ABSTRACT
In this chapter we develop an integrated view on how knowledge is developed in localised systems of specialised firms (industrial districts – IDs), through informal social networks (communities of practice – CoPs), and firms networks, in an osmotic process between the internal to the district knowledge and the external to the district knowledge. Contrary to consolidated tradition, which is based on Marshall’s early writings, we describe the functioning of the modern industrial district emphasising not just the role of the local “industrial atmosphere” but the modern aspect of “learning at the boundaries”, where local actors mix sources of knowledge located inside the district with external sources (Bathelt et al., 2002). Starting from the concept of knowledge (Nonaka and Takeuchi, 1995), the purpose of this work is to understand how CoPs, a new concept that arose from the management field, can be useful for deepening the process of knowledge creation, absorption, and sharing of IDs. This chapter is organised as follows. Section 7.2 provides some notes on the evolution of capabilities in social systems. Section 7.3 offers a unified view of the contemporary phenomenon of industrial clustering. Section 7.4 offers a new approach to the learning process in social systems (IDs, CoPs), based on individual and collective capabilities. Section 7.5 illustrates an interpretative framework of learning activities by: (1) classifying two types of knowledge management at the firm level and the ID level: gardening activities and investments in capabilities; (2) identifying the importance of internal/external switchers for learning at the boundaries. Section 7.6 proposes some empirical evidence, illustrating three case studies. The objective is to measure the relative capacity of a single industrial district to “cultivate” the growth process of local knowledge and to face effectively the challenges of the globalisation process, being able to learn at the boundaries. In Section 7.7 some conclusive remarks are drawn.
