A Knowledge broker is an intermediary

Intermediary

An intermediary is a third party that offers intermediation services between two trading parties. The intermediary acts as a conduit for goods or services offered by a supplier to a consumer...

 (an organization

Organization

An organization is a social group which distributes tasks for a collective goal. The word itself is derived from the Greek word organon, itself derived from the better-known word ergon - as we know `organ` - and it means a compartment for a particular job.There are a variety of legal types of...

 or a person

Person

A person is a human being, or an entity that has certain capacities or attributes strongly associated with being human , for example in a particular moral or legal context...

), that aims to develop relationships and networks with, among, and between producers and users of knowledge by providing linkages, knowledge

Knowledge

Knowledge is a familiarity with someone or something unknown, which can include information, facts, descriptions, or skills acquired through experience or education. It can refer to the theoretical or practical understanding of a subject...

 sources

Source text

A source text is a text from which information or ideas are derived. In translation, a source text is the original text that is to be translated into another language.-Description:...

, and in some cases knowledge itself, (e.g. technical know-how, market

Market

A market is one of many varieties of systems, institutions, procedures, social relations and infrastructures whereby parties engage in exchange. While parties may exchange goods and services by barter, most markets rely on sellers offering their goods or services in exchange for money from buyers...

 insight

Insight

Insight is the understanding of a specific cause and effect in a specific context. Insight can be used with several related meanings:*a piece of information...

s, research evidence) to organizations in its network.

While the exact role and function of knowledge brokers are conceptualized and operationalized differently in various sectors and settings, a key feature appears to be the facilitation of knowledge exchange or sharing between and among various stakeholders, including researchers, practitioners, and policy makers.

A knowledge broker may operate in multiple markets and technology domains.

The concept of knowledge brokers is closely related to the concept of knowledge spillover

Knowledge spillover

Knowledge spillover is an exchange of ideas among individuals. In knowledge management economics, a knowledge spillover is a non-rival knowledge market externality that has a spillover effect of stimulating technological improvements in a neighbor through one's own innovation...

s.

In the fields of public health

Public health

Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals" . It is concerned with threats to health based on population health...

, applied health services research

Health services research

Health services research is a multidisciplinary scientific field that examines how people get access to health care practitioners and health care services, how much care costs, and what happens to patients as a result of this care...

, and social sciences

Social sciences

Social science is the field of study concerned with society. "Social science" is commonly used as an umbrella term to refer to a plurality of fields outside of the natural sciences usually exclusive of the administrative or managerial sciences...

, knowledge brokers are often referred to as bridges or intermediaries

that link producers of research evidence to users of research evidence as a means of facilitating collaboration to identify issues, solve problems
,
and promote evidence-informed decision making (EIDM), which is the process of critically appraising and incorporating the best available research evidence, along with evidence from multiple other sources into policy and practice decisions
.
Using a knowledge broker to facilitate the exchange of knowledge and the adoption of insights is one strategy in the broader field of Knowledge Management

Knowledge management

Knowledge management comprises a range of strategies and practices used in an organization to identify, create, represent, distribute, and enable adoption of insights and experiences...

.

Function

Knowledge brokers facilitate the transfer

Knowledge transfer

Knowledge transfer in the fields of organizational development and organizational learning is the practical problem of transferring knowledge from one part of the organization to another part of the organization. Like Knowledge Management, Knowledge transfer seeks to organize, create, capture or...

 and exchange of knowledge from where it is abundant to where it is needed, thereby supporting co-development and improving the innovative capability

Capability

Capability is the ability to perform actions.As it applies to human capital, capability is the sum of expertise and capacity.It is a component within the theories of:* Capability-based security and Capability-based addressing in computing...

 of organizations in their network. In the field of public health

Public health

Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals" . It is concerned with threats to health based on population health...

, knowledge brokers facilitate the appropriate use of the best available research evidence in decision making

Decision making

Decision making can be regarded as the mental processes resulting in the selection of a course of action among several alternative scenarios. Every decision making process produces a final choice. The output can be an action or an opinion of choice.- Overview :Human performance in decision terms...

 processes, enhancing individual and organizational capacity to participate effectively in evidence-informed decision making. In this setting, knowledge brokers promote research use.
Knowledge brokers are typically involved in the following activities below:

• Assessing barriers and establishing access to knowledge (i.e. screening and recognizing valuable knowledge across organizations and industries)
• Learning (e.g. internalizing experiences from a diverse range of perspectives including those of industry, technology
  Technology
  Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...
  
   or health disciplines)
• Linking of separate knowledge pools (e.g. through joint research
  Research
  Research can be defined as the scientific search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories, usually using a scientific method...
  
  , consulting
  Consultant
  A consultant is a professional who provides professional or expert advice in a particular area such as management, accountancy, the environment, entertainment, technology, law , human resources, marketing, emergency management, food production, medicine, finance, life management, economics, public...
  
   services, and developing a mutual understanding of goals and cultures
• Supporting knowledge and skill development
• Facilitating individual/organizational capacity development for knowledge use (e.g., assessing current knowledge use, absorptive and receptive capacity, and readiness for change)
• Implementing knowledge in new settings (e.g. combining existing knowledge in new ways)

Expertise

Knowledge brokers provide a link between the producers and users of knowledge. To facilitate this knowledge exchange, knowledge brokers are required to build rapport with their target audiences and forge new connections across domains.
A successful knowledge broker will possess:

• Expertise in synthesizing and adapting information for use in different local contexts
• A non-judgemental, respectful manner
• Excellent written and oral communication skills
• Strong interpersonal and networking skills
• An understanding of the context, processes, and key influencers of both the producers and users of knowledge
• Critical thinking
  Critical thinking
  Critical thinking is the process or method of thinking that questions assumptions. It is a way of deciding whether a claim is true, false, or sometimes true and sometimes false, or partly true and partly false. The origins of critical thinking can be traced in Western thought to the Socratic...
  
   skills
• Critical reflection abilities and practices
• Strategic planning
  Strategic planning
  Strategic planning is an organization's process of defining its strategy, or direction, and making decisions on allocating its resources to pursue this strategy. In order to determine the direction of the organization, it is necessary to understand its current position and the possible avenues...
  
   skills and experience
• An understanding of adult education principles and practices

Examples of knowledge brokers

Every individual

Individual

An individual is a person or any specific object or thing in a collection. Individuality is the state or quality of being an individual; a person separate from other persons and possessing his or her own needs, goals, and desires. Being self expressive...

 or organization, which has access to knowledge from several, unconnected entities

Entity

An entity is something that has a distinct, separate existence, although it need not be a material existence. In particular, abstractions and legal fictions are usually regarded as entities. In general, there is also no presumption that an entity is animate.An entity could be viewed as a set...

, can theoretically act as a knowledge broker. Certain types of organizations have been identified to be acting primarily as knowledge brokers:

• Dedicated knowledge brokers

(i.e. ESADE Creapolis and Sociedade Portuguesa de Inovação)

• Venture capitalists
• Consulting firms
• Evidence-informed decision making support organizations (e.g., Health Evidence , which offers dedicated knowledge brokers to mentor or facilitate evidence-informed decision making in public health organizations , and the National Collaborating Centre for Methods and Tools, which has knowledge brokers facilitating a public health Community of Practice