Organizational forgetting Part I: a review of the literature and future research directions

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to systematically review and synthesize the literature on organizational forgetting. Design/methodology/approach A systematic literature review approach was used to synthesize current theoretical and empirical studies on organizational forgetting. Findings The review and synthesis of the literature revealed that the organizational forgetting literature is fragmented, with studies conducted across disparate fields and using different methodologies; two primary modes (i.e. accidental and purposeful) and three foci (i.e. knowledge depreciation, knowledge loss and unlearning) define current organizational forgetting literature; and the factors that influence organizational forgetting can be grouped into four clusters related to individuals, processes, tools and organizational context. Research limitations/implications This literature review has limitations related to time span coverage and journal article accessibility. Originality/value This paper offers an integrative view of organizational forgetting that proposes a holistic and multilevel research approach and systematic synthesis of organizational forgetting research.

Knowledge loss induced by organizational member turnover: a review of empirical literature, synthesis and future research directions (Part II)

“…Confirming previous findings (e.g. de Holan & Phillips, 2004;Mariano et al, 2020a), this review acknowledges the essential role context plays in KLT empirical research. Although context refers to "who", "where" and "when" of a certain phenomenon (Whetten, 1989), KLT research has mainly focused on the "where" dimension, i.e.…”

De-Implementation: Lessons to be Learned when Abandoning Inappropriate Homelessness Interventions

“…A great deal of the research that focuses on phasing out (disinvestment) and closely related concepts such as "de-implementation", "reassessment", "priority setting", "de-adaption", or "resource allocation" are technically oriented and are focused on technological systems in health care (Garner et al, 2013;Rushmer & Davies, 2004). Concepts such as "un-learning", "re-learning", "de-learning", and "de-institutionalization" are suggested but only discussed to a limited extent, in particular when compared with the literature that is solely focused on management (Becker, 2019;Durst et al, 2020;Mariano et al, 2020a;Mariano et al, 2020b;Sharma & Lenka, 2019). A particular problem is the extensive and ambiguous terminology used to describe phasing out in social welfare services, and researchers have identified 43 closely related concepts (Gnjidic & Elshaug, 2015).…”

Knowledge loss induced by organizational member turnover: a review of empirical literature, synthesis and future research directions (Part I)

“…a more gradual knowledge decay, and knowledge loss, or more immediate knowledge disappearance. There is a growing body of literature documenting and explaining underlying mechanisms of knowledge loss and assessing its impact on organizations (Mariano et al, 2020a(Mariano et al, , 2020b. Furthermore, there is emerging evidence that knowledge loss can be both managed and prevented (Klammer & Gueldenberg, 2019;Mariano et al, 2018), which seems to depend on several factors, of which the cause of knowledge loss is the most crucial (de Holan & Phillips, 2004).…”

“…These damaging consequences include, however, are not limited to deterioration of organizational knowledge base (Daghfous et al, 2013), loss of organizational identity (Ciuk & Kostera, 2010) and overall decrease in performance and productivity (Brymer & Sirmon, 2018). Mariano et al (2020aMariano et al ( , 2020b distinguish between two types of accidental forgettingknowledge depreciation, i.e. a more gradual knowledge decay, and knowledge loss, or more immediate knowledge disappearance.…”

“…Highlighting the fragmentary nature, inconsistency and context dependency of this body of literature, Mariano et al (2020b) call for a more granular understanding of turnover-induced organizational forgetting by incorporating characteristics of departing employees, types of knowledge they possess as well as organizational and environmental contexts. Acknowledging important contributions of Mariano et al's (2020aMariano et al's ( , 2020b review of organizational forgetting literature and responding to their call, this study aims to advance the current understanding of KLT by bringing together its antecedents, outcomes as well as coping and preventive mechanisms. As demonstrated in the management literature, one way to achieve this is via a systematic review of extant empirical researcha methodology that is particularly powerful in integrating and synthesizing disparate literature (Snyder, 2019).…”