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One approach to exploring the context-particular, experiential knowledge of entrepreneurs is to treat their narrative explanations of how their firms have developed as quasi texts containing implicit, personal theories of managerial action. By drawing on cognitive and literary concepts, their personal theories are modelled as multi-element scripts that evolve and change, yielding rich and informative interpretations. It is suggested that this approach is relevant not only for entrepreneurs, but that it can also be used in both ethnographic and clinical studies.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present a holistic interpretation of the scope of knowledge management processes whose intent is to enhance the effectiveness of new product development (NPD).Design/methodology/approachThe paper reviews key concepts in NPD and knowledge management (KM), leading to propositions about the effective management of NPD‐relevant knowledge. It develops a structured, holistic model of organizational KM including practical mechanisms and processes for managing knowledge transfer.FindingsEffective knowledge management needs to: acknowledge the multiple organizational levels at which knowledge is deployed; support the production, elicitation and exchange of tacit knowledge as well as explicit, codified information; hence accommodate and enable both informal and formal, typically IS/IT enabled knowledge processes.Practical implicationsKM is work‐in‐progress, not a one‐time search for an idealised state. Computer‐enabled information systems are necessary but not sufficient elements of a comprehensive approach to KM. Holistic KM should be integral to the organization, working with not against the grain of its technical, social and cultural processes. Senior managers with titles such as “chief knowledge officer” may be crucial in establishing strategic priorities and change programmes, but all NPD personnel bear responsibility for effective KM.Originality/valueThe paper combines propositions about the effective conduct of KM for NPD with a model of holistic KM that involves multi‐level flux and constructive knowledge transition. It identifies practical mechanisms, IS/IT enabled and otherwise, in this context. It suggests that new research to identify effective KM practices in NPD is a priority for KM researchers.

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The article proposes a dynamic model of strategic change processes in the growthoriented firm. It presents construct variables drawn from previous research to explore how innovation and change are enabled and inhibited. ᭹ These variables include the size of the firm and how habituated its routines have become, its levels of demographic diversity, internal conflict and staff morale, the change propensity of its top management team (TMT) and the availability of interpretive skills and extent of strategic issue diagnosis.᭹ Also implicated are the impact of external events and influences and the managerial schema, the set of shared beliefs that inform and guide the firm. All these variables, directly or indirectly, affect performance outcomes. The model enables a critical discussion of the ways in which growth-oriented firms can enhance their performance through a better understanding of dynamic, collective change processes.