Abstract
The burgeoning notion of Communities of Practice (CoPs) has in recent years encouraged companies to intentionally create and sustain CoPs, particularly as Knowledge Management (KM) initiatives. Existing research suggests that intentionally established intra-organisational CoPs could enhance knowledge-sharing interaction, organisational innovation, problem-solving and performance. However, whether CoPs should be openly recognised within organisations still remains controversial, perhaps because empirical support is limited for understanding the impact of organisational factors - culture, structure and top management - on intra-organisational CoPs. Therefore, this qualitative case study could contribute to existing literature an understanding of the symbiosis between the aforementioned organisational factors and CoPs' activities in a large Saudi Arabian petrochemical corporation.