P ac ice Pape
Recommended ci a ion: Suhonen, S. J., & Kankaanpää, R. A. (2025). Taci
Knowledge T ans e in Finnish Manu ac u ing Companies. In Kangaslampi, R.,
Langie, G., Jä inen, H.-M., & Nagy, B. (Eds.), SEFI 53 d Annual Con e ence.
Eu opean Socie y o Enginee ing Educa ion (SEFI), Tampe e, Finland. DOI:
10.5281/zenodo.17631535.
This Con e ence Pape is b ough o you o open access by he 53 d Annual Con e ence
o he Eu opean Socie y o Enginee ing Educa ion (SEFI) a Tampe e Uni e si y in
Tampe e, Finland. This wo k is licensed unde a C ea i e Commons
A ibu ion-NonComme cial-Sha e Alike 4.0 In e na ional License.
TACIT KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER IN FINNISH MANUFACTURING
COMPANIES
S. J. Suhonen a,
1
, R. A. Kankaanpää b
a Tampe e Uni e si y o Applied Sciences, Tampe e, Finland
h ps://o cid.o g/0000-0002-3279-3813
b SASKY Municipal Educa ion and T aining Conso ium, Sas amala, Finland
Con e ence Key A eas: Enginee ing skills, p o essional skills, and ans e sal skills,
Con inuing educa ion and li e-long lea ning in enginee ing
Keywo ds: Taci knowledge, Knowledge ans e , Manu ac u ing Indus y, Wo k o ce
aining
ABSTRACT
Taci knowledge, which is based on indi idual expe ience and in ui ion, is impo an
o ope a ional pe o mance in he manu ac u ing indus y. Howe e , his ype o
knowledge is di icul o a icula e, cap u e, o sys ema ically ans e . One o he
aims o Manu ac u ing Academy 2.0 p ojec , co-led by Tampe e Uni e si y o Applied
Sciences and SASKY Municipal Educa ion and T aining Conso ium, is o suppo
manu ac u ing companies in de eloping hei own s a egies o ecognizing,
e aining, and ans e ing aci knowledge. This pape explo es how aci knowledge
ans e is cu en ly p ac iced in Finnish manu ac u ing companies and how hese
p ac ices ela e o he SECI model o knowledge c ea ion. The s udy is based on 163
company in e iews conduc ed du ing indus y ai s, ollow-up company isi s, and a
co-c ea ion wo kshop wi h s akeholde s om educa ion and indus y. Resul s show
ha while aci knowledge is widely acknowledged as impo an , companies a y
signi ican ly in how sys ema ically hey app oach i s ans e . Socializa ion and
in e naliza ion phases a e he mos es ablished, while ex e naliza ion and
combina ion emain unde de eloped.
1 INTRODUCTION
Taci knowledge e e s o he pe sonal, expe ience-based knowledge ha indi iduals
possess bu canno easily exp ess in wo ds. I includes in ui i e insigh s, implici
1
Co esponding Au ho
S. J. Suhonen
sami.suhonen@ uni. i
skills, and con ex -speci ic p ac ices acqui ed o e ime. In he con ex o knowledge
managemen and o ganiza ional lea ning, aci knowledge is ecognized as a c i ical
bu elusi e asse ha shapes inno a ion and ope a ional excellence. In
manu ac u ing, aci knowledge mani es s in he nuanced expe ise o expe ienced
wo ke s who, o ins ance, can de ec p ocess anomalies om sub le changes in
machine sounds o make decisions based on long- e m, si ua ional awa eness.
To add ess he g owing isk o knowledge loss due o wo k o ce aging, he
“Manu ac u ing Academy 2.0” p ojec aims o p omo e skills and aining in key
manu ac u ing p ocesses in Pi kanmaa a ea in Finland. One pa o he p ojec is o
help he companies o seek, iden i y, documen , and ans e aci knowledge
(Nikande 2023). The p ojec is led by Tampe e Uni e si y o Applied Sciences
(TAMK) and he SASKY Municipal Educa ion and T aining Conso ium and co-
unded by he Eu opean Social Fund Plus (ESF+). This pape ocuses on he
pedagogical aspec s ha acili a e aci knowledge ans e in manu ac u ing.
2 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
One o he mos amous de ini ions o aci knowledge comes om he philosophe
Michael Polanyi, who emphasized ha we know mo e han we can ell (Polanyi,
1966). This sugges s ha a la ge pa o human knowledge is in e nal and subjec i e
and canno be easily o comple ely a icula ed. In scien i ic li e a u e, aci knowledge
is o en deal wi h as pa o knowledge managemen and o ganiza ional lea ning. I
explo es how such knowledge can be iden i ied, alued, and abo e all, how i can be
sha ed wi hin an o ganiza ion o imp o e pe o mance and inno a ion.
Among manu ac u ing wo ke s, aci knowledge plays a signi ican ole. I mani es s
in a ious ways, such as he abili y o expe ienced wo ke s o ecognize he sligh es
changes in he sound o ope a ion o machines ha may indica e u u e p oblems, o
he skill o make quick and e ec i e decisions du ing he p oduc ion p ocess, based
on yea s o expe ience and obse a ions ha may no necessa ily be eco ded
anywhe e. This ype o knowledge may be c i ically impo an o he quali y o
p oduc s and inno a ion and ans e ing i o new employees is a cen al challenge
o o ganiza ions. Mohajan (Mohajan, 2016) emphasizes ha aci knowledge is a
c ucial, ye o en o e looked, componen o an o ganiza ion's knowledge base.
Since aci knowledge is o en acqui ed h ough pe sonal expe ience, manu ac u ing
companies should encou age hands-on lea ning h ough app en iceships, men o ing,
and on- he-job aining p og ams (Muñoz, 2015). While aci knowledge is inhe en ly
pe sonal and con ex -speci ic, ce ain echnologies can aid in i s ans e . Fo
ins ance, i ual eali y (VR) and augmen ed eali y (AR) can simula e eal-wo ld
scena ios o aining pu poses, making i easie o wo ke s o gain insigh s in o aci
knowledge wi hou he di ec in e en ion o a human ins uc o . Also, AR/VR
echnologies can be used o cap u e and digi ize he expe ise o skilled wo ke s
(Sa han e al., 2022).
The SECI model (Socializa ion, Ex e naliza ion, Combina ion, In e naliza ion),
de eloped by Nonaka and Takeuchi (Nonaka & Takeuchi, 1995), p o ides a
heo e ical amewo k o unde s anding how aci and explici knowledge in e ac
wi hin o ganiza ional lea ning p ocesses. The model consis s o ou dynamic
phases, illus a ed in he igu e 1: socializa ion, ex e naliza ion, combina ion, and
in e naliza ion. The phases o m a con inuous, epe i i e cycle o knowledge
ans o ma ion. The socializa ion phase occu s when aci knowledge is sha ed
in o mally h ough obse a ion, imi a ion, and hands-on in e ac ion, such as in
mas e -app en ice ela ionships. The ex e naliza ion phase in ol es con e ing aci
knowledge in o explici knowledge by a icula ing i h ough discussions, isual
demons a ions, o documen a ion. The combina ion phase in eg a es di e en
pieces o explici knowledge, e ining hem in o s uc u ed lea ning esou ces such as
aining manuals o digi al simula ions. Finally, he in e naliza ion phase enables
indi iduals o abso b explici knowledge h ough p ac ice, g adually ans o ming i
in o hei own aci expe ise.
Fig. 1. The SECI Model o Knowledge Con e sion (Nonaka & Takeuchi, 1995). Taci
knowledge = Pe sonal, expe ience-based knowledge ha is di icul o a icula e o sha e.
Implici knowledge = knowledge ha is unde s ood wi hou being openly exp essed bu can
po en ially be a icula ed. Explici knowledge = clea ly a icula ed, documen ed, and easily
communica ed in o ma ion.
3 DATA COLLECTION ON TACIT KNOWLEDGE IN THE MANUFACTURING
SECTOR
To explo e how aci knowledge is ans e ed in manu ac u ing, da a was collec ed
using a mul i-me hod quali a i e app oach. The aim was also o unde s and how
companies pe cei e he alue o aci knowledge and hei in e es in de eloping
ways o manage i . Ini ial da a was ga he ed du ing he Machine y Fai 2024
(Konepajamessu ) in Finland wi h s uc u ed in e iews. This ea lie da a, al eady
p esen ed in a p e ious phase o he p ojec (Suhonen, 2024), se ed as a
ounda ion o unde s anding p ac ices and a i udes. To en ich and deepen his
unde s anding, addi ional da a was la e collec ed du ing he Subcon ac ing Fai
2024 (Alihankin amessu ). Al oge he he da a now consis s o 163 in e iews du ing
he ai s.
The 163 in e iewed companies ep esen ed di e se ields o expe ise, p ima ily
ca ego ized in o manu ac u ing ac i i ies (56%), equipmen and ma e ials sales,
including impo ed machine y and supplies (28%), main enance se ices (4%),
au oma ion (3%), enginee ing design (3%), inspec ions (2%), and o he s (4%). Thus,
he esponses p edominan ly e lec he pe spec i es o Finnish manu ac u ing
indus ies and he closely ela ed sales and suppo o machine y and ma e ials, as
hese combined ca ego ies cons i u e 84% o he o al esponses. The size o he
esponding company may in luence hei p ac ices and pe cep ions ega ding aci
knowledge ans e . Typically, la ge companies ha e mo e s uc u ed aining
p ocesses and esou ces alloca ed explici ly o knowledge managemen , while
smalle companies o en ely on in o mal communica ion and ad-hoc app oaches.
Howe e , he sizes o he companies esponding o his s udy we e no in es iga ed.
In pa allel, he p ojec eam conduc ed on-si e company isi s, du ing which
in e iews we e held wi h a ious s akeholde s, including p oduc ion manage s,
aine s, and expe ienced echnicians. These isi s allowed o a mo e con ex ualized
and nuanced unde s anding o how aci knowledge is ansmi ed, pa icula ly in
ela ion o onboa ding p ocesses, men o ing models, in o mal lea ning en i onmen s,
and isk ac o s associa ed wi h he aging wo k o ce. The in e iews we e ypically
semi-s uc u ed, enabling bo h ocused inqui y and lexibili y o explo e company-
speci ic p ac ices. A his phase, 13 companies we e isi ed and ypically 1-3
company ep esen a i es we e in e iewed.
In addi ion o his da a collec ion by in e iews, a co-c ea ion wo kshop was
o ganized, b inging oge he ep esen a i es om bo h he indus ial and educa ional
sec o s. This wo kshop enabled he collabo a i e examina ion and dialogue o aci
knowledge p ac ices, ba ie s, and enable s om mul iple iewpoin s. Pa icipan s
wo ked oge he o de ine p ac ical me hods o iden i ying, documen ing, and
eaching aci knowledge. Figu e 2 shows ou pu s om pa icipan s placed in he ou
quad an s o he SECI model.
Fig. 2. Company ep esen a i es’ inpu s mapped on o he SECI amewo k du ing a co-
c ea ion wo kshop.
4 RESULTS
In e iews conduc ed wi h manu ac u ing companies e ealed a widesp ead conce n
abou he loss o aci knowledge, pa icula ly in he con ex o an aging wo k o ce.
Taci knowledge. Figu e 3A p esen s he dis ibu ion o esponses o he ques ion
“How se ious a p oblem do you conside he loss o aci knowledge in you
company?” using a scale om 0 o 5 (0 = no p oblem a all, 5 = e y se ious
p oblem). In addi ion, he igu e includes in o ma ion on whe he he company has a
me hod o ans e ing aci knowledge om one employee o ano he , and whe he
he company is in e es ed in pa icipa ing in he de elopmen and aining o aci
knowledge ans e oge he wi h TAMK. Figu e 3B summa izes he esponses and
explains he in e p e a ion o he colo s:
• Da k g een = The company has a me hod o aci knowledge ans e and
is in e es ed in pa icipa ing in i s de elopmen wi h TAMK and SASKY.
• Ligh g een = The company does no ha e a me hod o aci knowledge
ans e bu is in e es ed in pa icipa ing in i s de elopmen wi h TAMK.
• G ey = The company has a me hod o aci knowledge ans e bu is no
in e es ed in pa icipa ing in i s de elopmen wi h TAMK and SASKY.
• Red = The company does no ha e a me hod o aci knowledge ans e
and is no in e es ed in pa icipa ing in i s de elopmen wi h TAMK and
SASKY.
Based on he dis ibu ion o esponses (Figu e 3A), he majo i y o companies
conside he loss o aci knowledge o be a leas some le el o p oblem o hei
o ganiza ion. O he 163 companies esponding, 75% (122 companies) epo ed
ha ing some kind o aining model o p ac ice o ans e ing aci knowledge om
one employee o ano he . O hese, abou hal (41 companies) also exp essed a
willingness o pa icipa e in he de elopmen and aining o aci knowledge
collec ion and ans e oge he wi h TAMK. In addi ion, 13 companies ha cu en ly
do no ha e any exis ing model o aci knowledge ans e s a ed hey would like o
be in ol ed in such de elopmen .
The la ges g oup (81 companies) consis s o hose who ha e an in e nal model o
aci knowledge ans e bu see no need o u he de elop i o a e no willing o
sha e hei expe ise. Among he esponden s, he e a e also 28 companies wi hou
a model and wi hou in e es in de eloping one. Some o hese companies also
pe cei e he loss o aci knowledge as a p oblem (see Figu e 3A). The eluc ance o
hese companies o de elop a model o aci knowledge ans e may s em om
a ious easons. Lack o esou ces such as ime, unding, o pe sonnel. O he
impo ance o aci knowledge may no be ully ecognized. In smalle o ganiza ions,
knowledge sha ing o en akes place in o mally h ough daily in e ac ions, which may
diminish he pe cei ed need o a o mal model. Also, o he p io i ies such as g ow h
o p oduc de elopmen may ake p ecedence o e knowledge managemen .
Fig. 3. A) Company esponses ega ding he pe cei ed se e i y o he loss o aci
knowledge (A), as well as in o ma ion on whe he he company has a me hod o ans e ing
aci knowledge and whe he i is in e es ed in de eloping and aining aci knowledge
ans e in collabo a ion wi h TAMK (B). The esponse colo coding is he same in A) and B).
Acco ding o he company isi in e iews, aci knowledge ans e is conside ed
impo an ac oss companies. In e e y company, some o m o aci knowledge is
ans e ed, al hough he le el o sys ema iza ion a ies. The e i emen o
expe ienced employees and employee u no e pose pa icula challenges o he
p ese a ion o his knowledge. Taci knowledge is mos o en ans e ed h ough
on- he-job guidance. P ac ical ins uc ion and wo king side by side we e pe cei ed
as e ec i e me hods. In he companies in e iewed, onboa ding ypically begins wi h
simple asks and g adually ad ances o mo e complex s ages. The du a ion o he
onboa ding p ocess a ies om 1 o 9 mon hs, depending on he p io expe ience o
he employee. Documen a ion and w i en eco ds we e highligh ed as impo an
pa s o he onboa ding p ocess. In some companies, aci knowledge ans e is also
suppo ed by o a ing employees h ough di e en asks and machines and by
c ea ing clea wo k ins uc ions.
The 13 on-si e in e iews also emphasized ha he mas e –app en ice model is one
o he mos e ec i e ways o ans e aci knowledge. Lea ning by doing and
engaging in p ac ical asks no only de elop echnical skills bu also os e a
comp ehensi e unde s anding o p ocesses. Howe e , his model also p esen s
challenges, pa icula ly in e ms o cos s and esou ce use. Assigning wo
p o essionals o he same ask is expensi e and ime-consuming. Some companies
ha e add essed his by u ilizing pa - ime e i emen a angemen s. Ano he
challenge ela es o he “owne ship” o knowledge: no e e yone is willing o sha e
hei expe ise, p e e ing ins ead o e ain knowledge as a pe sonal asse . In
addi ion, he mas e and app en ice mus ge along and “speak he same language”
o he lea ning p ocess o be e ec i e. A good men o is able o demons a e,
encou age, and p o ide cons uc i e eedback. Pedagogical skills, such as clea
communica ion and a suppo i e a i ude, a e especially impo an when ans e ing
expe ience-based knowledge ha is di icul o e balize.
Al hough digi al ools such as AR and VR ha e heo e ical po en ial, he da a
e ealed limi ed p ac ical implemen a ion among he in e iewed companies. Ba ie s
may include cos s, lack o expe ise o manage and main ain echnological solu ions,
and pe cep ions ha digi al simula ions do no ully eplica e he complexi y and
sub le y o eal-wo ld aci knowledge. As pa o i s ou pu s, he Manu ac u ing
Academy 2.0 p ojec is de eloping a VR simula o speci ically o g inding p ocess in
manu ac u ing. Howe e , he desc ip ion and e alua ion o his simula o a e beyond
he scope o his a icle.
Companies gene ally ecognize ha sys ema ic aci knowledge ans e s ill equi es
u he de elopmen in o de o become an es ablished pa o e e yday
o ganiza ional ou ines. The e i emen o expe ienced employees ep esen s a
signi ican isk o knowledge loss. This highligh s he need o e ec i e ools and
p ocesses o p ese e and ans e aci knowledge o u u e gene a ions.
5 DISCUSSION
The indings o he Manu ac u ing Academy 2.0 p ojec p o ide unde s anding o
how aci knowledge is pe cei ed, ans e ed, and managed in Finnish
manu ac u ing companies. When in e p e ed h ough he SECI, he empi ical esul s
e lec he ou phases o knowledge con e sion:
The socializa ion phase: The ans e o aci knowledge h ough sha ed
expe iences is a well-es ablished p ac ice in many companies. Hands-on men o ing,
side-by-side lea ning, and in o mal pee in e ac ion we e consis en ly seen as
e ec i e means o ans e ing knowledge. Howe e , his phase also ca ies isks:
wi hou s uc u ed guidance, he mas e –app en ice model can inad e en ly ans e
lawed o ou da ed p ac ices. In his ega d, one clea a ea o de elopmen is he
in oduc ion o a “men o ” who would no only acili a e and suppo he mas e –
app en ice ela ionship bu also help alida e he knowledge being ans e ed o
ensu e i aligns wi h cu en bes p ac ices and sa e y s anda ds.
The ex e naliza ion phase: This phase whe e aci knowledge is a icula ed and
made explici , emains ela i ely weak. While some companies use documen a ion,
isual ins uc ions, and echnical illus a ions, he p ocess is o en unsys ema ic.
Knowledge is equen ly cap u ed only pa ially, and wi hou con ex ual explana ions,
much o i s alue is los . In addi ion, no all employees a e always willing o sha e
wha hey know. In ce ain cases, indi iduals iew hei expe ise as a sou ce o job
secu i y and may wi hhold in o ma ion, especially in si ua ions whe e layo s o
es uc u ing a e an icipa ed.
The combina ion phase: The in eg a ion and o ganiza ion o explici knowledge
was only ligh ly e lec ed in he da a. Some companies epo ed using documen a ion
and w i en ins uc ions as pa o hei onboa ding p ocesses, and in a ew cases,
employees we e o a ed ac oss asks and machines o suppo b oade lea ning.
Howe e , he ex en o which explici knowledge is sys ema ically o ganized o
combined in o cohesi e aining con en emained unclea , sugges ing ha his
phase is no ye s ongly de eloped in cu en p ac ices.
The in e naliza ion phase, whe e explici knowledge becomes aci again h ough
expe ience, is ac i ely suppo ed by many companies h ough ask p og ession and
inc easing esponsibili y. The mas e –app en ice model plays a cen al ole he e, bu
i s success depends somewha on he men o ’s pedagogical skills. Re i ing wo ke s
o en need o communica e wi h much younge employees, whose lea ning s yles
and backg ounds may di e signi ican ly. E ec i e knowledge ans e in his con ex
equi es he mas e o "speak he same language" as he app en ice, adjus ing
explana ions and eedback o sui he lea ne ’s needs.
6 CONCLUSIONS
Based on he quali a i e da a collec ed om company in e iews, on-si e isi s, and a
mul i-s akeholde wo kshop, he s udy ells ha while aci knowledge is b oadly
acknowledged as impo an , sys ema ic s a egies o i s ans e a e s ill lacking in
many o ganiza ions. When analyzed h ough he SECI model, he esul s show ha
socializa ion and in e naliza ion a e ela i ely s ong, p ima ily suppo ed by mas e –
app en ice models and on- he-job lea ning. Howe e , he ex e naliza ion and
combina ion phases equi e u he de elopmen in many cases. Many companies
lack s uc u ed p ocesses o documen ing expe ien ial knowledge, and agmen ed
ma e ials o en p e en e ec i e onboa ding o scaling o expe ise. One key isk is
ha he mas e –app en ice model, while e ec i e, can also inad e en ly ansmi
inco ec o ou da ed p ac ices i no moni o ed o alida ed. To mi iga e his isk,
o ganiza ions could implemen s uc u ed men o ship p og ams ha include
pedagogical aining o men o s and mechanisms o alida ing and upda ing he
ans e ed knowledge. Addi ionally, c ea ing an open and suppo i e o ganiza ional
cul u e, whe e knowledge sha ing is encou aged and ewa ded, is c ucial o
ensu ing he quali y and con inui y o aci knowledge ans e ac oss gene a ions.
Looking ahead, u u e wo k should ocus on de eloping digi al and pedagogical ools
ha enhance he isibili y and usabili y o aci knowledge. Expanding coope a ion
be ween educa ional ins i u ions and companies would be bene icial o ensu ing ha
p ac ical expe ise is no only sys emically p ese ed bu also con inuously
de eloped in he companies.
7 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The Eu opean Social Fund plus (ESF+) is acknowledged o co ounding he
“Manu ac u ing Academy 2.0” p ojec .
