A case analysis of ICT for knowledge transfer in small businesses in vietnam

International Journal of Information Management 34 (2014) 416–421 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect International Journal of Information Management journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ijinfomgt Case Study A case analysis of ICT for knowledge transfer in small businesses in Vietnam Toan Nguyen, Stephen Burgess ∗ College of Business, Victoria University, PO Box 14428, Melbourne, Victoria 8001, Australia a r t i c l e i n f o Article history: Available online 22 March 2014 Keywords: Small business Case study Knowledge management ICT Vietnam a b s t r a c t Small businesses face numerous issues in regard to the management of their knowledge, including potential loss of knowledge due to high employee turnover and the willingness and ability of employees to share their knowledge This case study examines two small ICT companies in Vietnam to determine how knowledge transfer was conducted with and without the use of ICT A knowledge transfer framework for small businesses was used as a lens to analyse the results The findings showed differences in knowledge transfer approaches in both cases It was observed that employees whose jobs required less flexibility needed more explicit knowledge, but if their working procedures were more flexible they were more likely to need tacit knowledge Tacit knowledge was mainly transferred by non-ICT methods, with explicit knowledge being transferred via a combination of methods The cases differed in regard to the existence of knowledge transfer guidelines – as well as the willingness and ability of employees to share knowledge with others in the business Both case businesses lacked appropriate measures to determine the level of success of knowledge transfer activities © 2014 Elsevier Ltd All rights reserved Introduction Knowledge transfer is seen as an increasingly important process of knowledge management due to its ability to assist the organisation to benefit from individual knowledge Knowledge transfer can be regarded as the most important process of knowledge management (Al-Alawi, Al-Marzooqi, & Mohammed, 2007) Although interest in knowledge transfer research has increased in recent years, there are only a few studies of knowledge management, particularly knowledge transfer, in the small business environment Small businesses also encounter issues such as the difficulty of recruiting skilled people, willingness of employees to share knowledge, and existence of the skills necessary to share and receive knowledge (Wong & Aspinwall, 2004) There is a need to further develop a proper understanding of knowledge transfer in the small business context as they are different from large organisations (Burgess, Sellitto, & Karanasios, 2009) an area where previous research has typically been targeted Antonova, Anikó, and Marchev (2011) point out that information and communication technology (ICT) can play a role in effective knowledge transfer ICT can be seen as a crucial enabler ∗ Corresponding author Tel.: +61 399194353 E-mail addresses: Toan.NguyenDuy@live.vu.edu.au (T Nguyen), Stephen.Burgess@vu.edu.au (S Burgess) http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2014.02.009 0268-4012/© 2014 Elsevier Ltd All rights reserved for knowledge transfer Through a case study examining the knowledge transfer practice in two small businesses in Vietnam, the overall aim of this study is to develop an increased understanding of the role of ICT in the knowledge transfer process in small businesses Literature review Knowledge management is a process involving set of activities centred around creating, storing/retrieving, transferring and applying knowledge (Alavi & Leidner, 2001) Knowledge transfer is defined as a process through which knowledge moves between a source and a recipient and where knowledge is applied and used (Szulanski, 2000) Within an organisation, knowledge can be transferred amongst individuals, between different levels in the organisational hierarchy and between different units and departments (Argote & Ingram, 2000) The process of knowledge transfer has been described by many researchers (Argote & Ingram, 2000) A basic approach is Shannon and Weaver’s communication model In this model, knowledge transfer is represented in a simple manner by means of transfer of a ‘message’ from a ‘sender’ to a ‘receiver’ Any interruptions to this process are known as ‘noise’ This simplistic representation has been criticised by researchers (refer Szulanski, 2000) as the model is obviously linear, assuming that the knowledge transfer occurs T Nguyen, S Burgess / International Journal of Information Management 34 (2014) 416–421 417 Fig A framework for the transfer of knowledge in small businesses Source: Nguyen (2013) on a one-way path from the source to destination The transfer direction cannot be reversed and there is no information feedback from the receiver to the sender to evaluate if the transfer process has been successful Further, this model only represents a single snapshot of transferring knowledge between two individuals at one point of time, whilst intra-organisational knowledge transfer should be regarded as a continuous process amongst different individuals/groups within an organisation (Van Wijk, Jansen, & Lyles, 2008) Also, the knowledge transfer process under this representation assumes that both the senders and receivers are active and willing to send/receive knowledge Likewise, this model does not take into consideration the relationship between the sender(s) and receivers, types of knowledge being transferred, and the context where the knowledge transfer happens (Li Hong, 2007) Nguyen (2013) proposed a more complex framework to represent the transfer of knowledge in small businesses (refer Fig 1) In Box (Fig 1), the knowledge transfer process is simplified to examine how knowledge is transferred within the context of small businesses Knowledge is sent by the sender(s) to the receiver(s) by using different methods Furthermore, the knowledge transfer process happens not only between individuals in the same group but also across the organisation in many situations (represented as Situation .n) Knowledge can be classified into either explicit or tacit knowledge Explicit knowledge is the component that can be codified and transmitted in systematic and formal languages Tacit knowledge is personal, context specific knowledge that is difficult to formalise, record, or articulate It is stored in the ‘heads’ of people (Nonaka & Takeuchi, 1995) This type of knowledge tends to be local, and not found in books, manuals, files or databases Tacit knowledge is difficult to capture and diffuse However, it typically contributes more value to the organisation when compared to explicit knowledge (Chin Wei, Siong Choy, & Geok Chew, 2011) The methods used for the transfer process are chosen by the senders and receivers depending upon the types of knowledge being transferred These methods are generally grouped into two different categories, non-ICT based and ICT-based methods (Young, 2010) With non-ICT based methods, small business employees can share their experience via daily face-to-face meetings or more formally via peer supported work practices Informal gatherings via coffee breaks, lunches and other similar activities are also beneficial for them in transferring and receiving knowledge (Young, 2010) ICT based methods are carried out with the existence of ICT systems, varying from the simplest technology such as voice via telephone to more advanced technology such as knowledge portals or collaborative virtual workspaces The knowledge transfer process is affected by many factors which are either organisation related or technology (ICT) related Box of the framework depicts the unique characteristics of small businesses Small businesses are characterised by limited financial and human resources (Burgess et al., 2009) Furthermore, small businesses have simple and less complex structures (Wong & Aspinwall, 2004) and are managed in most cases by their owners, with flexible and adaptable business processes As well, the employees are typically under close, direct supervision and influence of the owner/manager (Wong & Aspinwall, 2004) Box of the framework depicts the ICT factors affecting the knowledge transfer process ICT policy refers to any written or unwritten rules, regulations, procedures and ways of doing business in an enterprise (Alberghini, Cricelli, & Grimaldi, 2010) ICT infrastructure refers to ICT devices and services such as: servers, PCs, laptops and so forth (Alberghini et al., 2010) ICT applications generally refer to application software which changes the processes and ways of doing business, especially transferring knowledge via email, document management systems, knowledge portals and so forth (Fei, 2011) ICT human resources refer to the relative skill levels of employees (Burgess et al., 2009) and their willingness to share knowledge When assessing the benefits of practices such as knowledge transfer, small business benefits can be viewed from different perspectives For instance, knowledge management practices could contribute to: • Improved financial position (Lee & Choi, 2003) • Improved customer satisfaction, customer retention and/or increased market share (Edvinsson & Malone, 1997) • Improved employee satisfaction (Edvinsson & Malone, 1997) 418 T Nguyen, S Burgess / International Journal of Information Management 34 (2014) 416–421 Table Case study companies and interview details Case1 (45 employees – interviews) Owner/Manager Middle manager/Accountant Middle manager/Sales Middle manager/Technical (IT) Staff/Sales Staff/Technician (IT) Staff/Administrator Staff/Accountant Case2 (12 employees – interviews) Owner/Manager Middle manager/Sales Staff/Administrator Staff/Technician (IT) The relationships between these areas are indicated by the relevant arrows in the framework For example, the knowledge transfer process is affected by organisation related factors (arrow A1 of Fig 1) or technology related factors (arrow A2) In addition, the unique features of small businesses play a major role in shaping the use of ICT for knowledge transfer (arrow A3) Hence, it is expected that the interaction amongst these groups of factors impacts the knowledge transfer process and thus affects the benefits of knowledge management to small organisations (arrow A5) The outcomes of the knowledge transfer process should be evaluated to provide inputs for modifying/formulating ongoing knowledge transfer strategies (arrow A4) Case study 3.1 Case selection This case study examines two small businesses (cases) from the ICT retailer industry in Vietnam to gain an in-depth understanding of their knowledge transfer activities The aim was to identify businesses that differed in size to understand the different challenges faced by such businesses An author of this article has been working in this industry since 2001, which assisted in gaining access to businesses for the data collection Multiple forms of data collection (which occurred in early 2013) were used, including semi-structured interviews, company documents analysis and a review of ICT artefacts In order to reach saturation of data for each case, Guest, Bunce, and Johnson (2006) suggest to analyse at least twelve interviews However, this approach was not practical for small businesses (for instance, those with a small number of employees), and needed to be scaled down accordingly Hence, depending on the company size, four and eight semi-structured interviews were conducted with owners/managers, heads of department and other relevant staff Open ended questions were employed in the interviews (Veal, 2005) Details of the interviewees are listed in Table The data were collected under the auspices of a university ethics committee approval and thus actual names of participant businesses and employees are not used 3.2 Cases This section describes each case, including background, and knowledge transfer activities as informed by the Nguyen (2013) framework: small business characteristics; ICT policies and procedures; knowledge transfer processes and knowledge transfer evaluation 3.2.1 Case1 3.2.1.1 Background Founded in 1997, Case1’s main business is to provide ICT products/solutions to customers directly or indirectly via its distributing network throughout Vietnam Having 45 full time staff, it was categorised as a small and medium sized business There were eight participants from Case1 in this study In managing the company, Case1’s owner indicated that he normally did not directly take part in the daily activities of his staff However, it was perceived differently by employees The sales manager of Case1 commented that “The boss manages our daily activities, especially the sales managers and sales supervisors In certain important sales situations, he intervenes directly” In other functional teams such as administration/accounting and technical areas, the relevant managers made most of the important decisions Case1 did not seem to have resource scarcity in regard to either financial or human resources Case1 was a company with a low degree of standardisation and formalisation in rules and procedures governing the activities of employees There were rules and regulations, “but many of them are still on paper, not yet applied in reality Once applied, if needed, these can be flexibly changed” (accountant) Solely owned, the business culture is affected and shaped by the owner’s personality and outlook “We are like ‘one extended family”’ was a typical response from all of the interviewees when asked about the glue that held their company together 3.2.1.2 The practice of knowledge transfer Whilst there were written guidelines on working procedures which the employees followed, there were few written documents representing a specific knowledge transfer policy Furthermore, no guidelines on the use of ICT or non-ICT tools for knowledge transfer were found Similarly, there was no evidence of motivational aids for sharing knowledge The owner stated “so far, I haven’t thought of any way to motivate staff to share knowledge” Case1 generally dealt with both tacit and explicit knowledge This mainly involved company related knowledge (such as rules and regulations, announcements and company contact information), product knowledge (such as specifications and principles of operation), individual/specialised knowledge (such as bookkeeping skills or prior experience in troubleshooting) and customer related knowledge (such as how to identify potential customers and handle difficult customers) The knowledge in Case1 was transferred amongst staff using different methods Depending on the type of knowledge, certain methods (either ICT-based or non-ICT based) were used It is also worth noting that employees used these methods in both formal ways (that is, within the company environment) and in informal ways (either for business or individual purposes, outside the company – such as a group of employees gathering at weekends for a lunch and discussing company related issues) Although no formal knowledge transfer strategy existed, employees utilised a number of different methods to facilitate the process of sharing and receiving the knowledge they required Face-to-face gatherings, mobile phones and email were the methods that were mostly used for knowledge transfer The knowledge transfer activities in the sales groups were based mainly on non-ICT methods If using ICT, they used essential tools such as mobile messaging In contrast, more ICT based methods were applied by the technical staff, who also used basic tools such as email and messaging but additionally set up a forum for sharing technical knowledge and utilised technology based tools such as Teamviewer (software for remote support and online meetings over the Internet), Skype and Computer Based Training for training and supporting peers in daily activities Additionally, document libraries which lead to a document management system were set up and were in use T Nguyen, S Burgess / International Journal of Information Management 34 (2014) 416–421 Explicit knowledge such as company rules, product information, service manuals and so forth were stored electronically and were accessible to employees via the company intranet The technicians were also able to use e-learning websites provided by their suppliers for self-study To transfer tacit knowledge, non-ICT methods were used more than ICT based methods The preferred method of transfer for this type of knowledge was face-to-face meetings with the use of story-telling or question and answer sessions Technical staff also used hands-on practices or demonstrations to share tacit knowledge 3.2.1.3 Difficulties With regard to individual related difficulties, the sales manager noted that the knowledge sharing activities were “all individual based” It was up to receivers to determine if they believed in the senders and/or the knowledge being transferred The sales manager said “there are people who not believe (the information that is shared), they think that the senders just show off what they know” A sales staff member commented that with tacit knowledge (for example: skills to identify who might be prospective customers), he limited the sharing of his knowledge only to a few colleagues This was because he experienced several instances where the receivers did not value what was being shared Additionally, the receivers might not know if the shared knowledge was useful to them in carrying out their tasks Even if the receivers trusted both the sharers and the transferred knowledge, the success of the transfer process was also affected by the abilities of the sales staff to receive and effectively use the knowledge The sales manager commented on the ability of the receivers to ask appropriate questions If they “don’t know how to ask for more information, then the sharers don’t share it” Hence, it was important for receivers to let senders know what knowledge they were really in need of The sales manager also suggested that receivers should give a clear signal to motivate the senders to share Hence, the ability of the receivers to provide appropriate feedback was also important in maintaining the continuation of the knowledge transfer process In addition, the practice of knowledge transfer was mainly affected by the relationship between the receivers and the senders The sales employee explained that “I only share with the person I have close relationships with, or my close staff for the performance of my team” In regard to the confidentiality of information, the sales manager noted that the sales employees did not wish to share knowledge with people whom they thought were irrelevant or directly competed with them in the same organisation He commented that “most of the salespeople are afraid of losing information Hence, they normally hide or pretend that they don’t know” To secure their own jobs, salespeople simply just wanted to hold back knowledge In other words, as explained by both the owner and the sales manager, the senders would be willing to share their knowledge to their peers if these activities did not affect the sharers’ future career path in the company Another issue was that the senders were “afraid of responsibilities” (accountant) This might happen in the case of sensitive or important business problems in which they were asked to provide information to help solve those issues The accountant added that “there are some cases of leaking our internal information to our competitors by some employees” In relation to organisation related difficulties with the knowledge transfer process, the sales manager mentioned the lack of clear guidelines to support the knowledge sharing activities in the sales team The scarcity of skilled employees at Case1 was also mentioned as another difficulty Furthermore, both the sales manager and sales employee noted the need for motivational aids to stimulate employees to exchange their knowledge with others The sales 419 manager also mentioned the need to have appropriate ways of measuring the benefits of the knowledge transfer process In terms of ICT related difficulties, there was no clear policy for ICT at Case1 Interviewees across sales, administration/accounting and the technical team indicated that Case1 did not have a specific budget for ICT If there were any ICT related requirements needed, the decisions were made “on the spot by the owner” (accountant) In the administration/accounting team, the accounting manager and accountant complained that “we have invested in accounting software, CRM, HRM, etc but they are all independent, from different suppliers Staff complained they are too slow and difficult to connect to from outside” However, the IT manager and IT staff member indicated satisfaction with their current ICT applications, especially the service management software for supporting their activities The reason for this was the participation of the IT manager from the beginning stages of developing the applications 3.2.2 Case2 3.2.2.1 Background Founded in 2005, Case2’s main business focused on supplying its own ICT solutions: Intelligent vehicle management systems Of its twelve employees, four participated in the study Case2 followed a professional way of structuring and running the organisation, based on the ISO9001:2008 standard (although not certified at the time of interviews), with clear rules and regulations Different from Case1, the rules at Case2 were “developed from the actual activities of the company and continually revised to ensure effectiveness and flexibility” (sales manager) In terms of resources, the owner commented that “ one of the biggest disadvantages is the financial resource” However, human resources were perceived as the strength of Case2: “we are not strong in working capital, but benefit from our skilled staff” (owner) Case2 had a flexible working environment where the staff and managers seemed to freely share working experience amongst them The owner commented that Case2’s company culture was people oriented Respect amongst employees and personal relationships were regarded as strengths The working environment was predominantly influenced by the owner, who had a clear strategy in guiding the business operations 3.2.2.2 The practice of knowledge transfer Policies related to knowledge transfer activities were much clearer at Case2 than at Case1 The knowledge transfer policies were supported by the vision of the owner/manager who understood the value of knowledge as well as the benefits that the knowledge transfer process might provide to the business In addition, employees also actively engaged in the knowledge sharing activities within the organisation The owner’s view on knowledge transfer was that “the more people who know the better” Hence, if employees were facing “any problems, they just ask any experienced staff members, they will handle it straight away” (owner) In addition, the knowledge transfer practice was supported by the organisational culture where the employees “basically motivate and support each other” and “the working environment is very convenient for sharing knowledge” (sales manager) Case2 conducted business in the same ICT business area as Case1 However, Case2 positioned itself in niche segments where it tailored its solutions to specific customer requirements Sales employees of Case2 were required to have more in-depth knowledge about technical aspects of the products/solutions which they provided to customers The knowledge sharing activities at Case2 were carried out by different methods, supported by the use of different ICT tools Information in Case2 was mostly digitised and kept in electronic form The data were stored either on shared folders on the company intranet, online on the company website, internal forums, solution forums or the company Facebook page Although there was no 420 T Nguyen, S Burgess / International Journal of Information Management 34 (2014) 416–421 Document Management System as such, document libraries existed at C3 The company’s internal online solution forum also acted as an effective online community of practice where employees were free to get and share information, either using their identity or anonymously The employees, especially the technical staff, also took advantage of a number of ICT equipment/solutions available to them to enable the transfer of knowledge effectively One example was that they used their smart phones to record videos of how they would ‘troubleshoot’ a particular installation – and uploaded these onto a YouTube service for their peers to access Also, technical staff captured every step they did in certain processes and shared these in the online forum It was compulsory to have minutes of meetings shared after every meeting There were also employees assigned especially for updating the company website, Facebook page and online forums 3.2.2.3 Difficulties All interviewees of Case2 indicated that they did not face any problems in regard to senders of knowledge being afraid to share their knowledge Furthermore, Case2 utilised ICT applications for documenting, storing and transferring information Thus, as reported by the owner, the problem of information confidentiality did not exist Further, the knowledge sharing culture at Case2 also partly eliminated the difficulties arising from the senders-receivers relationships in the sales team However, in the technical team, this difficulty did exist For technicians, especially with regard to troubleshooting activities: “it (the sharing behaviour) is all individual based, if you are confident with your knowledge, if you trust others to share your knowledge If they are not the ones who have related benefits (that is, working in the same team, or being a leader), the quality of knowledge they share will depend on the relationship between them” (IT staff member) This highlights another issue impacting on the knowledge sharing activities, whether or not both the sharers and receivers were working in the same team They were willing to share with their teammates or their own staff to contribute to their team performance If the senders and receivers were not on the same team, the senders only shared knowledge if they trusted or had a close relationship with the receiver At the organisation level, with the exception of financial resources, Case2 benefitted from its skilled and experienced employees There were guidelines in relation to the knowledge transfer practices to guide employees in using necessary methods/tools in exchanging knowledge within the organisation With the strong vision of sharing knowledge, a knowledge sharing culture existed at Case2 to facilitate the knowledge transfer practice However, there were also no specific motivational aids to trigger employees to share their knowledge In terms of ICT, the administration employee suggested that there was a need for the company and ICT application developers to work together closely for ICT solutions tailored to Case2’s needs However, it seemed that this type of difficulty (for general ICT applications) did not bother the technicians at Case2 The IT staff member commented that he was happy with the current ICT applications for carrying out tasks However, he was also aware of the need to have specialised ICT applications to support the knowledge transfer activities In general, the owner did not pay much attention to ICT policies 3.2.3 Summary of cases Despite the two case businesses having different levels of formal processes and procedures in regard to knowledge transfer, they both exhibited some quite sophisticatedapproaches to knowledge transfer – if somewhat inconsistently throughout the businesses This level of sophistication is likely to be due to the fact that the two businesses were ICT-focussed The results suggest that employees whose jobs required less flexibility needed to have and handle more explicit types of knowledge Alternatively, employees required more tacit types of knowledge if their working procedures were more flexible In addition, tacit knowledge was mainly transferred by non-ICT methods, with explicit knowledge being transferred via a combination of ICT and non-ICT methods Typically, the senders and receivers of knowledge selected the methods which were most suitable for them Whilst Case2 had some forms of knowledge transfer guidelines for its employees to perform basic activities such as documenting, searching, storing and transferring knowledge, there was almost no written knowledge transfer strategy With regard to supporting strategies for sharing knowledge, Case2 was perceived to experience greater benefits than Case1 In addition, more methods (both non-ICT based and ICT based methods) were used by employees at Case2 The outcome of the knowledge transfer process was affected by the activities of both senders and receivers It is the senders’ decisions on what knowledge to transfer, if they want to transfer (actively or passively participate in the transfer process); to whom they transfer, which methods are used to transfer, and finally if they are skilful enough to transfer knowledge effectively Business culture affected employees’ willingness to share knowledge and choice as to who it is shared with Similarly, the transfer process depended on the receivers in regard to what and which type of knowledge they required, from whom they received knowledge, in what ways, if they were capable enough to absorb and apply it and their ability to provide appropriate feedback to the senders The interviewees, especially the owners/managers, all mentioned that they were in need of an assessment method to evaluate the performance of the knowledge transfer practice at their organisations Lessons learned Small business owners/managers and employees can take the following points into consideration when participating in the knowledge transfer process Knowledge is transferred between individuals However, individuals are all different In addition to the senders ‘volunteering’ to actively engage in knowledge transfer activities, it is also important for receivers to understand all aspects of the knowledge process and the benefits to be gained from actively engaging in knowledge transfer activities The process used to determine benefits needs to be simple for small businesses to apply This is to provide necessary feedback of the success of their knowledge transfer activities This feedback can then be used as inputs to revise/improve knowledge transfer practices Furthermore, small business owners/managers need to understand their crucial roles in providing the appropriate knowledge transfer environments to their employees It is important to ensure that a documented knowledge transfer policy exists for both ICT and non-ICT knowledge transfer In addition to having understood the benefits which the knowledge transfer process provides to their organisations, owner/managers are expected to take into account the factors affecting the outcomes of the process This is especially in regard to identifying those factors that can positively influence the knowledge transfer process They can influence the creation of an environment where employees are encouraged to share data using ICT and non-ICT based methods T Nguyen, S Burgess / International Journal of Information Management 34 (2014) 416–421 Conclusion This article has examined the practice of knowledge transfer activities through a case study involving two small ICT retailers in Vietnam Guided by a knowledge transfer framework developed for small businesses, this study investigated the common types of knowledge, non-ICT and ICT based methods used for transferring knowledge and the difficulties associated with knowledge transfer activities The findings showed differences in the knowledge transfer processes of the cases and reflected the major challenges being faced by small businesses in regard to knowledge transfer Whilst the results suggested quite sophisticated knowledge management activities in both case businesses, it is to be remembered that the businesses both operated in the ICT arena Other small businesses would not typically have this level of activity for knowledge transfer Also, whilst the activities were sophisticated, there were still obvious gaps in the knowledge transfer process (such as a lack of evaluation of knowledge transfer activities, a suitable, documented knowledge transfer policy and a need to address the knowledge transfer culture) that provides both businesses with plenty of scope to improve their knowledge transfer processes References Al-Alawi, A I., Al-Marzooqi, N Y., & Mohammed, Y F (2007) Organizational culture and knowledge sharing: Critical success factors Journal of Knowledge Management, 11, 22–42 Alavi, M., & Leidner, D E (2001) Review: 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South Melbourne: Pearson Addison Wesley Wong, K Y., & Aspinwall, E (2004) Characterizing knowledge management in the small business environment Journal of Knowledge Management, 8, 44– 61 Young, R (2010) Knowledge management tools and techniques manual UK: Asian Productivity Organization Toan Nguyen is a research student in the College of Business at Victoria University, Australia His current research interests lie in the fields of Small businesses, the use of Information Communication and Technologies (ICT) and Knowledge Management In 2013 he completed a Masters by Research in the area of knowledge management in small businesses Prior to joining academia, Toan had over 10 years’ experience in working in and providing ICT related consulting services to small businesses in Vietnam Stephen Burgess is an Associate Professor in the College of Business at Victoria University, Australia He has research and teaching interests that include the use of ICTs in small businesses (particularly in the tourism field), the websites of community based organisations, the use of user-generated content in tourism and B2C electronic commerce He has received a number of competitive research grants in these areas He has completed several studies related to website features in small businesses and how well websites function over time, including his PhD from Monash University, Australia He has authored/ edited three books and special editions of journals in topics related to the use of ICTs in small business and been track chair at international conferences in related areas He has published in journals such as the Journal of Information Science, Information Systems Frontiers, Tourism Analysis, the International Journal of Tourism Research and the Journal of Hospitality, Marketing and Management  ... completed a Masters by Research in the area of knowledge management in small businesses Prior to joining academia, Toan had over 10 years’ experience in working in and providing ICT related consulting... examines two small businesses (cases) from the ICT retailer industry in Vietnam to gain an in- depth understanding of their knowledge transfer activities The aim was to identify businesses that... of Information Management 34 (2014) 416–421 Conclusion This article has examined the practice of knowledge transfer activities through a case study involving two small ICT retailers in Vietnam