From data to action: knowledge management as institutional work in local governments
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Laihonen, H., Sinervo, L. M., & Pusenius, P. (2026). From data to action: knowledge management as institutional work in local governments. Knowledge Management Research & Practice. https://doi.org/10.1080/14778238.2026.2678229
© 2026 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. The terms on which this article has been published allow the posting of the Accepted Manuscript in a repository by the author(s) or with their consent.
Lataukset11
Pysyvä osoite
Kuvaus
Public sector organizations are facing increasing pressure to embed sustainability into their strategies, processes, and everyday management, yet research has only begun to explore how knowledge management supports this institutionalization process. This study addresses this gap by examining how senior local government managers understand sustainability as a managerial concern and how they access, interpret, and use sustainability‑related knowledge. Drawing on 25 semi‑structured interviews with branch and financial directors from Finnish municipalities, and informed by the knowledge‑based view and institutional work, the study identifies four arenas – strategy, reporting, capability building, and everyday management practices – in which KM supports the technical, political, and cultural work of institutionalizing sustainability. The findings show how KM enables public officials to interpret sustainability, adapt it to organizational priorities, integrate diverse information streams, and stabilize sustainability through routines, skills, and decision‑making practices across administrative domains. The proposed framework contributes to public sector KM theory by conceptualizing KM as a governance mechanism that supports the technical, political, and cultural work of institutionalizing sustainability. Practically, the study highlights how knowledge infrastructures, learning practices, and cross‑sectoral collaboration can strengthen the capacity of local governments to advance sustainability in adaptive and integrated ways.
Emojulkaisu
ISBN
ISSN
1477-8246
1477-8238
1477-8238
Aihealue
Kausijulkaisu
Knowledge management research and practice
OKM-julkaisutyyppi
A1 Alkuperäisartikkeli tieteellisessä aikakauslehdessä (vertaisarvioitu)