Being “in the Know” in a Participative Management System

A primary advantage of employee involvement groups is assumed to be the development of knowledgeable workers who are better performers. Little research, however, has explored the processes by which involvement in participatory groups is related to the acquisition of organizational knowledge. This study, of a manufacturing plant using a sociotechnical system design, hypothesized that two factors (involvement in the communication system and leadership experience) directly influence the level of workers' knowledge. Surprisingly, involvement in the overall communication system did not contribute to the degree to which workers were informed about specific production and organizational issues. However, the development of strong links with managers was associated with the acquisition of organizational knowledge. Furthermore, the data indicated that hourly workers' leadership experience was associated with greater level of knowledge. The implications of these findings for participatory designs are discussed.