Development Of Transactive Memory Systems Research Articles

Development of transactive memory systems in new venture teams

This article examines how new venture teams (NVTs) develop transactive memory systems (TMSs) to integrate and coordinate their member’s collective expertise. Applying a longitudinal case study of five Norwegian NVTs in their first year, we find that the development of TMSs in NVTs unfolds in three stages. At the pre-formation stage, NVTs undergo a TMS enabling process that includes member motivation, self-declaration and member expectations, which lead to initial specialisation in NVTs. Subsequently, at the formation and collaboration stages, NVTs proceed with TMS processes of encoding, storage and retrieval that encompass self-assessment, assessment of co-members, shared understanding, role formalisation, decision-making and task performance, which enhance specialisation and result in the gradual development of credibility and coordination in NVTs. Furthermore – through member motivation, trust and shared ownership – NVTs engage in a TMS-reinforcing process that helps NVTs to strengthen their TMSs over time, enabling them to increase their ability to integrate and coordinate NVT collective expertise.

The impact of social media usage on expertise coordination and team creative performance in distributed agile software development

PurposeThis article explores how the social media usage affect team creative performance via transactive memory system, knowledge interaction and expertise coordination.Design/methodology/approachThe study is based on the perspective of transaction memory system and expertise coordination theory. A research model was constructed and tested, involving 289 individuals from 67 distributed agile software development teams.FindingsThe results indicate that social media usage is positively correlated with transactive memory system, and social media usage and transactive memory system have positive relations to knowledge interaction and expertise coordination. Moreover, this analysis shows that knowledge interaction has a positive relationship with expertise coordination, and expertise coordination positively affects team creative performance. However, knowledge interaction has no direct relationship on team creative performance, and its indirect impact on team creative performance was fully mediated by expertise coordination. This research shows that social media usage by distributed agile software development teams can support the development of transactive memory system and promote expertise coordination. In addition, knowledge interaction alone is not enough, and expertise coordination must be achieved to increase team creative performance.Originality/valueFirst, this paper explores the mechanism of transactive memory system in distributed Agile Software Development teams from the perspective of social media, which is different from the previous information processing theory framework that confined transactive memory system to the cognitive aspects of knowledge coding, storage and retrieval. Second, this research focuses on the knowledge interaction and expertise coordination formed by team members in the process of communication in the context of social media usage, which confirms the crucial roles of social media usage and transactive memory system in team knowledge management and team creative performance. Then, this research also shows that the development of transactive memory system in the team is indeed an important factor to promote knowledge interaction and professional expertise coordination.

Transactive memory system and green innovation: a cross-level mediation of social network

PurposeThe aim of this study was to investigate the impact of the transactive memory system (TMS) on green innovation and examine the mediation role of the social network at all hierarchical levels.Design/methodology/approachThree hypotheses were examined by performing regression analyses on survey data from manufacturing firms in China. Especially, the nested sets of data from 389 individual observations nested in 53 work teams, including individual level and collective level have been investigated.FindingsThe study results show that the TMS has a positive effect on green innovation. Furthermore, the results indicate that at the team level, structure holes' mediation in this relationship is stronger than degree centrality; at the individual level, weak ties mediation in the relationship of specialization and green innovation is stronger than strong ties, conversely, strong ties mediation in the relationship of credibility and green innovation is stronger than weak ties.Originality/valueThis study expands previous research by highlighting the significance of multilevel social network elements in the context of the TMS and sustainable development and enriches the present research on green innovation.

Social Media Affordances and Transactive Memory Systems in Virtual Teams

Recent advances in social media technologies offer a variety of tools for virtual teams to share knowledge among their team members and develop transactive memory systems (TMS). Adopting the media affordances lens, the current study investigates how social media affordances affect individual evaluations of TMS development and perceived team effectiveness in virtual teams. Survey data from 339 virtual team members across 92 hackathon events reveal that types of affordances have differing impacts on each of the three dimensions of TMS (perceptions of accuracy, sharedness, and validation). Furthermore, each dimension of perceived TMS mediates the relationship between its related social media affordance types and perceived team effectiveness. These findings suggest that virtual teams may need to adopt different social media technologies depending on which aspect of TMS development is prioritized.

To Share or Hide? A Social Network Approach to Understanding Knowledge Sharing and Hiding in Organizational Work Teams

Although knowledge sharing is almost ubiquitously promoted in today’s organizations, knowledge hiding is still prevalent. Extending transactive memory systems (TMS) theory and the dialectical tension model, this study employs a social network approach to empirically examine how knowledge sharing is related to knowledge hiding, and how work and social relationships are related to knowledge sharing and hiding in organizational work teams. Whole-network survey data were collected from 200 employees in 31 organizational work teams across the U.S. and China. Exponential random graph modeling (ERGM) analyses of these network data show that knowledge sharing is not significantly related to knowledge hiding. Moreover, while work relationships such as work-related communication and task interdependence are positively related to knowledge sharing, social relationships such as interpersonal justice, social communication, and trust are negatively related to knowledge hiding. These findings validate the dialectical tension model by revealing a co-existent relationship between knowledge sharing and hiding, and endorse the critical role of work-related and social communication in TMS development.

Communication in Transactive Memory Systems: A Review and Multidimensional Network Perspective

The comprehensive review synthesizes 64 empirical studies on communication and transactive memory systems (TMS). The results reveal that (a) a TMS forms through communication about expertise; (b) as a TMS develops, communication to allocate information and coordinate retrieval increases, promoting information exchange; and (c) groups update their TMS through communicative learning. However, direct interpersonal communication is not necessary for TMS development or utilization. Nor do high-quality information-sharing processes always occur within developed TMS structures. For future research, we propose a multidimensional network approach to TMS that incorporates technologies, addresses member characteristics, considers multiple communication types, and situates groups in context.

Simulation Game Outcomes: A Multilevel Examination of Knowledge Sharing Norms, Transactive Memory Systems, and Individual Learning Goal Orientations

Background. Because computer-based simulation games are widely used in university classrooms, it is important to investigate factors which can lead to effective student team performance and positive individual outcomes. Aim. This correlational study aimed to examine the effects of knowledge sharing norms, transactive memory systems, and individual learning goal orientations on game outcomes. Method. The setting for this study was an undergraduate logistics and supply chain class. The class uses a serious simulation game which is designed to realistically mimic the business transactions within an enterprise resource planning system (ERP). Cross-sectional surveys captured individual learning goal orientations. After multiple rounds of simulation game play, subsequent surveys captured student reactions, perceptions of knowledge sharing behaviors, and transactive memory systems. Results. Two sets of analyses were conducted using a sample of 100 undergraduates performing in 42 teams. At the group-level, OLS regression results suggest that, while there was no effect on objective team performance, knowledge sharing norms enhanced perceptions of team performance, and this effect was mediated through the development of transactive memory systems. For individual-level outcomes, multilevel results suggest that knowledge sharing norms were positively related to satisfaction with the team, but not satisfaction with the task. However, transactive memory systems were positively related both satisfaction with the team and satisfaction with the task. Individual learning goal orientation was positively related to satisfaction with the task but not satisfaction with the team. Conclusion. Our findings suggest that learning goal orientations and norms for knowledge sharing are linked to positive outcomes of team-based simulation game learning activities. Because learning goal orientations are malleable and norms for knowledge sharing can be encouraged, these factors are within the influence of the instructor. As such, they should be nurtured and developed through the active encouragement of experimentation, exploration, and communication between team members.

Organizational Routines and Adaptability: The Effects of Routines in Building TMS

Organizational routines are ubiquitous stores of knowledge in organizations. Although routines enable consistent performance on tasks over time, routines might hinder adaptability by promoting inertia and rigidity. In this dissertation, I develop how routines could facilitate adaptation in organizations and foster successful performance on novel tasks. I argue that teams are changed in the process of using routines. I develop and test theory arguing that routines can facilitate the development of transactive memory systems (TMS), collective systems for encoding, storing, and sharing knowledge. I propose that routines provide a structure within which team members can learn about one another’s skills. Thus, routines can build a team’s TMS, which can improve performance on novel tasks. I use a mixed-methods design to both develop and to test theory. In Study 1, I performed 30 semi-structured interviews with United States Marine Corps officers. Based on interview findings, I hypothesize that teams that use routines will develop stronger transactive memory systems than teams that do not. Consequently, I hypothesize that teams that use routines will perform better on novel tasks due to the TMS they have developed. In Study 2, I developed a laboratory study in the cybersecurity context to test the hypotheses. Two hundred and thirteen participants in 71 teams were randomly assigned to perform a task with a routine or without a routine, and then perform a novel task. Results provide evidence to support the hypotheses.

How Transactive Memory System Becomes Ineffective Over Time and When it is Revitalized

Although research on transactive memory system (TMS) generally shows that a well-developed TMS has a positive impact on team performance, less attention has been paid to the possibility that TMS could become ineffective over time. Using an agent-based modeling (ABM) approach, we directly examine how two effects—the information concentration on experts and the transaction cost incurred in TMS information processing—interplay across levels over time. We further explore the aspects of the communication networks and the membership change on TMS dynamics. Our ABM simulations reveal that along the nonlinear development of TMS, the coevolved two effects emerge and magnify over time; and ultimately override the benefits of TMS. The results also show that a TMS teamwork with a moderate-density communication network helps sustain the efficacy of TMS. Moreover, to overcome the rigidity of the team performance, we find that a delicate change of the membership in an appropriate timing weakens the team inertia through invigorating team member learning to revitalize the TMS team functioning. Based on the findings, we propose a three-stage model of TMS effectiveness, suggesting that a TMS teamwork can continue to be effective in a long run if the appropriate interventions are made.

How does knowledge heterogeneity affect transactive memory system in innovation? Evidence from a field study

PurposeThe dispute over the benefit of diversity on the transactive memory system (TMS) has attracted the attention with the development of global collaboration. This paper aims to discover how knowledge heterogeneity (KH), categorized as explicit and tacit KH, affects TMS and to test the mediation effect of innovation climate (IC).Design/methodology/approachData from a 6-month field study of 207 research and development (R&D) members and 7 expertize observers were analyzed by partial least squares structure equation model. Robustness check and Barron and Kenny mediation test were used to evaluate the model and confirm the mediation effect.FindingsTacit KH of R&D team negatively influences the development of TMS. Furthermore, IC partially mediates tacit KHs’ negative influence on the development of TMS.Research limitations/implicationsThese results distinguish the different influence of explicit and tacit KH on TMS and explore the mediating role of IC that has been confirmed affecting the development of TMS.Practical implicationsThese results could motivate practitioners to address more attention to tacit KH, IC and the development of TMS in the R&D team members composition.Originality/valueThis study contributes not only to elucidate the different influence of explicit and tacit KH on TMS but also to the appropriate members composition of R&D team by considering the relationships among KH, IC, TMS and innovation performance.

A Transactive Memory System Perspective in Software Engineering Education

Contribution: Results and conclusions on the use of transactive memory system (TMS) in software engineering (SE) education in student project teams that consist of undergraduate and postgraduate students are documented. This can be valuable for the adoption of this learning approach and team formation by other universities and institutes. Background: Preparing students for the SE industry requires bringing them in close collaboration to real-world tasks. This is usually performed via students carrying out software projects, working in teams. In such environments, the knowledge sharing and the interactions within the team are worth investigating, as they can affect the outcome of the student collaboration and can provide insight on how the collaboration is valued by the team members. Research Questions: 1) What is the effect of TMS on students in SE education? 2) Do parameters, such as gender, affect TMS development? 3) Does the inclusion of a project manager with more expertise affect TMS? Methodology: Students were divided into teams working on SE projects. Teams consist of both undergraduate and postgraduate students. Data from students on TMS for consecutive academic years were gathered. Findings: TMS is present in student teams and some of its scale items are affected by parameters, such as the team composition and the project type. TMS also affects performance.

Give or keep A transactive memory approach to understanding knowledge hoarding on the organisational digital knowledge repository

The goal of this research is to apply and extend transactive memory systems (TMS) theory to investigate the individual and social network factors that influence organisational members' knowledge hoarding on the digital knowledge repository. Specifically, this study examines how key mechanisms in the organisational TMS development, including personal expertise, accuracy in expertise recognition, social network centralities and individual perceptions of other members' knowledge hoarding behaviours, could promote or demote knowledge hoarding on the digital knowledge repository. Survey data were collected from 110 employees working in nine consulting teams. Results showed that team members' knowledge hoarding on the digital knowledge repository was negatively influenced by one's expertise level, but positively influenced by one's betweenness centrality in the social network and one's perception of other team members' knowledge hoarding on the digital knowledge repository. This research offers theoretical and pragmatic implications for effective utilisation of digital knowledge repositories in organisational settings.

Relationship conflict, task conflict and teams’ transactive memory systems

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to understand how task conflict and relationship conflict influence teams’ transactive memory systems (TMS) and by extension team performance.Design/methodology/approachLeveraging experiential learning theory and a popular operations management simulation tool, survey data from 341 students, who worked on 117 simulation teams, are collected. To examine the present hypotheses bootstrapping analysis and SPSS were used.FindingsBoth task and relationship conflict can significantly diminish TMS development, which in turn, inhibits team performance. Thus, when teams disagree on how to approach a task, conflict could diminish TMS formation. In addition, when one team member has a personal conflict with one or more members that it further amplifies the influence of task conflict. To address the negative influence of both task and relationship conflict, teams should develop processes to better utilize members’ specialized knowledge and work together in a coordinated manner.Research limitations/implicationsThe research adds to the literature by articulating the mediating influence that relationship conflict has on task conflict. Furthermore, it highlights how teams can develop TMS as a means to improve team performance when using simulation tools as a teaching device.Originality/valueThis work broadens our understanding of the conditions under which educators can teach students about teams and teamwork capabilities. In addition, the authors expand the use of simulations as an experiential learning tool.

The impact of enterprise social media platforms on knowledge sharing

PurposeEnterprise social media platforms (ESMPs) are web 2.0-based computer media tools that facilitate knowledge sharing by employees. The purpose of this paper is to outline the potential of ESMPs in both enabling and hindering knowledge sharing from the perspective of affordances.Design/methodology/approachThis is a conceptual paper which integrates the literature on ESMPs’ affordances and knowledge sharing.FindingsThis paper finds that prior research on affordances only considered artifacts without much attention on the role of individual goals and organizational context. ESMPs may both enable and hinder knowledge sharing by affording different user behaviors contingent on artifacts, individual goals and organizational context.Practical implicationsThe results of the paper will help managers and ESMPs designers to better understand the potential of ESMPs and pay attention to the positive and negative impacts of ESMPs in the process of knowledge sharing.Originality/valueThe paper derives a new categorization of affordances based on individual goals and organization context and portrays a model to describe how and when these affordances enable knowledge sharing through the development of transactive memory system and social capital and hinder knowledge sharing through overload, groupthink and privacy invasion.

Knowledge collaboration among physicians in online health communities: A transactive memory perspective

Knowledge teams have emerged in online health communities (OHCs) where physicians collaborate spontaneously with others through the Internet to gather knowledge. Knowledge collaboration (KC) facilitates physicians’ communication and the provision of better services to patients in today's medical environment. However, the underlying mechanism through which KC improves team performance in OHCs is not clear. This study aims to advance understanding of the KC process by exploring the role of the transactive memory system (TMS). Real operation data from 1071 teams in a leading OHC in China used to understand both the antecedent and consequences of the TMS and the interaction effects among different dimensions of TMS. The findings have demonstrated that leader's capital was a critical factor in KC by promoting the effective TMS development and further affect both team's process and outcome performance. Positive moderating effects of coordination on the relationship between credibility and performance are also found. This study reveals for the first time the role of KC in improving performance in online health markets from the TMS perspective. The findings provide theoretical guidance to physician–physician collaborative teams with guidelines on boosting chances for higher performance.

Enabling knowledge diversity to benefit cross-functional project teams: Joint roles of knowledge leadership and transactive memory system

Team members’ knowledge diversity has a “double-edged sword” nature within cross-functional project teams (CFPTs), showing an inconsistent relationship with team performance. For realizing this diversity’s potential benefits, leadership is usually an essential enabler. However, little is known about how knowledge leadership achieves this. This study proposed that knowledge leadership moderates the effect of knowledge diversity on team performance through a transactive memory system (TMS). By empirically testing survey data from 96 CFPTs, we found that knowledge leadership enables a positive linkage of knowledge diversity-CFPT performance by successively breaking down barriers to communication and cooperation in TMS development and functioning.

Transactive memory systems in context: A meta-analytic examination of contextual factors in transactive memory systems development and team performance.

Research on transactive memory systems (TMS) has been conducted in a variety of teams, a range of task types and increasingly, in settings around the world. Despite this proliferation, there has been relative inattention to contextual factors that produce TMS and explain heterogeneity in the TMS to team performance relationship. TMS studies are typically conducted in homogeneous settings (i.e., teams located in a single country) and often with sources of potential variation (i.e., environmental volatility, leadership, team human capital, and diversity) in TMS development controlled. Collating these individual studies, we use meta-analytic techniques to illuminate key contextual factors that may shape TMS and influence the TMS-performance association. Using 76 empirical studies representing 6,869 sampling units, we find that the strength of the TMS to performance relationship varies, depending on features of the national cultural context-the impact of TMS is stronger in cultural contexts where power distance and in-group collectivism are higher. Our results also suggest that environmental volatility, leadership effectiveness, and team human capital are positively associated with TMS, and informational and gender diversity are negatively associated with TMS development. Our findings also indicate fruitful areas for future research specifically aimed toward disentangling the effects of environmental, team, and national cultural context on TMS and team performance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Rethinking the complexity of virtual work and knowledge sharing

Employees in distributed organizations often engage in virtual work arrangements to accomplish day‐to‐day tasks. In turn, a lack of physical cues, challenges in establishing common ground with others and reduced face‐to‐face interaction each has the potential to hinder communication within an organization. Large multinational organizations may rely on transactive memory systems as a means of sharing knowledge and helping employees to accomplish day‐to‐day tasks. Research demonstrates that new information communication technology facilitates the development of transactive memory systems, but the role of transactive memory in virtual work arrangements is less studied. This article explores how dimensions of virtual work impact transactive memory systems. Data were collected from a large multinational organization that provides technology consulting services. Findings from this study demonstrate a clear relationship between the formation of transactive memory systems and the degree of geographic dispersion of employees. Moreover, the formation of transactive memory systems is negatively impacted by the diversity of teams' job functions. The use of internal information communication technology plays a positive role in influencing organizational memory when teams are geographically and functionally diverse. The results provide insight into how organizations can better utilize transactive memory systems to improve communication in virtual settings.

Design Thinking and the Development of Transactive Memory Systems in Software Innovation Teams

The development of a transactive memory system has been considered a central element of project team performance. Such has to take place in an early and fluid phase of innovation, which is associat...

The impact of within-team variance on transactive memory system development and team performance

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to describe the dispersion models, where within-team variance is the outcome of interest, and propose the application of these models to the measurement of the transactive memory system (TMS). As teams become increasingly prominent in educational contexts and within organizations, it is important to evaluate how various measures of individual and team attributes relate to team performance. One measure that has been evaluated by a number of previous empirical studies is TMSs.Design/methodology/approachIn past studies of TMS and in most teams research, team-level data are collected and correlated with performance, or individual-level data are collected, aggregated to the team-level data and then correlated with performance. While this is appropriate in situations where data are isomorphic or similar across levels of measurement, there are often important differences among within-team responses that lead to a discrepancy between the sum of individual attributes and a team-level measure.FindingsPreliminary results demonstrate that within-team variance in reported levels of TMS has an inverse relationship with team performance.Research limitations/implicationsFuture research should further evaluate the ability for dispersion models of TMS to predict team performance, especially in organizational settings with professional rather than student teams.Originality/valueThis paper provides a new approach to measuring TMS and relating TMS to team performance.