Dynamic knowledge management in response to the pandemic outbreak: an interinstitutional risk-based approach to sustainability

Abstract

The coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) represents an unprecedented challenge for the survival of various organisations around the world. The resilience of an organisation depends predominantly on its ability to respond in a timely manner by leveraging optimal decisions, as supported by dynamic knowledge management in assessing rapidly evolving external uncertainties while evaluating real options. Such a capability can be enhanced by a risk-based approach through collaboration among organisations under public health policy directives to implement concerted control measures in a responsive manner. An integrative framework is developed to illustrate an underlying system that embraces dynamic knowledge management to mitigate limitations in the conventional approach based on a single organisation’s perspective. The case of Hong Kong, a highly populated city in Asia, is illustrated to explore the interinstitutional dynamics of knowledge transfer to external stakeholders in protecting public health under an exposed system. Implications for postpandemic management system development for institutional sustainability are articulated.