Knowledge Management without Management -- Shadow IT in Knowledge-intensive Manufacturing Practices

Melanie Steinhueser, Lena Waizenegger, Shahper Vodanovich, Alexander Richter

Research output: Conference Article in Proceeding or Book/Report chapterArticle in proceedingsResearchpeer-review

Abstract

The voluntary use of private device by employees without formal approval of the IT department,
commonly termed Shadow IT, is an increasingly widespread phenomenon. In this paper, we study the role of private smartphones (and related applications like WhatsApp) in knowledge-intensive practices in the manufacturing domain. With an in-depth case study based on data gained from observations and interviews, we are able to empirically illustrate why workers use their private smartphones (contrary to company guidelines) and how they find significant gains of productivity by using the ‘forbidden’ applications. Our study contributes to knowledge management research by showing how private IT use can change existing knowledge management practices. At the same time, we are able to give rich insights into the rise of Shadow IT in a manufacturing context which takes place in a selforganised way without knowledge of the management. This enables us to take a step towards a knowledge management strategy perspective on Shadow IT.
Original languageUndefined/Unknown
Title of host publicationProceedings 25th European Conference on Information Systems (ECIS 2017)
Number of pages16
PublisherAIS Electronic Library (AISeL)
Publication date2017
Pages1647-1662
ISBN (Print)978-989-20-7655-3
Publication statusPublished - 2017

Keywords

  • Shadow IT
  • Knowledge management
  • Private smartphones
  • Manufacturing domain
  • Employee productivity

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