BKM2014 Knowledge Management

Lecture 1
Introduction to Knowledge
Management
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 Learning Objectives
 Use a framework and a clear language for KM
concepts
 Define key knowledge management concepts such
as intellectual capital, organizational learning and
memory, knowledge taxonomy, and communities of
practice concept analysis
 Provide an overview of the history of knowledge
management and identify key milestones.
 Describe the key roles and responsibilities required
for KM applications
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 Knowledge characteristics
 The use of knowledge does not consume it
 Transferral of knowledge does not result in
losing it
 Knowledge is abundant, but the ability to use
it is scarce
 Much of an organisation’s valuable
knowledge walks out the door at the end of
day

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 Knowledge Age
 Unlimited sources
 Labour intensive work  knowledge-based
work
 Organisation learns, remembers, and acts
based on the best available information,
knowledge and know-how.

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 Knowledge Management is…
 ‘…the deliberate and systematic coordination
of an organisation’s people, technology, and
organisational structure in order to add value
through reuse and innovation. This
coordination is achieved through creating,
sharing and applying knowledge as well as
through feeding the valuable lessons learned
and best practices into corporate memory in
order to foster continued organisational
learning.’ (Dalkir 2005, p. 3)
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 Corporate Memory

 The combined knowledge and experience of a

company's employees (
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/corporate-m
emory
)

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 Organisational learning

 The learning processes of and within

organizations’ which implies that
organizations, as discrete socio-economic
entities, can learn in ways that are
‘independent of the individuals within’
(Easterby-Smith & Lyles 2003, p. 9; Spender
2008, p. 160)

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 What do we know….
 The greatest asset are often the knowledge
held by the employees
 BUT most managers and executives don’t
have an idea on how to manage this
knowledge
 It is important to identify this knowledge and
to manage it before it is lost

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3 Different Perspectives of KM
 1. Business
 2. Cognitive Science/Knowledge
Science
 3. Process/Technology

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 1. Business Perspective of KM
 A business activity with 2 primary aspects
 Treating the knowledge component of business
activities as an explicit concern of business
reflected in strategy, policy and practice at all
levels of the organisation and making a direct
connection between an organisation’s intellectual
assets – both explicit (recorded) and tacit
(personal know-how)- and positive business
results (Barclay & Murray 1997).
 Collaborative and integrated approach to the
creation, capture, organisation, access and use
of an enterprise’s intellectual assets (Grey 1996)

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 2. Cognitive Science/Knowledge
Science Perspective of KM
 Knowledge – the insights, understandings and practical
know-how that we all possess is the fundamental
resource that allows us to function intelligently.
 Over time, considerable knowledge is also transformed
to other manifestations e.g. books, technology, practices
and traditions within organisations and society in
general.
 These transformations result in cummulative expertise
and when used appropriately, increased effectiveness.

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 3. Process/Technology Perspective
 KM is the concept under which information is turned
into actionable knowledge and made available
effortlessly in a usable form to the people who can
apply it.
 Leveraging collective wisdom to increase
responsiveness and innovation.
 A systematic approach to manage the use of
information in order to provide a continuous flow of
knowledge to the right people at the right time
enabling efficient and effective decision making in
their everyday business.
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 Wiig (1993) says, to achieve success…
 Knowledge assets
 Must be applied, nurtured, preserved and
used to the largest extent possible by both
individuals and organisations
 Knowledge-related processes
 To create, build, compile, organise,
transform, transfer, pool, apply and
safeguard knowledge that must be carefully
and explicitly managed in all affected areas.
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 KM is multidisciplinary
 KM draws from a vast number of diverse fields such as:
 Organisational science & management
 Cognitive science
 Linguistics and computational linguistics
 IT
 Information & library science
 Technical writing & journalism
 Education & training
 Collaborative technologies
 Communication studies
 Sociology
 Anthropology
 Philosophy etc.

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 Multidisciplinary KM is
 +++
 Anyone can find a familiar foundation on which to
base their understanding and practice KM
 ---
 Skeptics argue that KM is not and cannot be a
separate discipline with a unique body of
knowledge
 Therefore, it is important to be able to list and
describe what is KM as a field of practice and
discipline that can be distinguished from
others. 15
 Data

 Directly observable
 Verifiable
 Raw facts
 Unprocessed

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 Information
 Analysed or processed data
 Meaningful

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 Knowledge
 Subjective way of knowing
 Based on experiential
 Individual values
 Perceptions
 Experience.

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 2 Major Types of Knowledge
TACIT EXPLICIT
 Knowledge that is difficult to  Captured in some tangible
articulate and difficult to put form such as words,
into words, text or drawings. recordings, images etc.
 Ability to adapt, to deal with new  Ability to disseminate, reproduce,
and exceptional situations access and reapply throughout
 Expertise, know-how, know-why the organisation
and care-why  Ability to teach and train
 Ability to collaborate, to share a  Ability to organise, systemise,
vision and to transmit a culture translate vision to mission and
 Coaching and mentoring to operational statements
transfer experiential knowledge  Transfer of knowledge via
on a one-to-one, face-to-face products, services and
basis documented processes
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 Tacit Knowledge
 Difficult to articulate
 Difficult to put into word, text, or drawings
 Reside within head of knowers
 Difficult to transfer

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 Example of Tacit Knowledge
 How to speak a language
 Innovation
 Leadership
 Aesthatetic Sense (Art)
 Sales
 Body Language
 Intuition
 Humor
 Emotional Intelligence
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 A paradox…
 Tacitness is a property of the knower…. What
is tacit for one may be explicit for the other.
 The more difficult it is to articulate, the more
valuable it tends to be….
 So which is more ‘valuable’ then???
 Some say that explicit knowledge represents
the final end product WHILE tacit knowledge
is the know-how or all the processes that are
required to produce the final end product.
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 Concept analysis technique
 A formula used to generate definitions or
descriptive phrases for highly complex terms.
 Need to obtain consensus on three
dimensions of a given concept:
 1: list of key attributes that must be present

in the definition, vision or mission

statement
 2: list of illustrative examples

 3: list of illustrative non-examples

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 Concept Analysis Technique
Concept name: ____________________

Key attributes: Examples: Non-

examples:

1. ___________ 1. ___________ 1. ___________

2. ___________ 2. ___________ 2. ___________
3. ___________ 3. ___________ 3. ___________
4. ___________ 4. ___________ 4. ___________
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 Some key KM attributes…
 Generating new knowledge
 Assessing valuable knowledge from outside
sources
 Using accessible knowledge in decision making
 Representing knowledge in documents, databases
and software
 Facilitating knowledge growth through culture and
incentives
 Transferring existing knowledge into other parts of
the organisation
 Measuring the value of knowledge assets and/or
impact of KM
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 Recurring KM themes
 Tacit & explicit knowledge
 Added value (so what of KM)
 Application or use of knowledge that has
been captured, codified, disseminated (impact
of KM)

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Timeline of KM

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Developmental Phases in KM History

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KM Milestones

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3 Levels of Intellectual Capital
Intellectual assets – systems in
place such as JIT, yield
management systems etc
which are an organisation’s
recorded information and
human talent that are typically
inefficiently stored and used or
simply lost
Competence – skills to achieve
a high level of performance
Capability – strategic skills to
integrate and apply
competencies
Technologies – tools and
methods required to produce
certain physical results
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 3 Organisational Perspectives of KM (Wiig 1993)

 Business – focusing on why, where and to what

extent the organisation must invest in or exploit
knowledge. Strategies, products, services, alliances,
acquisitions or divestments should be considered
from knowledge-related points of view.
 Management –focusing on determining, organising,
directing, facilitating and monitoring knowledge-
related practices and activities required to achieve
the desired business strategies and objectives
 Hands-on – applying expertise to conduct explicit
knowledge-related work and tasks
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 Why is KM important?
 Globalisation of business – multisite,
multilingual and multicultural
 Leaner organisations – more and faster,
smarter at an increased pace and workload
 Corporate amnesia – mobility of workforce,
lack of knowledge continuity
 Technological advances – more connected,
ubiquitous connectivity, increased
expectations, always ‘ON’…minutes rather
than weeks in responding
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KM Generation 1
 Emphasis on the containers of
knowledge or IT in order to keep this
knowledge more effectively hence more
intranets and internal KM systems.
 Top-down, organisation-wide monolithic
KM systems.

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KM Generation 2
 Due to information overload, the focus
moved towards people, importance
placed on human and cultural
dimensions of KM.
 Bottom-up or grassroots adoption of KM
such as communities of practice.

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 KM Generation 3
 Shared context – how to describe and organise
content so that the intended users are aware it
exists and can easily apply this content.
 Shared context creates shared meaning – ‘light
bulbs in the pocket are not enough, they need to
be plugged in.’
 People should know what there is to be known,
can find it when they need to, can understand it
and perhaps most important – are convinced that
this knowledge should be put to work.
 Taxonomy before technology (Koenig 2002).
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3 Major Components of KM

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KM for Individuals

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KM for Communities

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KM for Organisations

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Summary

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