Knowing ‘What’ To Do Is Not Enough: Turning Knowledge into Action

by Jeffrey Pfeffer, Robert Sutton


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Fall 1999

Volume 42
Issue 1


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Abstract

Why, in light of all the substantial resources firms devote to improving their performance, do so few management practices actually change? In fact, knowledge management at many companies often makes the "knowing-doing" gap worse. This article explains why firms find it so difficult to translate knowledge into practice and offers a set of guidelines that address the sources of this problem. Knowing what to do is not enough; the challenge for managers is to figure out how to do what they know needs to be done.

California Management Review

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Published at Berkeley Haas for more than sixty years, California Management Review seeks to share knowledge that challenges convention and shows a better way of doing business.

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