Motivation, knowledge transfer, and organizational forms

The importance of knowledge for gaining competitive advantage is widely acc epted. The authors I distinguish between explicit and tacit forms of knowle dge and argue that different kinds of motivation (extrinsic and intrinsic) are crucial for generating and transferring the two forms of knowledge. The y analyze various organizational and motivational devices with respect to t heir suitability for making use of explicit and tacit knowledge. In so doin g they particularly emphasize that some organizational forms can crowd out intrinsic motivation and thus have detrimental effects on the transfer of k nowledge.