Organizational knowledge: definitions, taxonomies, and metaphors in a digital transformation environment

Abstract

Purpose: In the era of digital transformation, organizational knowledge becomes even more important than before in building the competitive advantage of enterprises (Malerba et al., 2020; Santorno et al., 2018; Chen et al., 2023). Digital transformation forces companies to rethink knowledge resources to meet current requirements. Design/methodology/approach: The research methods consist of a comprehensive and systematic domestic and foreign literature review of organizational knowledge definitions, taxonomies, and metaphors in a digital transformation environment. Findings: The development of companies in a dynamic, competitive business environment with digital transformation is altering the way knowledge is perceived within organizations and requires a new approach to understanding knowledge assets and their formation. Research limitations/implications: The research should continue on the relationship between digital transformation and knowledge processes in the organization (acquisition, generation, storage, sharing, and transfer). Practical implications: The research results prove that an adequate understanding of organizational knowledge, its taxonomy, and the right choice of metaphors guide efforts on knowledge creation in organizations in a digital transformation environment. Originality/value: The research contributes to organizational knowledge management and sheds light on how knowledge metaphor analysis contributes to diagnosing situations and finding solutions that contribute to an organization’s potential. Keywords: Systematic literature review, organizational knowledge, knowledge definitions, knowledge taxonomies, metaphorical analysis. Category of the paper: Literature review, general review.