Knowledge Hiding among Organizations: A Retrospective Narrative Review and the Way Forward

Abstract

Knowledge serves as a strategic competitive asset for any organization to increase and sustain competitive advantage. Organizations have promoted knowledge sharing by implementing Knowledge Management Systems. Despite having ingrained policies for sharing knowledge, most employees refrain from practicing this in their workplace. Connelly et al. (2012) termed this phenomenon knowledge hiding and defined it as “an intentional attempt by an individual to withhold or conceal what has been requested by another person.” Given the importance of knowledge hiding and the importance of this growing construct, this study systematically and retrospectively reviews 35 research articles on knowledge hiding published between 2008 and 2018. The review summarizes study characteristics as research profiles and then explores knowledge hiding, which is categorized and framed under respective sub‐topics. The scope and significance of the topic is discussed with reference to existing studies. Potential avenues for future research from theoretical, methodological, thematic, and demographic perspectives are highlighted along with managerial implications.