THE CODIFICATION OF KNOWLEDGE: INCENTIVE STRUCTURE, COST/BENEFIT TENSION AND THE DECISION MAKING PROCESS

The codification process of specific knowledge inside an organization involves costs, dictated by its nature as well as by its context. As we understand that the codification decision depends on the incentive structure and on the costs and benefits involved in the process, the boundaries between tacit and codified organizational knowledge turn endogenous. Specific knowledge codification investment decisions should be taken only after the designation of the elements that determine the cost/benefit structure and the heedful assessment of its impacts on the creation, sharing and diffusion of knowledge.