Surfacing tacit sources of success

Eliciting and transferring tacit knowledge is critical for the growth ambitions of small knowedge-intensive firms such as management consultancies because their work is often intangible and ambiguous. How this can be done presents a challenge as there are as yet no tools available to help them. This article explains how the use of causal mapping helped the partners of one consultancy firm to surface their tacit knowledge, to uncover what they should try to replicate within the organization to sustain their success, and to refine their raison d'etre. Through the mapping process, which is interactive, non-directive, and generates ownership of the outcomes, the partners were encouraged to tap into their ambiguous, tacit knowledge base, which constitutes a large part of their consultancy's success. The article contributes to our understanding of small business management practice, tacit knowledge and consulting interventions.