Use of Knowledge in ICT Investment Decision-Making of SMEs

Many ICT investments are complex processes and have also strategic implications for organizations. In this paper we discuss how the managers use knowledge when making ICT investment decisions. The focus of the study is on how the organizational process of knowledge creation affects the individual-level decision making and how knowledge conversions between tacit and explicit knowledge occur in this process. Our data consists of six semi-structured interviews in six small or medium-sized companies. The results show significant differences in how the tacit and explicit dimensions of knowledge act by forming a ‘cognitive model’ of decision maker’s use of knowledge. In ICT investments, there are four contributing factors: problem, product, provider, and solution. The decision processes are described and compared in more detail based on the categorization of these factors.