| With the “Go Global” strategy,“Belt and Road” initiative in 2013,and “China Construction2035” strategy in 2019 put forward,how to improve the knowledge management level of international construction contracting enterprises and their project teams,and promote the transfer and flow of knowledge among different individuals within the project team,different project teams and different project participants has become a key consideration for enterprises to develop and standardize project management plans.In view of this,this study divided the knowledge transfer in the international construction project environment into three levels: intra-project,cross-project,and crossorganizational,combined with the characteristics of the project and the unique environment in which it is located,explored the influencing factors of knowledge transfer and their mechanisms on the knowledge transfer effectiveness.Then,this paper analyzed the configuration paths to improve knowledge transfer effectiveness,and conducted a dynamic simulation of knowledge transfer to design strategies to enhance knowledge transfer effectiveness within and across projects,across organizations,and overall international construction projects.According to the idea of “theoretical analysis-mechanism analysis-configuration analysis-simulation analysis-strategy implementation”,the following researches are carried out on the knowledge transfer in the international construction project environment.Firstly,the connotation of knowledge transfer in the international construction project environment was comprehensively analyzed,which was divided into three levels of intra-project,cross-project,and cross-organization according to the scenarios in which the transfer occurs,and the content,mode,and overall path of knowledge transfer in international construction project environment were proposed.Then,the literature on the factors influencing knowledge transfer in the project environment was screened and analyzed using the systematic review and meta-analysis(PRISMA)method to summarize the various types of elements influencing knowledge transfer.On this basis,the grounded theory method was used to code and analyze the interview data,and identify the key influencing factors of intra-project,cross-project,and cross-organizational knowledge transfer in the international construction project environment,thus providing a framework for the subsequent empirical research and simulation research.Secondly,the key factors affecting knowledge transfer in the international construction project environment obtained from the grounded theory were considered comprehensively,and the research framework and hypothetical models of knowledge transfer factors within projects,across projects,and across organizations were established based on the theories of social exchange,organizational learning,and stakeholders,respectively.On this basis,the mechanism model of the influencing factors of knowledge transfer in the environment of international construction projects was tested by the structural equation modeling(SEM)method.Moreover,the mediating effect test was conducted using Bootstrapping method to clarify the influence path of each factor on the knowledge transfer effectiveness.Thirdly,following the steps of applying the fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis(fs QCA)method,the selection and calibration of variables,single-conditional necessity analysis,truth table construction and analysis were performed on the sample data,and finally the configuration paths of factors influencing knowledge transfer within projects,across projects,and across organizations in the international construction project environment were obtained and passed the robustness test,respectively.This study divided the four configurations that can improve the effectiveness of knowledge transfer in international construction projects into three types,namely cross-culturaldriven,learning-driven,and both;the configurations that can improve the effectiveness of knowledge transfer across international construction projects were classified into three types: vertical transfer,horizontal-vertical transfer,and no specific channel transfer;and configurations that can improve the effectiveness of knowledge transfer across participation organizations of international construction projects belongs to three categories: strong linkage-driven,cross-culture-driven,and both.This study analyzed the complex antecedents of knowledge transfer in the international construction project environment from the configuration perspective and enriched the analytical paradigm of the knowledge transfer formation mechanism.Fourth,the dynamic simulation of the knowledge transfer process in the international construction project environment was carried out,and the knowledge transfer within the project team and from the project team to the international construction contracting enterprise was selected as the research objects,respectively.Firstly,the Multi-Agent simulation modeling method was used to construct the knowledge transfer model within the international construction project team,and the simulation experiment was carried out on the model,and the simulation results were summarized and analyzed.Then,the causality model and system flow diagram of each factor affecting knowledge transfer from the project to the international engineering contracting enterprise to which it belongs were constructed using the system dynamics(SD)method.Based on this,the system simulation and sensitivity analysis of the model were conducted.The simulation results show that the model can better fit the actual situation of knowledge transfer and validate the rationality of the seven feedback loops proposed in the model.This study incorporates the influencing factors of each dimension into a relatively complete system,which can explain and predict the changing pattern of the actual system to a certain extent.Finally,based on the theoretical analysis,empirical research,configuration research,and simulation research on the influencing factors of knowledge transfer and its relationships in the international construction project environment,the corresponding improvement strategies were proposed for intra-project,cross-project,and cross-organizational knowledge transfer,respectively.For the knowledge transfer within international construction projects,the improvement strategies can be divided into the level of project members and project teams;the improvement strategies of the cross-project knowledge transfer include horizontal,vertical,and horizontal-vertical levels;and the improvement strategies of international construction cross-organizational knowledge transfer include:cross-cultural and other organizational management levels.Next,based on the results of the configuration analysis,a combination of strategies to improve the effectiveness of knowledge transfer within projects,across projects,and across organizations in the international construction project environment is proposed,respectively.Finally,the overall improvement strategy of knowledge transfer in the international construction project environment was proposed from four aspects:forming the project team(knowledge transfer from the international construction contracting enterprise to the project team),absorbing local knowledge(knowledge transfer from other participating units of the project to the contracting unit),integrating internal knowledge(knowledge transfer within the project team)and feedback project knowledge(knowledge transfer from the project team to the international construction contracting enterprise).This will help managers of international construction contracting companies and project teams to take more targeted improvement measures to optimize the process of knowledge transfer,and give full play to the role of knowledge management in promoting international construction management practices.The innovative work of this research is mainly manifested in the following aspects:(1)The connotation and essence of knowledge transfer in the international construction project environment were clarified,and the contents,paths,and various elements of knowledge transfer were summarized.Moreover,the knowledge transfer in the project environment was divided into three levels(intra-project,cross-project,and cross-organization),a comprehensive and integrated framework containing the three transfer levels was established,and the element system of each level was explored.(2)This study explored the influencing factors of knowledge transfer within international construction projects,across projects,and across organizations and their mechanism of action on the effectiveness of knowledge transfer.It also constructed a configuration path for improving knowledge transfer effectiveness,and enriched the analytical paradigm of the knowledge transfer formation mechanism in the international construction project environment,thus providing a basis for strategy selection and management points for improving knowledge transfer.(3)This study reveals the evolution law of knowledge transfer in the international construction project environment,and promotes the application of simulation technology in the field of international construction management and project knowledge management research.The process of knowledge transfer was explored from a dynamic perspective,and the effects of different factors on knowledge transfer and the dynamic evolution process were simulated and predicted,which complements and improves the deficiencies of existing studies in simulation.(4)This study designed many strategies to improve the effectiveness of knowledge transfer within projects,across projects,across organizations,and overall,in the international construction project environment.These strategies can help managers of international construction contracting enterprises and project teams take targeted improvement measures to optimize the knowledge transfer process and give full play to the role of knowledge management in promoting international construction management practices. |
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