Knowledge Creation

Discussions and directions for future research

* The aim of this study has been to investigate in what respects knowledge creation in public sector management accounting by consultants and researchers differ.

* Table 3 shows that consultants create knowledge that is initiated by problems stemming from practice.

* Figure 1 shows that consultants create knowledge in response to needs and demands from practice.

* Consultants may not be able to update their knowledge through contact with the broader world of knowledge creation in which academics play a major role.

* The combined evidence from table 3 and Figure 1 indicates that explicit knowledge is more readily passed between the 3 groups than the tacit knowledge.

Reflections from the group of interviewees (Consultants, Researchers and Consultant- Researchers)

* First Table 3 indicates that some academic researchers conduct research that can be directly relevant for practice, particularly applied and problem driven research.

* Second, as consultants are mainly influenced by what they read in professional journals and what they share with colleagues, it is important that academic researchers publish their work in both academic and professional journals and writing in books.

* Third, public sector management accounting researchers can also contribute to improved decision making. They can do so by making their findings broadly accessible for a wider practitioner audience.

* Two dimensions can be used to indicate the practical orientation of research. (1) it’s content and (2) communication.

* This research also suggests an important role for the consultant researchers, who can act as mediators between research on one hand, and consultancy and practice on the other. They have access to academic knowledge and their specific consulting expertise can contribute to the formulation of practice relevant questions.

Limitations which indicate directions for future research;

* First,...