Journal of Global InformatIon manaGement April-June 2011, Vol. 19, No. 2 Table of Contents Special Issue on Knowledge Management in a Local-Global Context Guest Editor: Samuel K.W. Chu, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Patrick Y.K. Chau, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Research Articles 1 Contextual Factors, Knowledge Processes and Performance in Global Sourcing of IT Services: An Investigation in China Rong Du, Xidian University, China Shizhong Ai, Xidian University, China Pamela Abbot, Brunel University, UK Yingqin Zheng, De Montfort University, UK 27 Understanding Ofshore Outsourcing Knowledge Transfer Between Japanese Clients and Vietnamese Service Providers Nguyen Thu Huong, Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Japan Umemoto Katsuhiro, Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Japan Dam Hieu Chi, Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Japan 45 Factors Afecting Usage of Information Technology in Support of Knowledge Sharing: A Multiple Case Study of Service Organizations in Hong Kong Ngai-Keung Chow, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong 67 Inluence of Knowledge Management Infrastructure on Innovative Business Processes and Market-Interrelationship Performance: An Empirical Study of Hospitals in Taiwan Wen-Ting Lee, National Chung Cheng University, Taiwan Shin-Yuan Hung, National Chung Cheng University, Taiwan Patrick Y. K. Chau, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Journal of Global Information Management, 19(2), 45-66, April-June 2011 45 Factors Affecting Usage of Information Technology in Support of Knowledge Sharing: A Multiple Case Study of Service Organizations in Hong Kong Ngai-Keung Chow, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong ABSTRACT This study explores key factors affecting the usage of information technology (IT) tools in support of knowledge sharing in service organizations in Hong Kong. In a case study of ive irms, the usage of IT tools is inluenced by an array of factors acting as enablers, barriers, and motivators. The indings support extant theories on knowledge management (KM). This research discovers relationships between multiple factors and the usage of IT tools for knowledge sharing at various hierarchical levels. Operational factors like perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, staff capability, and nature of work induce higher usage of IT for knowledge sharing. These indings and related analyses have managerial implications for irms engaging in service business. Keywords: Barrier, Culture, Enablers, Information Technology Usage, Knowledge Sharing, Motivator, Organization Hierarchy, Resources, Service Organizations INTRODUCTION Hong Kong, a Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China, is a free economy with service industries as the main pillar, covering sectors like finance, trading, property development, IT and telecommunications, tourism and logistics. Hong Kong serves as a “leading gateway into China” with growing and deepening economic ties with the Mainland (Congressional Research Service, 2007). A leading business hub in Asia, Hong Kong is also the third global financial centre according to Chen (2010). With the widespread use of the Internet and telecommunication technologies comes a whole new age of globalization and levels the playing field as never before (Friedman, 2005). Hong Kong has to widen its economic base and to speed up the development of a knowledgebased economy. Firms in Hong Kong have to explore ways to enhance competitive edge in doing business, including the need to strengthen organizational capabilities and staff competency in utilizing IT in knowledge sharing. DOI: 10.4018/jgim.2011040103 Copyright © 2011, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. 46 Journal of Global Information Management, 19(2), 45-66, April-June 2011 Service organizations employ a relatively large proportion of knowledge workers than other types of organizations. Know-how held by individuals in service organizations is an intangible but essential part of the service process and could become a competitive advantage; it is therefore desirable for knowledge to be replicated and shared within a firm, in particular for service organizations with comparatively more knowledge workers, which seek opportunities for growth (Johnston & Clark, 2008). As service organizations form a core part of the Hong Kong economy, it is necessary to know how local service organizations are positioned in the use of IT in support of knowledge sharing and how they can create value to stay competitive in a dynamic and customer-oriented environment. Literature on KM shows that social, cultural and operational factors affect the use of IT for knowledge sharing. However, there is little research on the interplay of these factors, the relative impact of each of the factors and how they affect the different hierarchical levels in an organization. Given the practical concerns highlighted in the above paragraphs, it is imperative to identify the missing links. This paper examines KM from the resourcebased perspective and the use of IT in a KM context. Research questions focus on cultural and operational factors and their impact on the usage of IT in support of knowledge sharing within firms. Findings of the case study are analyzed and evaluated against insights gained from extant literature. This study casts light on how to better utilize IT tools in support of knowledge sharing when managing businesses in Hong Kong. LITERATURE REVIEW Knowledge as a Resource to Increase Competitive Edge of Firms Differential firm performance is attributed to variance in resource endowment (Penrose, 1959). According to Resource-Based View, a firm achieves competitive advantage with its unique resource (Barney, 1991). Knowledge is regarded as the most significant resource of a firm (Alavi & Leidner, 2001). The ability to integrate the knowledge of firm’s employees is a distinctive capability (Grant, 1996) and a dynamic resource (Spender, 1996), thus improving firm performance and enhancing its competitive advantage (Bogner & Bansal, 2007; Connell, 2004; Gold et al., 2001; Kogut & Zander, 1992; Sharkie, 2003; Zack, 1999). Explicit knowledge is “knowing what” that is codified and can easily be communicated, while tacit knowledge refers to “knowing how” in a subject matter which can only be revealed through application (Grant, 1996). Knowledge is created through dynamic interactions among individuals in the form of socialization, combination, externalization and internalization (Nonaka, 1994). Exchange of information may also generate knowledge (Nahapiet & Ghoshal, 1998). Information is converted to knowledge once it is processed in the mind of individuals (Alavi & Leidner, 2001). Effectiveness of IT for KM KM is defined as a means to acquire, organize, sustain, apply, share and renew an organization’s knowledge with a view to enhancing performance and creating value (Davenport & Prusak, 1998). An effective KM strategy to out-compete rivals is to integrate knowledge from individuals at the middle and junior management level to bring about innovations in technology and/ or strategies for products and services (Grant, 1996; Sharkie, 2003; Zack, 1999). IT is an important tool in KM, as information systems (IS) can be used to synthesize and facilitate KM within a firm and the wider market (Alavi & Leidner, 2001). Employees can enter both tacit and explicit knowledge in knowledge platforms such as “Lotus Notes” and knowledge repositories (Busch, 2008; Bennett & Gabriel, 1999). Zack (1999) finds that companies using conferencing systems with electronically based repositories are able to collect knowledge from presentation slides, comments and observations, trade shows and Copyright © 2011, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. Journal of Global Information Management, 19(2), 45-66, April-June 2011 47 social interactions. According to Bush and Tiwana (2005, p. 70), tacit knowledge may be documented and kept in a knowledge repository, which is termed “a people-to-documents model”; whereas tacit knowledge that cannot be easily codified may be “shared through hyperlinks, pointers, multimedia and conversations” in a collaborative knowledge network, which is termed “a people-to-people model”. In building an IS for KM, management needs to make knowledge visible, build knowledge-intensive culture and establish KM infrastructure (Davenport et al., 1998; Grant, 1996), with a focus not only on technical systems per se, but also on how they can facilitate work relationships and culture (Davenport et al., 1998; He et al., 2009). How far can IT as a tool in KM achieve the intended objectives? Scholars have different findings and views on the effectiveness of IT for KM. According to DeLone and McLean’s Information Success Model (1992), use of IT is a measure of IS success, but the actual use only makes sense for voluntary or discretionary users; high usage of IT would lead to improvement of performance of individual employees and the corporation as a whole, hence IS success and effectiveness. Based on such model, Bajaj and Nidumolu (1998) find that perceived ease of use determines IT usage; Saeed and AbdinnourHelm (2008) state that information quality and system integration influence perceived IS usefulness which will then drive IS usage. Malhotra and Majchrzak (2004, p. 75) demonstrate that “far-flung teams” in large firms can share knowledge with the use of team collaborative software, electronic discussion forum, instant messaging, synchronous application sharing and electronic whiteboards. Coff et al. (2006) illustrate that tacit knowledge, such as scarce expertise in surgical operations can be shared with the use of IT for remote monitoring and videoconference. In choosing IT tools for knowledge sharing, Mohamed et al. (2006) suggest that the tools should be able to incorporate an organization’s socio-cultural contexts, or else the codified knowledge would not be meaningful to readers. Hislop (2002) points out that as knowledge has tacit and explicit components which are subjective, socially constructed and embedded in organizational contexts, what IT can do at most is to facilitate knowledge sharing, but ultimately all depends on people’s motivation in the use of IT and their ability in knowledge assimilation. As such, this study focuses on voluntary IT usage for effective knowledge sharing in service organizations in Hong Kong. Use of IT in Support of KM in Service Organizations So far, scholars have identified that IT tools like videoconferencing, email, telephone, company databases, collaborative knowledge networks and knowledge repositories are popular choices in service companies for knowledge sharing among staff. According to Bennett and Gabriel’s (1999) survey with heads of large marketing departments in five different sectors, including retailing and financial services, the use of intranet, videoconferencing, company encyclopedia and electronic devices such as “Lotus Notes” for knowledge sharing are popular in the UK. Similar technologies are also reported in KMS development in US (Alavi & Leidner, 2001; Malhotra & Majchrzak, 2004).Knowledge about customers kept by sales and / or service agents is often tacit and not well-organized (Davenport & Klahr, 1998). In the UK and USA, staff uses collaborative knowledge networks like Lotus Notes to capture tacit knowledge like experience and insights generated from projects for sharing (Bennett & Gabriel, 1999; Busch, 2008; Bush & Tiwana, 2005; Davenport & Klahr, 1998). The same mechanism applies to organizations with branches scattered in different countries and places (Malhotra & Majchrzak, 2004). According to Moore and Birkinshaw (1998), global service firms build centres of excellence, which comprise leading experts in certain fields, Copyright © 2011, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. 48 Journal of Global Information Management, 19(2), 45-66, April-June 2011 and connect individuals from multiple locations by means of Intranet, groupware and conferencing tools, with a view to tapping and sharing tacit knowledge of strategic importance to the firm, and to enhancing organizational capabilities to maintain the company’s competitive edge. The above research findings relate to service organizations in developed economies in the West. With ample business opportunities in Asia, and with Hong Kong as a leading business hub in the Region, it is time to examine the functioning of service organizations, which form a main pillar of the Hong Kong’s economy. As there has not been any research in this area, the current study explores whether there is any prevalent use of IT for knowledge sharing in service organizations in Hong Kong. Factors Affecting the Use of IT in Support of Knowledge Sharing Within Firms Among factors affecting the success of IS, national culture, economic structure, political / legal environment and technological status are the keys (Watson et al., 1997). In terms of these dimensions, Hong Kong can be considered a developed economy similar to US, UK, Europe and Australia, but with different cultural heritage, social norms and work practices. With more than a decade after reunification with China, Hong Kong enjoys political stability and economic prosperity, and continues to be on par with most developed countries in, inter alia, maintaining a well-established IT infrastructure with easy access to IT at work, i.e. a high level of IS maturity. Yet, in view of the special mix of Chinese and Western culture in Hong Kong, Western theories cannot be generalized and separate collection and analysis of evidence is required. The following highlights key factors’ impact based on extant research findings. Impact of National Culture In Hofstede’s (1980, 1994) study on employees and managers in 64 different national subsidiar- ies of IBM Corporation, Hong Kong is rated low in uncertainty avoidance and high in collectivism. To Hall and Hall (1990), in a high-context culture (e.g. Chinese), most communication is tacit instead of explicitly recorded. Bhagat et al. (2002, p. 210) posit that people in individualist culture prefer information that is codified and communicated to all; whereas those in collectivist cultures prefer tacit knowledge and communicate only with in-group members. According to Fu et al. (2007), many Hong Kong managers are “biculturals” in the sense that their ways of thinking and behaviours are influenced by both Chinese and Western cultural values. Cultural factors affecting knowledge sharing via IT tools among Chinese employees include uncertainty avoidance (Downing et al., 2003; Hasan & Ditsa, 1999; Johns et al., 2002; Kambayashi & Scarborough, 2001; Straub, 1994; Yoo & Torrey, 2002), collectivism (Ardichvili et al., 2006; Chow et al., 2000; Gamble & Gibson, 1999; Hasan & Ditsa, 1999; Hutchings & Michailova, 2004; Hwang et al., 2003; Kurman, 2003; Yao et al., 2007) and context (Calhoun et al., 2002; Hasan & Ditsa, 1999; Mehta et al., 2006). As Hong Kong is a society where East meets West and which undergoes rapid socioeconomic changes, there is a need to ascertain how far the above aspects of national culture influence local Chinese employees in the use of IT for knowledge sharing, and which factors exert more influence on their work behaviours. Impact of Corporate Culture Corporate culture refers to norms, shared values and attitudes of members in a corporation. Organizational culture consists of six components: teamwork, morale, supervision, involvement, information flow and meetings (Glaser & Zamanou, 1987). Based on O’Reilly et al.’s (1991) Organizational Cultural Profile, knowledge-related values like “people-oriented”, “team-oriented”, “sharing information freely” and “achievement orientation” have Copyright © 2011, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. Journal of Global Information Management, 19(2), 45-66, April-June 2011 49 a positive correlation with IT implementation (Harper & Utley, 2001; Jarvenpaa & Staples, 2001). Without a prior cognition on the collaborative nature on groupware, Orlikowski (1992) found that the rollout of groupware without the incentives or the norms for sharing expertise would not induce collaboration. Corporate culture also comprises management orientation, which refers to management’s assumptions or beliefs (Keegan & Green, 2008). Pan and Scarbrough (1999) find out that management mindset and leadership critically facilitate KM practice in Buckman Laboratories. According to Alavi and Leidner (2006), it is the tension among competing dominant organizational values – expert recognition, adherence to procedures, innovativeness, collaboration and autonomy that leads to different outcomes of KM use. So far there is little research on the impact of corporate culture in the use of IT for knowledge sharing. Besides, literature to date does not touch on the importance of corporate culture relative to other factors in influencing the use of IT for knowledge sharing. Impact of Perceived Usefulness and Ease of Use Davis (1989, p. 320) defines perceived usefulness as “the degree to which a person believes that using a particular system would enhance his or her job performance.” He also defines perceived ease of use as “the degree to which a person believes that using a particular system would be free of effort.” Bajaj and Nidumolu (1998) find that as long as users perceive that IS is easy to use, they would be ready to use the tool. Similarly, perceived usefulness of IS induces usage (Saeed & Abdinnour-Helm, 2008; Seddon & Kiew, 1996). Thus there is a strong link between IS usage and perceived usefulness and ease of use of IT tools. However, there is little empirical evidence of any correlation between IS usage and the use of IT tools for the purpose of knowledge sharing. Impact of Staff Capability and Nature of Work According to Townsend and Cairns (2003), capability refers to ability (i.e. current competence plus potential), self-efficacy (belief in one’s own capability) and values (such as trust, valuing diversity or global sensitivity). In a business context, Stephenson (1992) defines individual capability as an integration of knowledge, skills, personal qualities and an understanding of the dynamic nature of the business. Davenport (2005) defines the nature of work in terms of its complexity (varying from routine to requiring interpretation/judgment) and the level of interdependence (varying from individual actions to collaboration in groups). Peterson et al. (2001) mention four dimensions of the structure of work, namely information input, mental processes, work output and interactions with others. Based on these dimensions, Lee (2007) examines knowledge work performed in a bank; and finds that middle-level staff tends to have more interactions with others, which is in line with the insights of Nonaka (1994). While these studies touch upon the nature of work varies among staff at different ranks, they do not examine how IT usage varies at different hierarchical levels and among staff with different competency levels, and how such usage affects knowledge sharing in a service organization. This research attempts to fill the gap. Impact of Firm Size Fabiani et al. (2005) point out that large firms generally have an edge in the adoption of IT. On the other hand, SMEs usually lack funding to invest in KM development (McAdam & Reid, 2001); thus, the use of IT for KM is not high in their priority list (Wong & Aspinwall, 2005). However, because of SMEs’ preference for social construction of knowledge and their need for external knowledge and inter-organizational Copyright © 2011, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. 50 Journal of Global Information Management, 19(2), 45-66, April-June 2011 Table 1. Analytical framework for evaluating firms’ usage of IT in support of knowledge sharing KM Processes KM Sub-Processes Illustrative KM Mechanisms Illustrative IT in support of KM Knowledge sharing Socialization (Nonaka, 1994) e.g., Employee rotation across departments, conferences, brainstorming, projects e.g., Telephone, audio / video-conferencing, electronic discussion groups, email Exchange (Nahapiet & Ghoshal, 1998) e.g., Memos, manuals, letters, presentations e.g., Internet / Intranet / Extranet, team collaboration tools, information repositories, best practices and lesson learned databases knowledge transfer (Chen et al., 2006; Desouza & Awazu, 2006), these organizations are likely to consider IT tools which can support external relations with a lower transaction cost (Fabiani et al., 2005). It is not clear whether similar findings can be applied to service organizations in Hong Kong. RESEARCH GAP AND RESEARCH QUESTIONS Even though it is widely accepted that knowledge is a resource which can increase a firm’s competitive advantage, there is no extensive research on whether and how an array of factors affects the usage of IT in support of knowledge sharing among different levels within service organizations in Hong Kong. To address the above research gaps, this study raises three key questions: (1) What are the key factors influencing the usage patterns of IT in support of knowledge sharing in service organizations in Hong Kong, and what is the relative impact of each factor? (2) How do these factors affect the usage of IT tools at different levels of the organizational hierarchy? (3) To what extent does this study validate past findings and extant theories? In studying the usage of IT for knowledge sharing as a KM process, this research makes reference to Becerra-Fernandez et al.’s (2004) analytical framework shown in Table 1. Such framework incorporates knowledge creation models from different cultural backgrounds, viz Nonaka’s knowledge creation model which is largely embedded in traditional Japanese values and management practices (Glisby & Holden, 2003), as well as Nahapiet and Ghoshal’s (1998) concept of knowledge creation. Since no single knowledge creation model can be applied across different cultures, it might be useful to adopt Becerra-Fernandez et al.’s (2004) framework, with a view to enhancing explanatory power in the context of Hong Kong with a mix of Western and Chinese styles of management. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND DESIGN Case Study Case study approach is most appropriate for studying a phenomenon which is broad and complex (Gummesson, 2000; Yin, 2003). This study is exploratory in nature, so it is necessary to gather insights from diversified perspectives. As this research may contain a priori identifiable patterns of relationships between independent and dependent variables, a positivist approach is adopted. The service industry is selected for this research as it forms a major pillar of the Hong Kong economy. IT, finance and telecommunication service as leading sectors in using IT as knowledge enabler (Shapira et al., 2006), together with property development, a key sector of the local economy are chosen for study. The selected firms are medium and large, both local and multinational corporations (MNC). Their Copyright © 2011, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. Journal of Global Information Management, 19(2), 45-66, April-June 2011 51 Table 2. Summary of profiles of case firms Company Number of employees Sector Local / MNC Organization structure Hierarchical levels2 A 20,000 Telecom & IT MNC Centralized with centres of excellence1 4 B 100,000 Finance MNC Centralized with centres of excellence 4 C 20,000 Property Development Local with presence in China Centralized 4 D 2000 IT Local with presence in S.E Asia and China Centralized with centres of excellence 3 E 500 Telecom & IT Local with presence in S.E. Asia and China Centralized with centres of excellence 4 1. referring to units with leading experts in certain fields and which are called upon to help other units in an organization as and when required 2. referring to the levels between the interviewees’ ranking and that of frontline staff, in connection with their modes of communication branch offices are geographically dispersed, and rely on IT tools in communication. Table 2 gives profiles of the case firms used. Data Collection and Analysis In this research, a combination of structured surveys, interviews, observations and archival sources is used to collect data. The unit of analysis is an organization which consists of various hierarchical layers, viz senior level (e.g. senior executives and senior managers), middle level (professional staff and middle managers) and junior level (junior/frontline staff). At least one senior executive and one middle or professional staff in each firm are selected for interviews in this study as recommended by Perry (1998). Interviewees’ tenures range from three to twenty years. Senior executives / senior managers in this study include chief executive officer, chief information officer, senior vice president and marketing director, whereas middle managers / professional staff include training manager, sales and marketing manager and IT consultant. Prior to the interviews, structured surveys were conducted. All interviewees were requested to fill in information about the type of IT tools being used, their usage at different organizational layers, under what circumstances they are used, reasons to use and factors affecting usage pattern of IT tools. Interviewees were asked to indicate their usage of each IT tool on a seven-level scale varying from 1 = no or very low usage to 7 = very high usage. Individual scores for senior executives, middle managers and junior staff in each case firm were summed up to reflect the overall usage for each IT tool across all five case firms (see Figure 1 for the most popular IT tools used). The interviews were held during September to December 2007. Interviewees were asked open-end questions, followed by more focused, semi-structured questions and probing questions for one to two hours. Issues were subsequently clarified by phone or by email. The questions were intended to (1) explore what factors account for the usage patterns of IT in support of knowledge sharing; (2) understand how these factors affect the usage patterns of IT in support of knowledge sharing; and (3) assess the relative impact of these factors in affecting the usage patterns of IT in support of knowledge sharing (see Figure 1). During each interview, direct observation of the use of IT tools in meetings and other office activities was made, which served as evidence to support what the interviewees stated. This case study Copyright © 2011, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. 52 Journal of Global Information Management, 19(2), 45-66, April-June 2011 Figure 1. IT usage patterns in support of knowledge sharing in five case firms (A to E) also made use of archival sources including annual reports and press releases. Data analysis follows Yin’s (2003) strategy of case description and pattern matching logic – to identify patterns (i.e. factors affecting IT usage for knowledge sharing) and to account for such phenomena in each firm (i.e. to build internal validity); to compare patterns in different firms, to account for similarities and differences in various dimensions, and to generalize findings across firms (i.e. to achieve external validity). Findings are categorized (Miles & Huberman, 1994) according to IT usage patterns and the importance of each factor. Company B is a global leader in financial and insurance services with headquarters in North America. Company C is a large property conglomerate listed in Hong Kong with business in China. Company D is a medium-sized IT service provider with headquarters in Hong Kong, and business stronghold in China and South East Asia. Company E is a locally listed medium-sized firm in IT and telecommunication with regional coverage. Given keen competition in all these industries, all five case firms’ strategies include keeping abreast of market developments, sharing knowledge and devising innovative solutions to meet customer needs. CASE ANALYSIS Knowledge Creation from the Use of IT tools Profile of Case Companies and Need for Knowledge Sharing Company A is an international IT and telecommunication corporation listed in Hong Kong. All interviewees indicate that they and their colleagues use a variety of IT tools to share information and knowledge in their organizations, similar to the findings in US and UK (Alavi & Leidner, 2001; Bennett & Gabriel, 1999). They Copyright © 2011, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. Journal of Global Information Management, 19(2), 45-66, April-June 2011 53 also recognize the importance of knowledge in sustaining an organization’s competitiveness, but admit that they do not have a formal KM system to capture tacit knowledge and to share new knowledge. In Company A, all interviewees consider that IT tools can facilitate information transfer through staff’s involvement in communication loops of telephone calls and emails, but it is at the discretion of individual staff member to assimilate learning and construct knowledge. The organization does not have any proactive means to promote knowledge creation or to monitor the learning outcome. Though there is a database updated by a subject matter expert, it cannot effectively tap tacit knowledge in the minds of project team members. In Company B, IT tools facilitate information transfer through (1) staff’s involvement in communication loops and database access for daily business activities and (2) teleconferences for regional business reviews. Again, it is up to individual staff to pick up what they want to learn, and staff’s efforts in tapping knowledge are largely hindered by heavy workload. While promoting knowledge sharing through the use of IT, the management does not take deliberate steps to monitor the learning outcome. In Company C, the management actively employs IT tools to keep track of business records, and some staff take the initiative to tap information from the data warehouse and to generate knowledge during such process. As for Company D, interviewees express that staff mainly communicate face-to-face, by phone and email and think that it is necessary to tap good business practices and store them in a repository. They agree that the extent of knowledge creation depends on the initiative of individual staff. With regard to Company E, interviewees mention that subject matter experts codify useful insights generated from business projects and disseminate them through the intranet, thus facilitating staff’s work and enhancing their problem-solving skills. In all five firms, there is information sharing with the use of IT tools as a daily routine, and with subject matter experts codifying tacit knowledge and keeping track of business records in database for sharing. However, individual project team members lack the initiative to proactively codify and share tacit knowledge, unlike their Western counterparts (Bennett & Gabriel, 1999; Busch, 2008; Bush & Tiwana, 2005; Davenport et al., 1998). It is also uncertain whether and how far knowledge is created and assimilated in the sharing process. This echoes Hislop’s (2002) view that IT could only facilitate knowledge sharing, but it is up to individual in knowledge assimilation. Usage of IT Tools at Different Hierarchical Levels for Knowledge Sharing Interviewees in this study consider that appropriate IT tools are essential for speeding up work progress, improving productivity and sharing knowledge, and indicate that their use of IT tools is voluntary. Thus usage is a suitable measure of IT effectiveness (DeLone & McLean, 1992) for knowledge sharing for this study. In all five case firms, telephones/voicemails and emails are most popular; teleconferences, intranet, information portal (with access to information repositories, best practices / lesson learned databases) and videoconferences are not used heavily; and electronic discussion groups and team collaboration are seldom used. Nonetheless, at different hierarchical levels, there are various patterns of usage of specific IT tools (see Figure 1). IT usage patterns vary among senior, middle and junior staff, because they have diverse task requirements, possess different experience and language proficiency, and display different mentalities and attitudes. For senior managers in this study, they prefer face-to-face meetings in sharing business insights, discussing strategic plans and negotiating with business partners. However, if they find it difficult to line up meetings because of busy schedules, they would resort to emails and tele/videoconferences. By virtue of their competency, senior managers can freely choose the most appropriate IT tool. With regard to Copyright © 2011, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. 54 Journal of Global Information Management, 19(2), 45-66, April-June 2011 alternative IT tools, online sharing and information portals are not prevalent. In Companies A to D, senior managers rarely use online discussion because business discussion may be sensitive and should not be posted online; some matters are controversial and staff prefer not to keep any written records, lest they would be held accountable. Only in Company E is online discussion often used where circumstances allow, mainly because of encouragement from the CEO. As for information portal, it is used by the senior management in Company C only, probably because the nature of work involves highly meticulous planning in construction projects and stringent risk management. As for middle management, professional staff and knowledge workers, they also use emails and telephones frequently. They use information portal more often than their seniors to handle customers’ requests, but seldom use videoconferences and online discussion tools, mainly because of the different nature of their work. They normally implement action plans at the operational level; and it would be less costly and more convenient to carry out their tasks by means of telephones and emails instead of videoconferencing. Besides, some middlelevel staff may not want to take part in open discussions in video/teleconferences, because of language proficiency and/or their tendency to avoid making commitments and decisions on-the-spot. Besides, their business requires fast response, and on-line discussion does not help them solve day-to-day operational problems. Under tight work schedules, most staff think that it is time consuming and difficult to translate ideas into writing in online discussion. With regard to junior staff, they sort out matters with colleagues and customers directly by means of face-to-face meetings and telephones, the most convenient means of communication for them. Their nature of work seldom calls for other IT tools for knowledge sharing, and they are not well-equipped to use them. The usage of intranet in one firm is relatively high, because the CEO advocates it. This is however an exception rather than a norm. Factors Affecting IT Usage in Service Organizations in Hong Kong The following is an analysis of major factors affecting IT usage in support of knowledge sharing in five service organizations in Hong Kong. They are grouped into two categories, viz (1) operational level – practical concerns such as nature of work, staff capability, perceived usefulness and ease of use and (2) cultural at the national and corporate level, as shown in Figure 2. This section also validates findings from past research and extant theories. Dominant Role of Perceived Usefulness and Ease of Use on IT Usage for Knowledge Sharing In line with the findings of Bajaj and Nidumolu (1998), Saeed and Abdinnour-Helm (2008) and Seddon and Kiew (1996), there is empirical evidence in this study that perceived usefulness and ease of use have a strong impact on the usage of IT tools for sharing of information and knowledge across all organizational levels, though its popularity also hinges on other factors like nature of work and staff capability. In all case firms, IT tools are employed as long as they are perceived as useful for designated purposes; for instance emails for confirming understanding and verbal agreement, telephones for handling urgent matters and clarifying details, video and teleconferencing tools for open discussions among multiple parties, and information portals for providing updated market information to support decisionmaking. In all companies under study, emails and telephones are perceived as the easiest and fastest ways of conveying simple messages and gist of discussions. Emails can be accessed at anywhere anytime. On the other hand, videoconferencing tools are not available in every branch office; intranet and databases are not adequately developed in some firms because of resource constraints; and team collaboration Copyright © 2011, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. Journal of Global Information Management, 19(2), 45-66, April-June 2011 55 Figure 2. Major factors affecting IT usage for knowledge sharing for case firms (A to E) Copyright © 2011, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. 56 Journal of Global Information Management, 19(2), 45-66, April-June 2011 software is seldom used in any firm under study because it is not perceived as convenient. Where one or two IT tools (e.g. emails and phones versus team collaboration tools and electronic discussion tools) can serve similar purposes and meet particular task requirements (i.e. cater for the nature of work), staff would pick one or two (e.g. emails and phones) which they think is/are most useful and easy to use, and which they are competent to handle (staff capability). Dominant Role of Staff Capability in IT Usage for Knowledge Sharing In all case companies, staff capability in terms of business knowledge and experience, language ability and computer literacy has a rather strong influence on staff’s usage of IT tools for sharing of information and knowledge. Senior managers demonstrate knowledge, skills as well as an understanding of the dynamic nature of their business (Townsend & Cairns, 2003). They have rich experience and a good command of both spoken and written English, and share views with ease by whatever means of communication. As for middle managers, their command of written and spoken English is not as good, and they often talk face-to-face and on the phone, followed up by emails. Junior staff who are less competent talk on the phone in Cantonese instead of writing emails in English. There is also evidence in this study that personal factors like self-efficacy (Bandura, 1986) are at play. Where language proficiency and computer skills of staff in a firm are high, as in Companies A and B, there is a greater usage of emails across the board. In Company C, junior staff at construction sites find it difficult to use computer and to write in either English or Chinese, so they prefer talking over the phone. Unlike enablers like perceived usefulness and ease of use which induce IT usage (i.e. positive correlation between their impact and IT usage), staff capability may both induce and discourage IT usage, thus its net impact on overall IT usage may be relatively less. Dominant Role of Nature of Work on IT Usage for Knowledge Sharing For all the case firms under this study, staff is engaged in work activities cited by Peterson et al. (2001). For example, senior / middle managers need to undergo mental processes in making business decisions. Middle managers / knowledge workers perform complex / technical activities in different disciplines, and devise competitive solutions for customers. Staff at all ranks are involved in interactions with various working parties. Given the diversified nature of work of staff at different hierarchical levels in an organization, they employ various IT tools to meet their specific task needs. Hence, ample evidence that nature of work exerts a strong influence on IT usage for knowledge sharing. In Company A, most business issues related to new market rollouts are fluid, so managers use tele/videoconferences, followed up by phones and emails. Similarly, for investment consultants in Company B, their business matters are complicated, so they usually talk either face-to-face or on the phone, and use emails to summarize discussions. In Company C, where complicated professional work involves integration of multiple disciplines, knowledge workers utilize an array of IT tools like database, phones and emails, apart from face-to-face discussions. As business discussion may be sensitive and controversial, senior managers tend to avoid expressing their views online. Similar to staff capability, nature of work may both induce and discourage IT usage, thus the net impact of nature of work on overall IT usage may turn out to be relatively less. During the course of this study, it is discovered that senior executives devote much time in socializing with colleagues, business partners and other industry players by means of face-toface communication as well as IT tools. There is empirical evidence that the nature of their work is linked with social relationships, and in particular strong ties and weak ties (Granovetter, 1983), which in turn affects their use of IT. Copyright © 2011, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. Journal of Global Information Management, 19(2), 45-66, April-June 2011 57 In Granovetter’s (1983) study of social networks, strong ties (e.g. in-groups, close friends and family) tend to lock into a clique and stop ideas from sharing because of the overlap in contact and information, whereas weak ties (casual acquaintance) allows sharing of information and insights from new network. With regard to the sharing of product development knowhow among different units in a company, Hansen (1999) find that weak inter-unit ties only help speed up the sharing of less complex knowledge; in the case of effective sharing of complex knowledge, a strong tie between the two parties is required. In this research, senior managers have a mission to build social connections and to explore new grounds, and so they engage in face-to-face discussions among multiple parties, including strong and weak ties, supplemented by IT tools like conferencing tools and emails. On the contrary, middle managers / professional staff in all case firms tend to focus on daily operations. Instead of venturing with new networks, they tend to rely on strong ties so as to facilitate heavy exchange of information to get things done. This is in line with Hansen’s (1999) findings. Moderate Impact of Uncertainty Avoidance (National Culture) on IT Usage for Knowledge Sharing This study shows that Chinese middle and junior managers in Hong Kong generally display uncertainty avoidance – the leaning towards clear situations (Hofstede, 1980, 1994). Such sharing propensity affects their choice of IT tools. Firstly, they like structured situations, do not like open discussion and tend to hold back if they feel uncertain. Unless instructed by supervisors, they refrain from sharing information and views with colleagues especially from other departments, thus limiting the number of meetings and usage of emails and telephones. That is also why they do not use audio or videoconferencing tools which require participants to be more vocal. Another indication of uncertainty avoidance is staff’s preference for conventional IT tools for information and knowledge sharing. When face-to-face clarification is not viable, staff uses telephones to confirm understanding of tacit knowledge, and use emails to exchange explicit knowledge and to record discussions. To play safe, they avoid unconventional IT tools such as electronic discussion forum and team collaboration software. This explains why there is higher usage of conventional IT tools like emails and telephones than other IT tools. A third indication is that middle and junior managers use a mix of high-context (e.g. face-to-face meetings and telephones) and low-context communication (e.g. frequent use of business database and consultation with experts by emails) (Hall & Hall, 1990; Mehta et al., 2006), in order to ensure data accuracy and validity of their analysis, and to avoid being challenged. The combined effect of the above three kinds of user behaviour is that middle-level staff who want to clarify matters would often use a mix of emails, telephones and information portals, but other middle and junior staff who do not bother to commit themselves simply refrain from using IT tools for communication and sharing. As for senior staff in the case companies, they do not display obvious signs of uncertainty avoidance; it is inferred that this factor does not affect their usage of IT tools for sharing. Hence the impact of uncertainty avoidance on the overall IT usage rate is moderate. Low Impact of Collectivism (National Culture) on IT Usage for Knowledge Sharing This study shows that Chinese middle and junior managers in Hong Kong tend to be collectivistic rather than individualistic in their propensity in sharing of information and knowledge. That means they tend to share only with in-group members, which echoes the findings of Ardichvili et al. (2006) and Ritter and Choi (2000). As communication among in-group members is usually sensitive by nature, it is better handled by phone if face-to-face meetings cannot be arranged. Copyright © 2011, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. 58 Journal of Global Information Management, 19(2), 45-66, April-June 2011 Staff is not keen to use teleconferences or electronic forums which are meant for more participants from different departments engaging in open discussions. With the existence of collectivism, there are perceived competitions among departments and different in-groups, which may hinder sharing through teleconversations and emails. On the other hand, staff assigned to work in project teams is obliged to share information and knowledge by means of telephones and use emails to keep records of discussions. In-group influence is minimal in project teams. This shows that factors like nature of work come into play in inducing IT usage in support of knowledge sharing. In a nutshell, with collectivism among staff, sharing within in-groups is normally by means of face-to-face chats or telephones at most, rather than by widespread use of other IT tools, while voluntary sharing with out-groups is minimal, hence low overall usage of IT tools in the case firms. Little Influence of Corporate Culture on IT Usage for Knowledge Sharing In this research, corporate culture only has a little effect on IT usage for knowledge sharing. As far as management orientation is concerned, it only has a moderate influence on staff’s sharing propensity and their choice of IT tools for knowledge sharing in the five firms under study, which is contrary to the case study on Buckman Laboratories. In Companies A, B and E, senior management prefers a sharing culture, but individual staff is loyal to their immediate supervisors only. In Company B, senior management prefers formal records on all communications, thus a need to document the teleconversations by emails to make things clear. In Company C, management tolerates junior staff who are less competent in the use of emails. In Company D, the management do not insist on knowledge sharing, instead they develop a database on best business practices to facilitate it. As for other aspects of corporate culture, customer-oriented culture in Company A may induce IT usage for sharing among middle and junior staff; and performance culture in Company B motivates those with achievement orientation to report to supervisors by various means of communication. However, sharing culture in the case firms is confined to senior managers in close contacts with open-minded Western colleagues. Judging from the above, corporate culture does not exert much influence on the use of IT for knowledge sharing. Minimal Impact of Firm Size on IT Usage for Knowledge Sharing This study shows that staff in both large and smaller firms generally prefers to talk face-toface and exhibit similar patterns for usage of different IT tools (see subtotal for individual companies in Figure 1). There is little evidence that firm size has a notable impact on the usage of IT tools like emails, telephones, teleconferences and intranet. Firm size has some impact on the usage of videoconferences in the three largest firms relative to the two smaller firms, as shown from Figure 1. However, the usage of videoconferences in these firms is not only because of firm size per se, but also due to other factors like nature of work, management orientation, staff capability and perceived usefulness. Strong Impact of Motivation on IT Usage for Knowledge Sharing In the course of this study, it is discovered that staff have different motivations behind their use of IT tools for knowledge sharing in organizations. According to Social Capital Theory (Nahapiet & Ghoshal, 1998, p. 243), knowledge creation requires social capital which is the aggregate of “resources embedded within the network of relationships” in an organization. Chiu et al. (2006, p.1872) find that different Copyright © 2011, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. Journal of Global Information Management, 19(2), 45-66, April-June 2011 59 facets of social capital – “social interaction ties”, “trust”, “norm of reciprocity”, “identification”, “shared vision” and “shared language” motivate individuals in knowledge sharing in online communities. According to Social Cognitive Theory (Bandura, 1986), individuals’ behaviour is a dynamic and reciprocal interaction of personal factors including self-efficacy and outcome expectations. There is empirical evidence for people to contribute their knowledge in electronic repository if they perceive an increase in their professional reputations (i.e. outcome expectation) and think they have the experience to share (i.e. self-efficacy) (Kankanhalli et al., 2005; Lin & Huang, 2008; McLure-Wasko & Faraj, 2005). Individuals are perceived as calculative and their sharing is motivated by self-interests (Connolly & Heminger, 1992). Individuals share also because they are driven by business norms and commitment (Kalman et al., 2002). Jian and Jeffres (2006) consider that employees’ willingness to contribute to shared electronic database is based on three organizational processes, viz cost-benefits analysis, organizational identification and collaboration. There is evidence in this study that staff is motivated to share because perceived benefits outweigh potential costs (Ardichvili, 2008; He & Wei, 2009). Chinese managers share views because of “intrinsic benefits (knowledge selfefficacy and enjoyment in helping others)” and “extrinsic benefits (reciprocity and organizational reward)” (He & Wei, 2009; Kankanhalli et al., 2005). In all case firms, sharing is perceived to bring about intrinsic benefits like job satisfaction arising from identifying oneself with own department, feeling happy to represent department, improving colleagues’ work performance and promoting working relationships; sharing is also perceived to bring about extrinsic benefits like strengthening one’s capabilities, meeting bosses’ expectations in exchange for career advancement, and enhancing service quality and the Company’s competitiveness. The findings prove that multi-disciplinary collaboration can transcend in-group com- munication and promote sharing in service organizations. There is relatively little in-group influence in project teams, and middle-ranked staff is ready to share in face-to-face discussions, or by telephones and emails. Project team members are more willing to contribute their knowledge if they perceive that it would increase their reputations, and they have the experience to share (McLure-Wasko & Faraj, 2005). With experts coming from a wide spectrum of fields, multi-disciplinary project teams bring together “social capital” (Nahapiet & Ghoshal, 1998) which benefits all concerned. Obvious Impact of MacroEnvironment on IT Usage for Knowledge Sharing By virtue of Hong Kong’s stable political environment, free economy, free flow of information, a well-established legal system, and advanced infrastructure for telecommunication and transportation, together with its close relationship with the booming economy in China, there have been lots of economic activities and business opportunities. However, in view of keen competition in the global market and increasingly sophisticated and demanding customers, firms in different sectors, big and small alike, face intense pressure. In order to differentiate from competitors, senior managers in all case companies agree that they need to offer innovative solutions. To address customers’ needs and expectations, managers in this study spend about 30% to 80% of their time in multi-disciplinary project meetings, by means of face-to-face discussions, teleconferencing and emails to share complex project information. A Model for Analysing IT Usage for Knowledge Sharing Ardichvili (2008) proposes a framework (in Figure 3) for understanding motivators, barriers and enablers for knowledge sharing in online community at workplace. Motivating factors include utilitarian considerations, value-based considerations, and a sense of community and Copyright © 2011, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. 60 Journal of Global Information Management, 19(2), 45-66, April-June 2011 Figure 3. Ardichvili’s (2008) model for successful online knowledge sharing and learning belonging. Barriers include interpersonal factors, technology-related factors and cultural norms. Enablers include supportive culture, personal trust and availability of suitable tools. Firstly on motivators (Ardichvili, 2008), there is evidence in this study that staff share because of perceived personal benefits and a sense of belonging. Knowledge self-efficacy, enjoyment in helping others and promoting working relationships benefit employees in case firms emotionally (He & Wei, 2009). To identify themselves with the company (Ardichvili, 2008; Jian & Jeffres, 2006), senior managers in Company C share wisdom with their protégés and groom them into effective managers. The competitive business environment in Hong Kong also poses as a motivator for firms to foster knowledge sharing among staff so as to meet customer demands, lest they would lose out in the market. Secondly on barriers (Ardichvili, 2008), there is ample evidence in all case firms that cultural factors like in-group orientation and uncertainty avoidance impede knowledge sharing by means of IT tools especially among middle and junior staff. Thirdly on enablers (Ardichvili, 2008), there is empirical support in this research that usefulness and ease of use of IT tools (for all case firms), staff’s ability (for all case firms), top management’s support (for Company E), and a corporate culture promoting interactions (for Company B) facilitate knowledge sharing in an organization. The macro environment of Hong Kong is an enabler as well, because the relatively open Government administration, transparent legislature, fair judicial system, free economy and sophisticated IT infrastructure facilitate knowledge sharing in the community and with the wider world. In this study, it is also found that two additional factors, viz staff capability and nature of work have strong impact on the usage of IT tools in support of knowledge sharing at various hierarchical levels. Their impact may be positive or negative. Staff capability can act as an enabler or barrier in IT usage for knowledge sharing. Managers in the case firms clearly display capability – ability, self-efficacy and appropriate shared values (Townsend & Cairns, 2003); this induces high usage of IT for knowledge sharing. On the contrary, staff who are less competent may refrain from using IT for sharing. As for nature of work, it can also serve as an enabler or barrier in IT usage for knowledge sharing (Davenport, 2005; Peterson et al., 2001). In all five case firms, where an IT tool fits staff’s work nature and requirements, its usage is high; and vice versa. The above shows that an array of factors is at play – no one factor, however dominant it is, can lead to high usage of a specific IT tool. CONCLUSION Answers to Research Questions This study has addressed the three research questions. Firstly, an important insight drawn from this study is that an array of factors conspires Copyright © 2011, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. Journal of Global Information Management, 19(2), 45-66, April-June 2011 61 to influence the usage patterns of IT tools for knowledge sharing in service organizations in Hong Kong. This includes (a) operational factors – perceived usefulness (score: 73), perceived ease of use (score: 68), staff capability (score: 62) and nature of work (score: 61); and (b) cultural factors – management orientation (score: 43), uncertainty avoidance (score: 34) and collectivism (score: 17), in the order of their impact on the usage of IT for knowledge sharing. Key drivers of IT usage are operational factors. As for other factors, there is little evidence showing that they have definitive influence on the usage of IT tools for knowledge sharing in service organizations in Hong Kong. Nonetheless, the impact of each factor cannot be isolated in practice, as the popularity of an IT tool is not solely determined by one factor; other factors also come into play. Secondly, IT usage patterns of staff at different organizational ranks may vary. This may be attributed to different characteristics of senior, middle and junior staff – who have diverse task requirements (i.e. nature of work), possess different experience, language proficiency and communication skills (i.e. staff capabilities), and display different mentalities and attitudes (mainly due to staff capabilities, uncertainty avoidance, collectivism and management orientation). Thirdly, this study confirms extant theories and research findings that perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use (operational factors) are important in inducing usage of IT. In addition, this study shows that the impact of other factors is more subtle; in particular, nature of work and staff capability (operational factors), collectivism and uncertainty avoidance (cultural factors) may induce IT usage under certain circumstances but impede IT usage under other circumstances. Limitations of this Study and Implications for Future Research Firstly, this study is specific to service organizations in Hong Kong only. Interviewees are confined to Chinese managers; it is not clear whether and how far their perceptions and behaviours are similar to those of their Western counterparts, and whether their interpretations of junior staff’s views are correct. The findings should preferably be substantiated by empirical findings from a wider spectrum of industries in different countries and interviewing junior staff as well. Secondly, under the current qualitative approach, it is difficult to single out one variable and to gauge its impact on other variables or how it is affected by other variables. Such approach may best be supplemented by a quantitative study to underpin relationships among an array of variables. Thirdly, this case study takes a snapshot of situations in each case firm instead of conducting a longitudinal study of how IT usage behaviours related to knowledge sharing evolve. Managerial Implications Judging from the findings of this research, it is clear that multiple factors affect IT usage for knowledge sharing. Knowing the relative impact of each of the factors, managers can manipulate them to induce more usage of IT tools among staff, with a view to sharing and creating knowledge, and to enhancing their firm’s competitive advantage. At an early stage, firms may face difficulties because of a lack of staff’s identity with the firm’s vision and the ability to effect change; so the management may need to leverage on external expertise in introducing good business practices as an interim measure. In the longer term, firm commitment and clear steering from the top is essential for bringing about and sustaining a sharing culture. Senior management may line up multi-disciplinary project teams to transcend in-group communication and to convince staff of the benefits of sharing of information and knowledge. To this end, the management should train up staff in terms of business knowledge and experience, language ability, computer literacy and communication skills. The management should also encourage socialization among both strong ties and weak ties, so as to generate knowledge and Copyright © 2011, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. 62 Journal of Global Information Management, 19(2), 45-66, April-June 2011 stimulate ideas among staff. In addition, the management should provide appropriate IT tools which match the nature of work of different staff in the company, and which are perceived to be useful and easy to use. This would facilitate codification of tacit knowledge and exchange of ideas, which reinforce the organizational capability and gear up for keen competition in the global market. Contribution of this Research Based on Ardichvili’s (2008) model, this study analyses how multiple factors can influence IT usage for knowledge sharing at various hierarchical levels. In particular, it is found that operational factors like perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, staff capability and nature of work can induce higher usage of IT for knowledge sharing. This would hopefully inspire researchers to conduct further studies and practitioners to better utilize IT tools for knowledge sharing in service organizations. REFERENCES Alavi, M., Kayworth, T., & Leidner, D. (2006). An Empirical Examination of the Influence of Organizational Culture on Knowledge Management Practices. Journal of Management Information Systems, 22(3), 191–224. doi:10.2753/MIS0742-1222220307 Alavi, M., & Leidner, D. E. 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Developing a knowledge strategy. California Management Review, 41(3), 125–146. Ngai-Keung Chow holds a DBA from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University. He has worked in IT and telecommunication industry in Australia and Hong Kong for 25 years, specializing in the development and management of local and global products and services. He is a part-time lecturer in the School of Continuing and Professional Education in the City University of Hong Kong and an Executive Committee Member of the Knowledge Management Development Centre Ltd., Hong Kong. Copyright © 2011, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.