 to 5 years, 26% of the respondents indicated that law firms have
been in operation for 3 to 4 years. Most 23% of the respondents indicated that law firms
have been in operation for 1 to 2 years while 12% of the respondents indicated that the
law firms has been in operation for less than 1 year. This implies that data was collected
from institutions that have been in operation for more than one year.
4.3 Knowledge Management
4.3.1 Extent to which knowledge sharing has been adopted in law firm
Table 4. 4: Extent to which knowledge sharing has been adopted in law firm
Frequency Percentages
Very great extent 44 67
Great extent 23 33
Total 66 100
34
Respondents were requested to indicate the extent to which knowledge sharing has been
adopted in law firm. From the findings, majority 67% of the respondents indicated that
knowledge sharing has been adopted in law firm to a very great extent while 33% of the
respondents indicated that knowledge sharing has been adopted in law firm to a great
extent. Respondents explained that the law firms adopt congenital learning which refers
to inherited knowledge from the founders of a firm, experiential learning which is
knowledge acquired from experience, and vicarious learning which is knowledge
acquired from other individuals and businesses. Respondents further indicated that the
employees in the law firms are able to acquire useful knowledge thus contributing to
competencies among law staff in law firms. This implies that the law firms has adopted
knowledge sharing indicated that they has the capability to generate new knowledge
within the organization enhancing the competitive advantage. This is in line with Spender
(2013) who noted that creating relationships and alliances with different partners can
positively influence an organization’s ability to acquire knowledge.
35
4.3.2 Extent to which law firm adopt the knowledge management
Table 4. 5: Extent to which law firm adopt the knowledge management
Statement Mean Standard
deviation
Law firm adopt retention of firm employee knowledge 4.90 0.87
Law firm has both soft and hard approach recording 4.87 0.79
The law firm retain its knowledge for easy retrieval 4.40 0.40
Law firm store knowledge through codification 4.60 0.57
Technological service providers 4.54 0.54
In law firm Inventory of tangible knowledge are accessible
by employees
4.39 0.42
Knowledge management to provide quality hotel services 4.67 0.58
Law firm has modern technological systems that help in
processing information
4.75 0.68
Law firm has implemented information communication
technologies enhancing knowledge sharing
4.64 0.64
Law firm has appropriate technology for sharing knowledge 4.88 0.72
Firm promote employees trust and relationship in
information sharing
4.65 0.62
Undertake information identification 4.38 0.35
Use information technology in dissemination of knowledge 4.60 0.53
There is knowledge capturing through direct interaction with
clients and employees
4.62 0.60
Law firm has a data mining tools 4.58 0.67
Employees training is mandatory in law firm 4.87 0.79
The management of our law firm support continuous learning
among employees
4.40 0.46
Law firm has efficient processing of information evaluation 4.57 0.58
In law firm information is validated before documentation 4.54 0.51
There is adequate sharing of information among employees
in law firm
4.59 0.52
Useful information is disseminated sufficiently in serving
client
4.69 0.68
Information shared is applied in application of legal matters
of clients
4.50 0.47
There is continuous capturing of information in law firm 4.86 0.77
There is positive attitude and value of individual employees
in sharing information
4.46 0.49
36
Respondentswererequestedtoindicatedtheextenttowhichlawfirmadoptthegivenknowledge
managementandarebeingcarriedout.Fromthefindings,majorityoftherespondentsindicatedth
atthelawfirmadoptsretentionoffirmemployeeknowledge,hasappropriatetechnologyforshari
ngknowledge,hasbothsoftandhardapproachrecordingandemployeestrainingismandatoryinl
awfirmstrygreatextentasindicatedbymeanof4.90,4.88,4.87and4.87withstandarddeviationof
0.87,0.72,0.79and0.79.
Mostoftherespondentsindicatedthatthereiscontinuouscapturingofinformationinlawfirms,la
wfirmshasmoderntechnologicalsystemsthathelpinprocessinginformation,Usefulinformatio
nisdisseminatedsufficientlyinservingourclientandMarketknowledgemanagementtoprovide
qualityhotelservicestoaverygreatextentasindicatedbymeanof4.86,4.75,4.69and4.67withsta
ndarddeviationof0.77,0.68,0.68and0.58.Mostoftherespondentsindicatedthatlawfirmsprom
oteemployeestrustandrelationshipininformationsharing,lawfirmhasimplementedinformati
oncommunicationtechnologiesenhancingknowledgesharingandthereisknowledgecapturing
throughdirectinteractionwithclientsandemployeestoaverygreatextentasindicatedbymeanof
4.65,4.64and4.62withstandarddeviationof0.62,0.64and0.60.Mostoftherespondentsindicate
dthatlawfirmsstoreknowledgethroughcodification,useinformationtechnologyindisseminati
onofknowledge,thereisadequatesharingofinformationamongemployeesinlawfirmandhasad
ataminingtoolstoaverygreatextentasindicatedbymeanof4.60,4.60,4.59and4.58withstandard
deviationof0.57,0.53,0.52and0.67.
Thefindingsfurtherrevealedthatlawfirmshasefficientprocessingofinformationevaluationan
dtechnologicalserviceproviders,lawfirm’sinformationisvalidatedbeforedocumentationandi
37
nformationsharedisappliedinapplicationoflegalmattersoftheclientstoaverygreatextentasind
icatedbymeanof4.57,4.54,4.54and4.50withstandarddeviationof0.58,0.54,0.51and0.47.
Mostoftherespondentsindicatedthatthereispositiveattitudeandvalueofindividualemployeesi
nsharinginformation,managementoflawfirmsupportcontinuouslearningamongemployees,I
nventoryoftangibleknowledgeareaccessiblebyemployeesandfirmsundertakeinformationide
ntificationtoaverygreatextentasindicatedbymeanof4.46,4.40,4.39and4.38withstandarddevi
ationof0.49,0.46,0.42and0.35.Thisimpliesthatlawfirmsadoptedandcarriedoutknowledgem
anagementpractices.Thisrevealsthatknowledgemanagementsystemsconnectpeopletoenabl
ethemtothinktogetherandtotaketimetoarticulateandshareinformationandinsightsthemtokno
wtheyareusefultoothersintheirworkplace.ThisisinlinewithDarroch(2005)thatknowledgema
nagementhasemergedasanewdisciplineinanorganization,anditplaysanimportantsupporting
functionbyprovidingacoordinatingmechanismtoenhanceconversionofresourcesintocapabil
ities.Lang(2001),assertsthattheroleofknowledgemanagementandtheprocessformanagingith
asbecomevitalforthesurvivaloftheorganization
4.3.3WaysthroughWhichLawFirmhasInfluencedKnowledgeManagement
Respondentswererequestedtoindicateotherwaysthroughwhichlawfirmhasinfluencedknowl
edgemanagement.Fromthefindings,respondentsindicatethatlawfirmhasinfluenceknowledg
emanagementthroughcollaboration,contentmanagementandinformationsharing.Responde
ntsstatedthatLawfirmsspecializeinthecreationandtransferoflegalinformationassetsthatinclu
deknowledgeabouttheplaintiff,defendant,clientandjudge,andaboutlawyers'experience,expe
rtiseandprofessionaljudgments.Therespondentsindicatedthatmajorwaysbywhichknowledg
38
ewascreatedinthefirmswerebyattendingconferencesandattendingworkshops.Thatknowledg
ewastransferredwasbyteamworkanddiscussionsofmajorprojectsafterconclusion.
Thefindingsfurtherrevealedthathumanresourceplayedimportantroleininfluencingknowledg
emanagement,lawfirmscreatedachiefknowledgeofficerandaKMimplementationteam,lawfi
rmsfosteredaknowledgesharingculture,throughthecreationofcommunitiesofpracticeandme
ntoringprogramsandthatfirmmemberswererewardedforinformationandknowledgesharing.
Thisimpliesthattherearemanywaysthroughwhichlawfirmhasinfluenceknowledgemanagem
ent.ThisisinlinewithKimandLee(2010)thatknowledgeacquisitionencompassestheprocessof
acquiringandlearningappropriateknowledgefromvariousinternalandexternalresources,such
asexperiences,experts,relevantdocuments,plansandsoforth.
4.4KnowledgeManagementandAchievingCompetitiveAdvantage
4.4.1Extenttoagreethatknowledgeapplicationinfluenceachievingofcompetitiveadvant
age
Table4.6:ExtenttoAgreeThatKnowledgeApplicationInfluenceAchievingOfCompetiti
veAdvantage
Frequency Percentages
Stronglyagreed 31 47
Agreed 27 41
Neutral 8 12
Total 66 100
39
Respondentswererequestedtoindicatetheextenttowhichtheyagreedthatknowledgeapplicatio
ninfluenceachievingofcompetitiveadvantageinlawfirm.Fromthefindings,majorityoftheresp
ondentsstronglyagreedthatthatknowledgeapplicationinfluenceachievingofcompetitiveadva
ntageinlawfirm43%oftherespondentsagreedthatthatknowledgeapplicationinfluenceachievi
ngofcompetitiveadvantageinlawfirmwhile12%oftherespondentswereneutralonwhetherthat
knowledgeapplicationinfluenceachievingofcompetitiveadvantageinlawfirm.Thisimpliesth
atknowledgeapplicationinfluenceachievingofcompetitiveadvantageinlawfirm.Thisisinline
withKalling(2003),whoinsistedthat,managementofknowledgeiscriticalandarguesthattheme
reactofprocessingknowledgedoesnotguaranteestrategicadvantagerather;knowledgehastobe
managedforlawfirmstoachievecompetitiveadvantage.
40
4.4.2Extenttowhichwiththegiveninfluencecompetitiveadvantage
Table4.7:Extenttowhichwiththegiveninfluencecompetitiveadvantage
Statement M
ea
n
Standardde
viation
Adoptionofretentionoffirmemployeeknowledge 4.8
7
0.82
Presenceofsoftandhardapproachrecording 4.7
7
0.75
Retentionofknowledgeforeasyretrieval 4.4
0
0.46
Storageofknowledgethroughcodification 4.4
2
0.48
UseofTechnologicalserviceproviders 4.3
4
0.38
UseoffirmInventoryoftangibleknowledgeareaccessiblebye
mployees
4.8
1
0.72
Useofmoderntechnologicalsystemsthathelpinprocessinginf
ormation
4.5
8
0.62
Utilizationofinformationcommunicationtechnologiesenha
ncingknowledgesharing
4.5
3
0.53
41
Promotionofemployeestrustandrelationshipininformations
haring
4.5
0
0.45
Useofinformationidentification 4.6
7
0.58
Utilizationofinformationtechnologyindisseminationofkno
wledge
4.4
7
0.54
Capturingknowledgethroughdirectinteractionwithclientsan
demployees
4.7
1
0.72
Implementationofdataminingtools 4.7
6
0.77
Employeestrainingismandatoryinourlawfirm 4.7
2
0.70
Supportofcontinuouslearningamongemployees 4.5
7
0.50
Efficientprocessingofinformationevaluation 4.6
8
0.58
Validationofinformationbeforedocumentation 4.7
8
0.64
Adequatesharingofinformationamongemployeesinourlawf
irm
4.8
3
0.72
Usefulinformationisdisseminatedsufficientlyinservingourc 4.8 0.77
42
lient 6
Informationsharedisappliedinapplicationoflegalmattersofo
urclients
4.7
9
0.70
Existenceofcontinuouscapturingofinformationinourlawfir
m
4.6
3
0.50
Attitudeandvalueofindividualemployeesinsharinginformat
ion
4.3
7
0.48
Respondentswererequestedtoindicatetheextenttowhichwiththegivenstatementsconcerning
knowledgemanagementpracticesinfluencethelawfirmstowardachievingcompetitiveadvant
age.Fromthefindingsmajorityoftherespondentsstronglyagreedthatadoptionofemployeekno
wledgeretentioninfirm,usefulinformationbeingdisseminatedsufficientlyinservingclients,ad
equatesharingofinformationamongemployeesanduseoffirminventoryoftangibleknowledge
beingaccessiblebyemployeesinfluencethelawfirmstowardachievingcompetitiveadvantagea
sindicatedbymeanof4.87,4.86,4.83and4.81withstandarddeviationof0.82,0.77,0.72and0.72.
Mostoftherespondentsstronglyagreedthatinformationsharedbeingappliedinapplicationofle
galmattersofclients,validationofinformationbeforedocumentation,presenceofsoftandharda
pproachrecordingandimplementationofdataminingtoolsinfluencethelawfirmstowardachiev
ingcompetitiveadvantageasindicatedbymeanof4.79,4.78,4.77and4.76withstandarddeviatio
nof0.70,0.64,0.75and0.77.
Fromthefindingsmostoftherespondentsstronglyagreedthatemployeestrainingbeingmandato
ryinlawfirm,capturingknowledgethroughdirectinteractionwithclientsandemployees,efficie
43
ntprocessingofinformationevaluation,useofinformationidentificationandexistenceofcontin
uouscapturingofinformationinlawfirminfluencecompetitiveadvantageasindicatedbymeano
f4.72,4.71,4.68,4.67and4.63withstandarddeviationof0.53,0.50and0.45.Mostoftheresponde
ntsstronglyagreedthatuseofmoderntechnologicalsystemsthathelpinprocessinginformation,
supportofcontinuouslearningamongemployeesandutilizationofinformationcommunication
technologiesenhancingknowledgesharinginfluencethelawfirmstowardachievingcompetitiv
eadvantageasindicatedbymeanof4.58,4.57and4.50withstandarddeviationof0.70,0.72,0.58,
0.58and0.50.
Thestudyfurtherfoundthatmostoftherespondentsagreedthatutilizationofinformationtechnol
ogyindisseminationofknowledge,storageofknowledgethroughcodification,retentionofkno
wledgeforeasyretrieval,attitudeandvalueofindividualemployeesinsharinginformationandus
eoftechnologicalserviceprovidersinfluencethelawfirmstowardachievingcompetitiveadvant
ageasindicatedbymeanof4.47,4.42,4.40,4.37and4.34withstandarddeviationof0.54,0.48,0.4
6,0.48and0.38.Thisimpliesthatknowledgemanagementpracticesinfluencethelawfirmstowar
dachievingcompetitiveadvantage.Thefindingsrevealsthatknowledgemanagementisafuncti
onofthegenerationanddisseminationofinformation,developingasharedunderstandingofthei
nformation,filteringsharedunderstandingsintodegreesofpotentialvalue,andstoringvaluable
knowledgewithintheconfinesofanaccessibleorganizationalmechanism.ThisisinlinewithSta
nkosky(2012),whostatedthatknowledgeacquisitionasprocessofobtainingnewknowledgean
dinformationcontributetocompetenciesamonglawstaffinlawfirms.Thefindingsfurtherconcu
rredwithGeigerandSchrevogg(2012),whoindicatedthatabilitytodistributeandshareknowled
44
geiscriticalfortheuseandleverageofknowledgeresourceswhichareconsideredimportantresou
rcestomostorganizations.
4.4.3Waysthatknowledgemanagementinfluencecompetitiveadvantage
Respondentswererequestedtogivetheiropinionontheotherwaysthatknowledgemanagementi
nfluenceachievingofcompetitiveadvantageinlawfirm.Fromthefindings,respondentsopinion
edthatknowledgemanagementserveasastrategicbusinessfunctionintheorganizationandhasa
nimpactonhumancapital,teamworkandoverallorganizationalperformanceandeffectiveness.
Itisthroughknowledgemanagementthatlawyers,paralegals,managers,supportpersonnelanda
dministratorshavediverseoccupationsanddistinctfunctions,yettheyindividualsworktogether
toachievethedesiredoutcomeofaddingvaluetothefirm.Thisimpliesthatknowledgemanagem
entisconsideredanintegralpartofthequalitymanagementprocesstoachievecontinuousimprov
ementandperformanceexcellencethusinfluencingcompetitiveadvantage.ThisisinlinewithLi
aoandChuang(2007)whofocusedontheextenttowhichafirm’ssocialandtechnicalKMresourc
esarerelatedtoitsKMprocesscapabilities.LiaoandChuang(2007),assertsonthedegreetowhich
theseprocesscapabilitiesarerelatedtothefirm’sspeedandmagnitudeofinnovation,andtheexte
nttowhichthesetwoinnovationdimensionsarerelatedtofirmcompetitivenessintermsofmarket
sharegain,salesgrowth,profitability,operationalefficiencyandservicequality.Fombad(2015)
assertedthatlawfirmsinBotswanaofferaparticularlyinterestingcontexttodetermineeffectskn
owledgeacquisitionandleveragingknowledgethroughknowledgemanagementleadtocompet
itiveadvantage,enhancingcosteffectivenessandsystematicharnessingoflegalknowledge.
4.9.1CorrelationAnalysis
45
Table4.8:CorrelationbetweentheKnowledgeManagementandCompetitiveAdvantage
Competitiveadvantage
Knowledgemanagement PearsonCorrelation 0.809**
Sig.(2-tailed) 0.01
N 66
Thecorrelationbetweenknowledgemanagementandcompetitiveadvantageandthestrengthof
associationweredeterminedusingPearsonProductMomentcorrelationcoefficient.Thestudy
wasabletoassesswhetherthereexistsanyrelationshipbetweenthestudyvariablesbeforefurther
regressionanalysis.ThecriterionemployedwasthatCorrelationCoefficientof0.7andabovewa
sstrong,0.4andlessthan0.7wasassignedmoderateandlessthan0.4wasweak(Mirie,2014).
TheresultsinTable4.8showsthatthereisastrong,significantandpositivecorrelationbetweenkn
owledgemanagementandcompetitiveadvantagewherer=0.809,PV=0.01<0.05).
4.5RegressionAnalysis
Table4.9:RegressionModelSummary
R RSquare AdjustedRSquare Std.ErroroftheEstimate
0.8592a 0.7382 0.7195 0.0381
ThemodelsummaryresultspresentedinTable4.9showsthatR2is0.7382,StdError=0.0381indic
46
atingthatknowledgemanagementsignificantlyinfluencecompetitiveadvantageinlawfirminK
enyaby73.82%atconfidencelevelof95%.
AnalysisOfVariance
Table4.10:GoodnessofFit
Model SumofSquares df MeanSquare F Sig.
Regression 28.764 5 5.7528 4.02069
242
0.0015a
Residual 87.281 61 1.4308
Total 116.045 66
ResultinTable4.10indicatedthattheTotalvariance(116.045)wasthedifferenceintothevarianc
ewhichcanbeexplainedbytheindependentvariables(Model)andthevariancewhichwasnotexp
lainedbytheindependentvariables(Error).Thestudyestablishedthatthereexistedasignificantg
oodnessoffitofthemodelY=α+β1C+ẹ(1).Basedonthefindings,inTable4.9theresultsindicateth
eFCal=4.0206farexceedsFCri=3.034,P=0.01<0.05.
BetaCoefficientsAnalysis
Table4.11:BetaRegressionCoefficients
Model UnstandardizedCo
efficients
Standardized t Sig.
Coefficients
47
B Std.Error Beta
(Constant) 2.7753 0.308 9.011 0.0011
KnowledgeManagem
ent
0.759 0.0689 .486 11.012 0.0103
Theresultantregressionmodeltooktheform:
Y=2.7753+0.759C+ẹ.
Theregressionresultsindicatedthatpredictorknowledgemanagementhadastatisticallysignific
antandpositiverelationwithcompetitiveadvantagesinthelawfirmsinKenyaβ1C=0.759,PV=0.
0103<0.05,t=11.012.
48
CHAPTERFIVE
SUMMARYOFTHEFINDINGS,CONCLUSIONSANDRECOMMENDATIONS
5.1Introduction
Thischapterprovidesthesummaryofthefindingsfromchapterfour.Asummaryandconcludingr
emarkonthediscourse,recommendationsandsuggestionsforfurtherresearcharelaidoutinthes
ynopsisbelowbasedontheobjectivesofthestudy.
5.2Summary
Thestudysoughttodetermineinfluenceofknowledgemanagementoncompetitiveadvantagein
lawfirmsin,NairobiCounty,Kenya.Thestudyestablishedasignificantvariationbetweenknowl
edgemanagementoncompetitiveadvantageinlawfirmsof73.82%atconfidencelevelof95%.T
hisimpliesthattheimpactofknowledgemanagementcontributesignificantlytocompetitiveadv
antageinlawfirmsat95%confidenceinterval.
Fromthefindings,thestudyestablishedthatknowledgesharinghasbeenadoptedinlawfirmtoav
erygreatextentastheemployeesinthelawfirmsareabletoacquireusefulknowledgethuscontrib
utingtocompetenciesamonglawstaffinlawfirms.Thestudyrevealedthatthefirmhadadoptedth
einheritanceofknowledgefromthefoundersofafirm,knowledgeacquiredfromexperienceand
knowledgeacquiredfromotherindividualsandbusinesses.
Thestudyestablishedthatthelawfirmadoptedretentionoffirmemployeeknowledge,hadappro
priatetechnologyforsharingknowledge,hadbothsoftandhardapproachrecording.Thestudyre
49
vealedthatemployeestrainingaremandatoryinlawfirms,thereiscontinuouscapturingofinform
ationinlawfirms,lawfirmshasmoderntechnologicalsystemsthathelpinprocessinginformatio
n,usefulinformationisdisseminatedsufficientlyinservingclientsandmarketknowledgemanag
ementtoprovidequalityservices.
Itwasestablishedthatlawfirmspromoteemployeestrustandrelationshipininformationsharing,
lawfirmhasimplementedinformationcommunicationtechnologiesenhancingknowledgeshar
ingandthereisknowledgecapturingthroughdirectinteractionwithclientsandemployees.Thefi
rmsuseinformationtechnologyindisseminationofknowledgeandstoreknowledgethroughcod
ification.Thatthereisadequatesharingofinformationamongemployeesandhasadataminingto
ols.
Thefindingsfurtherrevealedthatlawfirmshasefficientprocessingofinformationevaluationan
dtechnologicalserviceproviders,firm’sinformationisvalidatedbeforedocumentationandinfo
rmationsharedisappliedinapplicationoflegalmattersoftheclients.Itisevidentthatthereispositi
veattitudeandvalueofindividualemployeesinsharinginformation,managementoflawfirmsup
portcontinuouslearningamongemployees,Inventoryoftangibleknowledgeareaccessiblebye
mployeesandfirmsundertakeinformationidentification.
Itwasrevealedthatlawfirmfirmsspecializeinthecreationandtransferoflegalinformationassets
thatincludeknowledgeabouttheplaintiff,defendant,clientandjudge,andaboutlawyers'experie
nce,expertiseandprofessionaljudgments.Majorwaysbywhichknowledgewascreatedinthefir
mswerebyattendingconferencesandattendingworkshops.Thatknowledgewastransferredwa
sbyteamworkanddiscussionsofmajorprojectsafterconclusion.Thefindingsfurtherrevealedth
50
athumanresourceplayedimportantroleininfluencingknowledgemanagement,lawfirmscreate
dachiefknowledgeofficerandaKMimplementationteam,lawfirmsfosteredaknowledgeshari
ngculture,throughthecreationofcommunitiesofpracticeandmentoringprogramsandthatfirm
memberswererewardedforinformationandknowledgesharing.
Thestudyestablishedthatknowledgeapplicationinfluenceachievingofcompetitiveadvantagei
nlawfirm.Adoptionofemployeeknowledgeretentioninfirm,usefulinformationbeingdissemi
natedsufficientlyinservingclients,adequatesharingofinformationamongemployeesanduseof
firminventoryoftangibleknowledgebeingaccessiblebyemployeesinfluencethelawfirmstowa
rdachievingcompetitiveadvantage.Informationsharedbeingappliedinapplicationoflegalmat
tersofclients,validationofinformationbeforedocumentation,presenceofsoftandhardapproac
hrecordingandimplementationofdataminingtoolsinfluencethelawfirmstowardachievingco
mpetitiveadvantage
Itwasevidentthatemployeestrainingbeingmandatoryinlawfirm,capturingknowledgethrough
directinteractionwithclientsandemployees,efficientprocessingofinformationevaluation,use
ofinformationidentificationandexistenceofcontinuouscapturingofinformationinlawfirminfl
uencecompetitiveadvantage.Useofmoderntechnologicalsystemsthathelpinprocessinginfor
mation,supportofcontinuouslearningamongemployeesandutilizationofinformationcommu
nicationtechnologiesenhanceknowledgesharingthusinfluencethelawfirmstowardachieving
competitiveadvantage.
Thestudyestablishedthatutilizationofinformationtechnologyindisseminationofknowledge,s
torageofknowledgethroughcodification,retentionofknowledgeforeasyretrieval,attitudeand
51
valueofindividualemployeesinsharinginformationanduseoftechnologicalserviceprovidersi
nfluencethelawfirmstowardachievingcompetitiveadvantage.
5.3Conclusion
Thestudyconcludesthatthatknowledgemanagementisadisciplineinanorganizationwhichwh
enadoptedplaysanimportantsupportingfunctionbyprovidingacoordinatingmechanismtoenh
anceconversionofresourcesintocapabilities.Thestudyconcludesthatadoptionofknowledges
haringenablethefirmstohavethecapabilitytogeneratenewknowledgewithintheorganizatione
nhancingthecompetitiveadvantage.Creatingrelationshipsandallianceswithdifferentpartners
positivelyinfluenceorganization’sabilitytoacquireknowledge.Thestudyconcludesthatadopt
ionandcarryingoutofknowledgemanagementpracticesenabletheemployeesinthelawfirmsto
acquireusefulknowledgethuscontributingtocompetenciesamonglawstaffinlawfirms.Thestu
dyconcludesthatknowledgeacquisitionandleveragingknowledgethroughknowledgemanage
mentleadtocompetitiveadvantage,enhancingcosteffectivenessandsystematicharnessingofle
galknowledge.
Theroleofknowledgemanagementandtheprocessformanagingithasbecomevitalforthesurviv
aloftheorganization.Thestudyconcludesthatknowledgemanagementsystemsconnectpeoplet
oenablethemtothinktogetherandtotaketimetoarticulateandshareinformationandinsightsthe
mtoknowtheyareusefultoothersintheirworkplace.Moreover,therevariouswaysthroughwhic
hlawfirminfluenceknowledgemanagementincludingprocessofacquiringandlearningapprop
riateknowledgefromvariousinternalandexternalresources,suchasexperiences,experts,relev
52
antdocumentsandplans.Theobtainingofnewknowledgeandinformationcontributetocompete
nciesamonglawstaffinlawfirms.
Thestudyconcludesthatknowledgeapplicationinfluenceachievingofcompetitiveadvantagei
nlawfirm.Therefore,managementofknowledgeiscriticalandthemereactofprocessingknowle
dgedoesnotguaranteestrategicadvantagerather;knowledgehastobemanagedforthelawfirmst
oachievecompetitiveadvantage.
Thestudyfinallyconcludesthatknowledgemanagementpracticesinfluencethelawfirmstowar
dachievingcompetitiveadvantageasknowledgemanagementisafunctionofthegenerationand
disseminationofinformation.Moreover,developingasharedunderstandingoftheinformation,
filteringsharedunderstandingsintodegreesofpotentialvalueandstoringvaluableknowledgewi
thintheconfinesofanaccessibleorganizationalmechanismpracticesinfluencethelawfirmstow
ardachievingcompetitiveadvantage.
5.4Recommendation
Basedonthefindingsandconclusionthestudy,thefollowingpolicyrecommendationswereprop
osedtoimprovetheoverallmanagementoflawfirmstowardachievingcompetitiveadvantage.T
herecommendationsforthestudyincludethatlawfirmstofullydevelop,shareandapplyknowled
gewithintheorganizationtogainandsustainacompetitiveadvantage.Abilitytodistributeandsh
areknowledgeiscriticalfortheuseandleverageofknowledgeresourceswhichareconsideredim
portantresourcestomostorganizations.
53
Thestudyrecommendsthatlawfirmsshouldadoptknowledgemanagementpracticestoserveasa
strategicbusinessfunctioninthefirminordertoimproveonhumancapital,teamworkandoverall
organizationalperformanceandeffectiveness.Thiswillenablethelawyers,paralegals,manager
s,supportpersonnelandadministratorswhohavediverseoccupationsanddistinctfunctionstow
orktogetherandachievethedesiredoutcome.Thiswillenablethelawfirmstoachievecompetitiv
eadvantage,enhancingcosteffectivenessandsystematicharnessingoflegalknowledge.Thestu
dyrecommendsthatlawfirmsshouldconsiderknowledgemanagementasanintegralpartoftheq
ualitymanagementprocesstoachievecontinuousimprovementandperformanceexcellencethu
sinfluencingfirm’scompetitivenessintermsofmarketsharegain,salesgrowth,profitability,op
erationalefficiencyandservicequality.
5.5Limitations
Inconductingthestudy,theresearcherencounteredanumberofchallenges.Oneofthechallenges
wasinadequatecooperationfromsomeofthelawcompanies’respondentswhowereunwillingto
providedataforthestudy.Thisstudywasdependentonprimarydatafromselectedlawfirms’inter
vieweeswhowereunwillingtooffersuchinformation.However,theresearcherexplainedtothe
managementthatthesoughtinformationwasjustforacademicresearchandwouldbeusedforaca
demicresearchandconfidentialityinhandlingsuchdatawasguaranteed.
Additionally,thestudyfocusesonlawfirmsandhencethefindingscouldnotbegeneralizedtooth
erinstitutionsand/orotherprivateorganizationsinKenya.Thirdly,theinformationgivenwaslim
itedassomeintervieweesweresecretiveorratherlimitedtheinformationtheygaveout.Someofth
einformationsuchascompetitivenessofthelawfirmwascrucialforthestudytomakeaformidabl
54
econclusion.However,theresearchermadeeffortsandinformedtheintervieweesthattheinform
ationtheywouldprovidedwouldbeheldconfidential.
5.6Recommendationforfurtherstudies
Thisstudydeterminedtheinfluenceofknowledgemanagementoncompetitiveadvantageinlaw
firmsin,NairobiCounty,Kenya.Thestudyrevealedthatknowledgemanagementcontributesgr
eatlytocompetitiveadvantageinlawfirms.ThisisevidencedbytheR-
Squarewhichisthecoefficientofdeterminationthatshowedthattheindependentvariableinthem
odelexplainabigpercentageofcompetitiveadvantage.Thestudyrecommendsfurtherresearcho
ntheeffectofvariousknowledgemanagementpracticescompetitiveadvantageinlawfirmsin,N
airobiCounty,Kenya.
ThisstudyfurtherrecommendsaninclusionoflawfirmsinotherCountiesinKenyainasimilarstu
dyasacontrol.Suchastudycanfacilitateindeterminingtheextentofsimilaritiesintheknowledge
managementanditsimplicationonthecompetitiveadvantageoftheentirelegalenvironment.Af
urtherstudyshouldbecarriedouttoassesstheinfluenceofknowledgemanagementoncompetitiv
eadvantageamongthelawfirmsinKenyaparticularlydeterminingtheeffectsofknowledgeacqu
isitionandleveragingknowledgethroughknowledgemanagementthatleadtocompetitiveadva
ntage.
55
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59
APPENDICES
Appendix 1: Introduction letter
The management
………………….,
P.O Box
Nairobi.
Re: DATA COLLECTION
I am a student at the University of Nairobi pursuing a Masters of Business Administration
program. Pursuant to the pre-requisite course work, I am like conducting a research
project on investigation of INFLUENCE OF KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT ON
ACHIEVING COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE IN AMONG LAW FIRMS IN
NAIROBI
The focus of my research will be law firm in Nairobi and this will involve use of
questionnaires administered to members of the management team.
I am kindly seeking your assistance in data collection by answering the questions in the
questionnaire. The information you will provide will be used for academic purpose only.
I have enclosed an introductory letter from the University.
Your assistance will be is highly valued.
Thank you in advance.
Yours faithfully,
Kibathi Elias
60
Appendix II: Questionnaire
Kindly answer the following questions by ticking in the appropriate box or filling the
spaces provided.
SEC A. BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
1. What is your designation in this hotel? ……………………………………………
2. Indicate your level of academic qualification
Degree ( )
Master ( )
Postgraduate ( )
Any other, kindly indicate……………………………………………..
3. How long have you worked in the law firm?
Less than 2 years ( )
2-5 years ( )
6-8 years ( )
Over 8 years ( )
4. Indicate how low your law firm has been in operation
Less than 1 years ( )
1-2 years ( )
3-4 years ( )
4.5 years ( )
Over 5 years ( )
SECTION B: KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT
4. Indicate the extent to which knowledge sharing has been adopted in your hotel?
Very great extent [ ]
Great extent [ ]
Neutral [ ]
61
Small extent [ ]
Very small extent [ ]
Give reasons for your answer………………………………………………………..
5. Using a scale of 1-5 indicate the extent to which your law firm adopt the following
knowledge management is being carried out? (1-No at all, 2-to small extent, 3-to a
moderate Extent, 4- to a large Extent and 5- to a very large Extent)
Statement 1 2 3 4 5
Our law firm adopt retention of firm employee knowledge
Our law firm has both soft and hard approach recording
The law firm retain its knowledge for easy retrieval
Our law firm store knowledge through codification
Technological service providers
In our law firm Inventory of tangible knowledge are accessible by
employees
Market knowledge management to provide quality hotel services
Our law firm has modern technological systems that help in processing
information
Our law firm has implemented information communication
technologies enhancing knowledge sharing
Our law firm has appropriate technology for sharing knowledge
Our law firm promote employees trust and relationship in information
sharing
Our law firm undertake information identification
Our firm use information technology in dissemination of knowledge
There is knowledge capturing through direct interaction with clients and
employees
62
Our law firm has a data mining tools
Employees training is mandatory in our law firm
The management of our law firm support continuous learning among
employees
Our law firm has efficient processing of information evaluation
In our law firm information is validated before documentation
There is adequate sharing of information among employees in our law firm
Useful information is disseminated sufficiently in serving our client
Information shared is applied in application of legal matters of our clients
There is continuous capturing of information in our law firm
There is positive attitude and value of individual employees in sharing
information
6. Indicate other ways through which your law firm has influence knowledge
management ………………………………………………………………………………..
SEC C: EXTENT TO KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT ON ACHIEVING
COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE IN LAW FIRMS IN, NAIROBI COUNTY
7. To what extent do you agreed that knowledge application influence achieving of
competitive advantage in your law firm?
i. Strongly agree [ ]
ii. Agree [ ]
iii. Neutral [ ]
iv. Disagree [ ]
v. Strongly disagree [ ]
63
8. Using a scale of 1-5, indicate the extent to which with the following statement
concerning influence of knowledge management practices toward achieving competitive
advantage in your law firm? (1-No at all, 2-to small extent, 3-to a moderate Extent, 4- to
a large Extent and 5- to a very large Extent)
Statement 1 2 3 4 5
Adoption of retention of firm employee knowledge
Presence of soft and hard approach recording
Retention of knowledge for easy retrieval
Storage of knowledge through codification
Use of Technological service providers
Use of firm Inventory of tangible knowledge are accessible by
employees
Use of modern technological systems that help in processing
information
Utilization of information communication technologies
enhancing knowledge sharing
Promotion of employees trust and relationship in information
sharing
Use of information identification
Utilization of information technology in dissemination of knowledge
Capturing knowledge through direct interaction with clients and
employees
Implementation of data mining tools
Employees training is mandatory in our law firm
Support of continuous learning among employees
Efficient processing of information evaluation
Validation of information before documentation
Adequate sharing of information among employees in our law firm
Useful information is disseminated sufficiently in serving our client
Information shared is applied in application of legal matters of our
clients
Existence of continuous capturing of information in our law firm
Attitude and value of individual employees in sharing
information
9. In your own opinion, indicate other ways that knowledge management influence
achieving of competitive advantage in your law firm…………………………
......................................................................................................................................
64
AppendixIII:KnowledgeGaps
Au
tho
r(S
)an
dY
ear
StudyFocus Researchm
ethodology
ResearchFindings Knowledge
Gap(S)
HowCurrentStudywi
lladdressGaps
Mu
ga
mbi
and
Kw
asir
a(2
015
)
InfluenceofKnowl
edgemanagemento
nperformanceofleg
alfirmsinNakuruC
ounty.
-
Descriptives
urveyresear
chdesign,stu
dy-
Populationo
f162respond
ents,
-
Simplerand
omSamplin
g
Correlationa
ndregressio
n
Findingsindicatesharin
g(r=0.664)hadasignifi
cantinfluenceonperfor
manceoflegalfirms
-
Didnotconsi
derknowledg
emanagemen
tandcompetit
iveadvantage
inlawfirmsin
Kenya
Thestudywillfocusond
eterminingwhetherthe
reexistasignificantrela
tionshipbetweenknow
ledgemanagementand
competitiveadvantage
inlawfirmsinNairobi,
Kenya.
Ag
bim
,Ze
ver
and
Ori
are
wo(
201
4
Relationshipbetwe
enknowledgeacqui
sitionandcompetiti
veadvantageinhos
pitalityindustryfoc
usingonhotelsinBe
nueState,Nigeria
Adoptedex-
post-
factoresearc
hdesignand
multistagesa
mplingtechn
ique.
UseQuestio
nnaireindata
collection
Regressioni
nTestinghyp
othesis
Knowledgeacquisition
hasasignificantinfluen
ceonachievingcompeti
tiveadvantageinhotelsi
nBenueEstateNigeria
Useex-post-
factoresearch
design-
aquasi-
experimental
study
Focusonhote
lasunitofanal
ysis
-
WillfocusonKMandco
mpetitiveadvantage-
Lawfirmswillbestudy
units
-
Descriptiveresearchsu
rveymethod.
Mo
ha
mm
ada
ndS
hoa
ib(
201
5
Impactofkn
owledgema
nagementpr
acticesonor
ganizationa
lperforman
ceinBanksi
nPakistan
Descriptives
urveyresear
chdesign
Usequestion
naireindatac
ollection
targetpopula
tionwas256
banks
-
Usingcorrel
ationandregr
ThestudyrevealedKM
Phadasignificantinflue
nceonbankperformanc
e
Thisstudyho
weverfocuse
sonknowled
gemanageme
ntinbanksan
dperformanc
e
Thecurrentstudywoul
dfocusondeterminingt
heinfluenceofknowled
gemanagementonachi
evingcompetitiveadva
ntageinlawfirmsindev
elopingcounties,Keny
a
65
essionanalys
istechnique
Gic
huk
i(2
014
)
Determinethekno
wledgemanageme
ntpracticesadopted
byhotelsinthecoast
alregion,Kenyaina
chievingcompetiti
veadvantage
-
Thestudyuse
dadescriptiv
esurveydesi
gn
-
TargetPopul
ation47hotel
s
Questionnai
refordatacol
lection
-
Descriptives
tatistics
Thestudyrevealedthatt
hatKMinfluenceachie
vementofcompetitivea
dvantageinhotelsinKe
nya
Thisstudyho
weverfocuse
sonknowled
gemanageme
ntandextentit
achievecomp
etitiveadvant
ageinhotels
Thecurrentstudywillfo
cuswhetherknowledge
managementhasledtoa
chievementofcompetit
iveadvantageinlegalfir
msduetoincreaseinlaw
firmsandcompetitiven
essinlegalsectorsinKe
nya
Gh
ola
mi,
Asl
i,N
aza
ri-
Shi
rko
uhi
and
Nor
uzy
(20
13
Investigatedtheinfl
uenceofknowledge
managementpracti
cesonorganization
alperformance
Structuraleq
uationmodel
ing.Targetp
opulationof
282seniorm
anagers
Theresultsshowedthat
knowledgeacquisition,
knowledgestorage,kno
wledgecreation,knowl
edgeinfluenceSMEspe
rformance
Thestudyfoc
usonKMand
performance
ofSMEsandf
ailedtokinkK
Mandcompet
itiveadvanta
geinlawfirms
Thecurrentstudyseekt
odeterminetherelation
shipbetweenknowledg
emanagementpractice
sdirectlyandcompetiti
veadvantageinlawfirm
sinNairobiCounty,Ke
nya
Sai
ni(
201
3)
Examinedimpactof
KnowledgeManag
ementPracticesonc
ompetitivenessofS
MEsinIndia.
Adoptedastr
ucturalequat
ionmodelin
gapproach
Thestudyuse
dprimarydat
acollectedfr
omthreeSM
Esinsoftwar
e,pharmace
uticalandtex
tilesinNorth
India
Thestudyrevealedthatk
nowledgemanagement
practiceshaveasignific
antinfluenceonorganiz
ationalperformance,co
mpetitivenessandempl
oyeeretentionratesinth
eselectedSMEs
Thestudyfoc
usonknowle
dgemanage
mentandcom
petitivenessi
nSMEsinInd
ia
Thestudyfailedtolinkk
nowledgemanagement
tocompetitiveadvanta
geinlawfirmsinNairob
iCounty,Kenya
Kh
ara
bsh
eha
nd
Aqr
Examinedtherelati
onshipbetweenkno
wledgemanageme
ntpracticesandafir
m’sdifferentiations
trategyandcompeti
Usedquestio
nnairesurve
yof16pharm
aceuticalco
mpanies
Targetpopul
Thestudyestablishedth
atinformationsharingt
oshareknowledgehasa
positiverelationshipwi
thafirm’sdifferentiatio
nstrategyandachieving
Thestudyfoc
usonKMandf
irm’sdifferen
tiationstrateg
yandcompeti
tiveadvantag
Thecurrentstudyfocus
onexamineKMandco
mpetitiveadvantageinl
awfirmsinKenya
66
aba
wi(
201
3)
tiveadvantageinph
armaceuticalcomp
anies
ationwas121
respondents
-
adoptedMul
tipleregressi
onanalysis
competitiveadvantagei
npharmaceuticalcomp
anies
einpharmace
uticalcompa
nies
Fo
mb
ad
M.(
201
5)
investigatedinflue
nceofadoptionofkn
owledgemanagem
entonachievingco
mpetitiveedgeinla
wfirmsinBotswana
Thestudyad
optedsurvey
researchdesi
gn
Targetpopul
ationall115r
egisteredlaw
firmsand217
lawyers
Theresultsrevealedthat
enablingenvironmenta
doptionofknowledgem
anagementenhancesco
steffectivenessandsyst
ematicharnessingofleg
alknowledge.
Thestudyfoc
usonfactorsi
nfluenceado
ptionofknow
ledgemanage
mentinLawF
irms
Thecurrentstudywillfo
cusontherelationshipb
etweenknowledgeman
agementandcompetiti
veadvantageinlawfirm
sinNairobi,Kenya