This paper provides a brief critical analysis of how the focus on innovation diffusion, organisational learning and knowledge management has developed with an emphasis on the 2005-2015 period. The purpose of this paper is to provide a recent historic perspective on these concepts and suggest an integrated future focus for this research.
The paper identifies trends in how knowledge and learning is associated with innovation and experience based on a literature review.
The study of organisational learning and the management of knowledge and innovation diffusion is well-established in the construction and project management domains with two strongly emerging intertwined foci. On one hand, there has been a significant growing focus on learning through collaboration and the value of being a reflective practitioner. On the other hand, the exponential growth in the power of computing has led to “Big Data” reappearing to redefine data and information into pseudo-knowledge that is “blurring” the boundary of data, information and knowledge. Increasingly, we are likely to see effective innovation through more practical blending of these foci.
This provides a reflection on changing perspectives, on human and machine learning and knowledge management that may have a profound impact on future research themes.
