The growing environmental problems associated with the dumping of large amounts of textile waste and the demand for circular products are prompting textile waste recycling enterprises to develop circular business models (CBMs). This implies a radical change in the way some enterprises operate to obtain growth. Considering the importance of the drivers of and barriers for the adoption and implementation of CBMs in the textile recycling sector, it is claimed that the comprehension of these factors to CBMs is limited and deserves more attention in empirical research. Therefore, our research investigates the antecedents of circular business models in the textile recycling sector by highlighting influencing factors. The aim of the article is to explore the main enhancing and inhibiting factors in the development of circular business models on the example of a large enterprise operating for 30 years in the textile recycling sector. In this study, a case study design of mixed methods, including semi-structured interviews with a business practitioner and the data presented on the websites of the surveyed enterprise, is used. The results suggest that main enhancing factors are relevant regulations at the European level, appropriate technologies and digitisation, and increasing social and environmental awareness of consumers and managerial capabilities. However, inhibiting factors are supply chain complexity and supply chain collaboration in connection with a large scale of business in crisis situations, a large scope and range of geographic diversification of outlets in the perspective of the consequences of the information gap, and readiness to take the so-called “being the first in the market” risk. In practice, this means that general drivers of the CBMs may facilitate the reuse of second-hand clothing and recycling of textiles for other new products as the primary CE action. On the other hand, enterprises have to overcome a number of technological barriers, and in the case of the textile recycling sector, it is necessary to understand which barriers they face to take appropriate actions. Research findings indicate factors that may be the subject of intervention or support of managers or policymakers. This study has practical implications and suggests future study paths.

The energy sector is the epitome of Industry 4.0; therefore, it should be developed in line with the Industry 4.0 implementation framework and be managed according to the guidelines dedicated to knowledge-based enterprises. Under this model of evolution, the layers surrounding the technological aspects are first, knowledge management (in particular, its transfer), and then people, and culture. This study addresses two of the three identified levels by attempting to verify the organizational culture that supports professional knowledge transfer as the leading factor in effective specialist knowledge exchange in the energy sector. Recently, this sector has become highly dependent on IT solutions as the main factor for its development and security. A key role in this respect is played by IT professionals, whose attitudes and employee behavior are critical to the stability, efficiency, effectiveness, and security of IT systems in the energy companies. The purpose of this paper is to propose a theoretical construct, based on indicated norms and values as organizational culture foundation and cultural practices. This article also aims to analyze and diagnose the components that support the professional knowledge transfer in different groups of organizational stakeholders. Systematic analysis of the scientific literature, expert evaluation, and structured questionnaires were used to develop and verify the hypotheses. The research results supported the hypotheses that organizational culture tailored to the knowledge workers’ needs and expectations, influence the effective and efficient circulation of IT expert knowledge.

The digital revolution has triggered disproportions resulting from unequal access to knowledge and various related skills, because the constituting new civilization is based on specific, high-context, and personalized professional knowledge. In response to these dependencies, and in line with the sustainability paradigm, the issue of diffusion of knowledge, especially of the professional type, is of particular importance in eliminating the increasing digital inequalities. Therefore, the main challenge is to stimulate the free dispersion of intellectual workers’ knowledge. Their openness and commitment, devoid of opportunistic and knowledge-flow restraining attitudes, are prerequisites for the development of a sustainable society (synonymous with Civilization 5.0 or Humanity 5.0). The article endeavors to verify trust as the leading factor of effective specialist knowledge exchange. Its purpose is to analyze and diagnose the components, enablers, and types of trust that affect the diffusion of specific forms of professional knowledge in different groups of organizational stakeholders treated as knowledge agents. Systematic scientific literature analysis, expert evaluation, and structured questionnaires were used to develop and verify the hypotheses. Direct semistructured individual interviews, focus-group online interviews, computer-assisted telephone interviews, and computer-assisted web interviews were also applied in the paper. The research results confirmed the assumption that reliability-based trust, built on competence-based trust and reinforced by benevolence-based trust, is the foundation of the exchange of professional knowledge. It also supported the hypotheses that this process depends on the group of knowledge agents, the dominant form of trust, as well as its enhancers and types of exchanged knowledge. Conducted explorations constitute a theoretical and practical contribution to the subject of professional knowledge exchange. They fill the research gap regarding vehicles of trust as a factor of specialist knowledge diffusion and provide general, practical guidelines in terms of shaping individual components of competence-, benevolence-, and reliability-based trust due to the type of transferred knowledge and the group of knowledge agents involved in its circulation.

Today, knowledge has become dominant, creating a new dimension of the economy, a new society and a new employee. Knowledge workers have emerged as the core of a modern organisation’s staff, and their job is to convert information into knowledge. The process of diffusion of these key organisational players’ knowledge is critical, as it determines its availability to other employees. Both the character and importance of specialist knowledge diffusion require a detailed analysis of the process. Therefore, the main research goal of the study is to determine the conditions for this process in the IT sector. The method of triangulation was selected for this research. The procedure for obtaining empirical data consisted of three stages – direct semi-structured individual interviews, focus group online interviews (FIGO), a computer-assisted telephone interview (CATI) and a computer-assisted web interview (CAWI-based DYI). Then, Spearman’s rank-order correlation coefficient was used. It was found that knowledge workers are most likely to participate in the diffusion of high-context, personalised and tacit knowledge. Knowledge sharing is the subprocess of knowledge transfer, most conservatively approached by professionals who fear the uncontrolled transmission of their specific knowledge. Closed and conservative attitudes were clearly observed in the transmission of knowledge between staff (employees other than knowledge-workers) and stakeholders. They suggest the targeted or intuitive use of knowledge protection strategies, especially in inter-organisational cooperation relationships. The considerations presented contribute theoretically and practically to the diffusion of professional knowledge. They set a framework for designing the knowledge dispersion management subsystem as the chief element of the overall organisational knowledge management system, due to the subprocesses constituting knowledge transfer, the type of knowledge exchanged, and the group of knowledge agents involved in its circulation. Identifying critical conditions that support the knowledge diffusion of professionals could help practitioners create an effective system of knowledge transfer that meets knowledge workers’ requirements and stimulates the flow of the preferred types of knowledge in the planned and desired directions among selected groups of knowledge agents.

Wydawnictwo Naukowe Uniwersytetu Szczecińskiego