Chit-Chat Matters: Work-Related Knowledge Flows through Informal Inter-Organizational Ties.

Industrial clusters are characterized by an intense actors interacting with the effect of sharing existing knowledge and creating new one. In this environment knowledge unevenly flows across organizational boundaries and a significant part is exchanged via informal channels. Despite some scholars argued that only general and low-value information can be shared through this kind of channels (Breschi & Lissoni, 2001), empirical research show that specific and critical knowledge diffuses through informal networks as well (Dahl & Pedersen, 2004). Indeed, informal ties between firms represent the fertile ground for the so-called to obtain it (Rogers, 1982). Von Hipple (1987) considers informal information trade between firms as an important form of cooperative R&D, likely to occur in industries. Although such knowledge spillovers are recognized to be not a critical factor for firm's willingness to cluster (Krugman, 1991), they are an important form of knowledge transfer. First results highlight that a considerable part of informal ties represents conduits of work-related knowledge. The paper try to contribute to the literature by emphasizing the importance of informal inter-organizational networks; when studying industrial cluster as knowledge ecosystems, informal ties among cluster actors do exist and a considerable part of those are exclusively devoted to share work-related knowledge.and their existence within clusters is undoubtedly linked to the one of informal networks.