Final Conclusion

Abstract

Summarising the research project, the final chapter concludes that personnel mobility is the central strategy of organisations to react upon the competitive knowledge paradox, i.e. the spatial and functional organisation/disintegration of businesses run counter to the nature of their most important corporate resource, namely knowledge. Spatial mobility, temporary proximity, and face-to-face interaction lead to social networks of different quality and quantity in which knowledge among actors is exchanged. These networks govern knowledge flows even in times of geographical distance. The empirical results further our understanding of the transfer of knowledge over geographical distance, especially in the context of knowledge pipelines, and demonstrate the significance of social networks to understand economic dynamics in a globally and increasingly networkd economy.