Knowledge as a Competitive Entrepreneurial Asset: Concepts and Practices by Early-Stage Entrepreneurs in Creative Industries

Industries linked to and built on creativity and design have been described as backbones of a modern economy by the likes of Florida (2002; 2005). This paper reviews the ways early-stage entrepreneurs of creative industries conceptualise knowledge and depict their development trajectory and practices in issues concerning knowledge. These entrepreneurs operate in the context of a knowledge economy that underlines the key role of knowledge as a source of advantage. As Moore (2000) claims, knowledge intensity creates entrepreneurial opportunities and results to offer an advantage. The current view of knowledge management (KM) stretches the realm of KM beyond the ability to create. Action on knowledge contains sub-processes of knowledge creation, maintenance, renewal, organisation, and transference, for example (Wiig, 1997). This multiple case study explores the way entrepreneurs express the nature of knowledge in the enterprise and in relation to their personal entfloridarepreneur role. Light is shed on the principles and practices of KM in entrepreneurial firms. The research is an exploratory and interpretative case study, revealing patterns of thoughts and behaviour in the companies studied. A sample of seven companies whose business activity is based on design and creativity were interviewed in-depth. The collected qualitative case data is thematically content-analysed to constitute a model of companies' development trajectory in relation to knowledge. The study contributes to academic knowledge both in the areas of entrepreneurial studies as well as in KM. The practical contributions serve creativity-connected industries and early-stage entrepreneurs who can use the results to plan and foresee their KM.