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Meta-functional expertise
Strategically important knowledge in a breadth of areas to a degree which enables communicating with various domain experts

Meta-functional expertise is the breadth of one’s strategically important knowledge. It differs from the traditional conceptualization of expertise, which is generally considered to be a great depth of knowledge in a defined area, and where thus experts are people who are distinguished as knowing a lot about a particular subject. Comparatively, a meta-functional expert is considered to be somewhat knowledgeable in many different areas but not necessarily an expert in any single domain.

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Compared to generalists

Someone high on meta-functional expertise is similar to a generalist in that they have a wide array of knowledge. However, where generalists know many different things meta-functional experts have enough depth of knowledge in each area to be considered knowledgeable by other members of their team at work.2

Results of meta-functional expertise

Individuals high on meta-functional expertise are:

  • Better able to acquire social power at work because they can translate between specialists.34
  • More successful as entrepreneurs5
  • More innovative6
  • More likely to get promoted at work7
  • Better able to get information from people outside of their work team89

Groups with more meta-functional experts on them perform better because they:

  • Communicate better with one another and share more ideas 1011
  • Understand their surroundings better 12
  • Gain knowledge external to the group more efficiently13
  • Are more innovative14

See also

  • Interdisciplinarity, utilization of specialist knowledge from several areas to solve a problem
  • Interdiscipline, a discipline based on several disciplines, but which can also be considered an independent discipline

References

  1. Bunderson, J. S. (2003). Team member functional background and involvement in management teams: Direct effects and the moderating role of power centralization. The Academy of Management Journal, 458–474. ↩

  2. : Bunderson, JS., & Sutcliffe, KM. 2002. Comparing Alternative Conceptualizations of Functional Diversity in Management Teams: Process and Performance Effects. The Academy of Management Journal 45(5): 875-893 ↩

  3. Bunderson, J. S. (2003). Team member functional background and involvement in management teams: Direct effects and the moderating role of power centralization. The Academy of Management Journal, 458–474 ↩

  4. Dahlander, L. & O’Mahony, S. 2011. Progressing to the Center: Coordinating Project Work. Organization Science. 22(4): 961-979 ↩

  5. Beckman, C.M. & Burton, D.M. 2008. Founding the Future: Path Dependence in the Evolution of Top Management Teams from Founding to IPO. Organization Science, 19(1): 3–24 ↩

  6. Mors, M. L. (2009). Innovation in a global consulting firm: when the problem is too much diversity. Strategic Management Journal, 31(8), 841–872. ↩

  7. Kelly, et al Combining diverse knowledge: knowledge workers’ experience of specialists and generalist roles. Personnel Review, 29(4): 384-427 ↩

  8. Tushman, M.L., & Scanlan, T.J. 1981. Boundary Spanning Individuals: Their Role in Information Transfer and Their Antecedents. The Academy of Management Journal, 24 (2): 289-305 /wiki/Michael_L._Tushman ↩

  9. Tushman, M.L., & Scanlan, T.J. Characteristics and external orientations of boundary spanning individuals. Academy of Management Journal, 24(1): 83-98 /wiki/Michael_L._Tushman ↩

  10. Bunderson, JS., & Sutcliffe, KM. 2002. Comparing Alternative Conceptualizations of Functional Diversity in Management Teams: Process and Performance Effects. The Academy of Management Journal 45(5): 875-893 ↩

  11. Somech, A. 2006. The Effects of Leadership Style and Team Process on Performance and Innovation in Functionally Heterogeneous Teams, Journal of Management, 32: 132-157 ↩

  12. Cummings, J.N. 2004. Work Groups, Structural Diversity, and Knowledge Sharing in a Global Organization. Management Science, 50(3): 352-364 ↩

  13. Haas, M.R. 2006. Acquiring and Applying Knowledge in Transnational Teams: The Roles of Cosmopolitans and Locals. Organization Science, 17(3): 367-384 ↩

  14. Fay, D., Carol Borrill1, Ziv Amir, Robert Haward and Michael A. West. 2006. Getting the most out of multidisciplinary teams: A multi-sample study of team innovation in health care. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 79: 553–567 ↩