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Introduction
The increased global demand for knowledge-intensive products and services has led to knowledge and intellectual capital being seen as the organisation's most important assets. As a consequence, the deliberate and systematic management of these assets, with expertise, is considered vital for survival in the twenty-first century.
For professional service firms (PSFs) in particular, knowledge is at the heart of operations, and is essential for competition. These firms are seen as an important contributor to economic growth in the current knowledge-based economy. Creative PSFs' competitive edge depends on their ability to synthesise expert creative knowledge to achieve their goals. Organisations involved in architecture, software development and media are examples of these creative PSFs (Canavan et al. , 2013).
To manage the knowledge that the organisation holds, it is important to select a strategy that is appropriate to the firm's context (Greiner et al. , 2007)and link knowledge management (KM) strategy to the organisation's overall strategy (Davenport and Prusak, 2000), as this link is integral for KM success in the organisation (Greiner et al. , 2007). A community of practice (CoP), where a group of people exchange knowledge about a common interest (Wenger and Snyder, 2000), has been seen as a valuable tool for managing this knowledge.
This article builds on the work of Canavan et al. (2013) on strategy in PSFs. In this paper the authors report on the results of a study conducted in a New Zealand architectural firm to test a conceptual framework on linking strategy with KM in creative PSFs, developed from a review of the literature.
Knowledge and the need for its management
Nonaka (1994) described knowledge as "created and organised by the very flow of information, and anchored on the commitment and the beliefs of its holder." Nonaka's (1994) description highlights the importance of the knowledge holder, as knowledge is created through human action. However, there is another view that sees knowledge as being created and held together when individuals work collectively in groups (Huysman and Wulf, 2006). The high mobility of knowledge allows it to exist at the individual, group, organisation and inter-organisational levels (Nonaka, 1994).
Knowledge stored in the minds of people (Robinson et al. , 2005) and required for problem-solving is called tacit knowledge (Hansen et al.