Institute of Sociology, RWTH Aachen University, Eilfschornsteinstr. 7, 52062 Aachen, Germany E-mail:
Work. 2022;72(4):1673-1687. doi: 10.3233/WOR-211275.
Informal Knowledge Sharing Interactions (IKSI) are particularly valuable for innovation projects if they connect partners who are categorically, socially and formally distant from each other. Then the chances are higher that partners possess non-redundant knowledge and can thus open up new perspectives. By improving their knowledge supply, IKSI enhance the success, job satisfaction and well-being of employees in knowledge-intensive industries. So far, however, it is unclear how such interactions between heterogeneous partners emerge.
The paper examines the formation of IKSI and develops the argument that serendipitous IKSI are more likely than planned IKSI to connect heterogeneous partners and open up new perspectives.
The paper develops the argument in detail and empirically grounded by drawing together the unconnected literatures on the formation and impact of IKSI. Furthermore, the argument is empirically tested using 132 IKSI from developers collected with event-based diaries.
In line with the conceptual work, the empirical analysis shows that serendipitous IKSI are more likely than planned ones to open up new perspectives.
Serendipitous IKSI are of particular significance and require appropriate promotion in order to enhance innovative capability. The increasing virtualization of work is creating opportunities and challenges in this regard.
如果非正式知识共享互动（IKSI）将在类别、社会和正式上彼此相距甚远的合作伙伴联系起来，那么对于创新项目来说，它们特别有价值。这样，合作伙伴拥有非冗余知识的机会就更高，从而可以开拓新视角。通过提高知识供应，IKSI 增强了知识密集型行业员工的成功、工作满意度和幸福感。然而，到目前为止，这种异质合作伙伴之间的互动是如何产生的还不清楚。
本文考察了 IKSI 的形成，并提出了一个论点，即偶然的 IKSI 比计划的 IKSI 更有可能连接异质合作伙伴并开拓新视角。
本文通过综合关于 IKSI 的形成和影响的不相关文献，详细地提出了这个论点，并进行了实证研究。此外，该论点还使用基于事件的日记收集的 132 个来自开发人员的 IKSI 进行了实证检验。
与概念性工作一致，实证分析表明，偶然的 IKSI 比计划的 IKSI 更有可能开拓新视角。
偶然的 IKSI 具有特别的意义，需要适当的促进，以提高创新能力。工作的日益虚拟化在这方面带来了机遇和挑战。
