Knowledge Management
Notes for DSS
SOM 485
September 2007
Abe Feinberg
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KM USES
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Decision Making
Planning/Strategies
Innovation
Design
Competition
Product/Process Design
Customer Relations
Education
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Dalkir Chapter 1
Introduction
• Organization in the knowledge age learns,
remembers and acts.
• KM initially defined as the process of
applying a systematic approach to the
capture, structure, management and
dissemination of knowledge throughout
the organization for spped, reuse best
practices and reduce costly rework.
• Add value through reuse and innovation
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Dalkir Chapter 1 Introduction
Some KM Objectives, etc.
• Smooth Transitions and Minimization of K loss
for Quits, Transfers and Retirements
• Identify critical resources and K areas
• Build up a toolkit of methods to stem k losses
• Interdisciplinary Nature of KM
• Tacit vs. Explicit K
• Levels of Intellectual Capital: Strategic-TacticalOperational
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Dalkir Chapter 1 Introduction
Why KM is Important
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Globalization of business
Leaner Organizations
Corporate Amnesia
Technological Advances
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Dalkir Chapter 2 KM Cycle
• 6 views of the cycle
• Wiig: Create, Source, Compile, Transform,
Disseminate, Apply, and Realize Value (Build,
Hold, Pool, Apply)
• Bukowitz and Williams: Get, Use, Learn,
Contribute, Assess, Build/Sustain and DIVEST
• Meyer and Zack: Acquire, Refine, Store,
Distribute and Present
• Strategic Implication: Retain and Share K
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Dalkir Chapter 4
Knowledge Capture & Codification
• Known-Unknown Matrix: Danger is in the Lower
Right Corner “Don’t Know that we Don’t Know”
• Capturing Tacit Knowledge: interviews, surveys,
questionnaires, observation, or simulation.
• Storytelling; IBM and Xerox
• Templates: Learning History p.92 and K
Acquisition Session p, 95
• Decision Trees: see p. 99
• Key point is that the more tacit K is, the more
valuable it is
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Dalkir Ch. 5
K sharing and CoP’s
• K Sharing follows Acquisition and Codification
• Social Network Analysis (SNA) is used to identify
connections with direction and volumes p. 117
Fig. 5-3
• CoP Types include: Member to Member
Content, Member to Member Interaction, Events
and Outreach p.125
• CoP Roles include: visitors, novices, regulars,
leaders and elders
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Dalkir Ch. 5
K sharing and CoP’s
• Best Practices begin with a good idea, then
good practice, then local best practice and finally
industry best practice or benchmark
• K Sharing increases Human Capital
• Sharing benefits include: standardization,
avoiding mistakes, leveraging best practices,
reducing time to achievement, building
reputation, and improving strategic capabilities
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Hislop Ch. 4
Motivating Knowledge Sharing
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Conflict
Status
Equity Fairness
Trust
Organizational Commitment/Culture
Reward/ Recognition
Visibility to Top Management
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Hislop Ch. 5
Communities of Practice
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Objective
Focus of efforts
Membership
Governance
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External system
Time Frame
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Internally Negotiated
Collective Practice/K
Voluntary
Consensually
Negotiated
• Self Managed
• Indefinite
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Hislop Ch. 6
Intercommunity K Processes
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Limits include Cultural Differences
Systems of Measure: English vs. Metric
Trust and Social Relations
Private vs. Public Sector (CPM vs. PERT)
Inter-organizational Relations are Key
Link at the Top is Critical for Success
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Hislop Ch.7
Power, Conflict and K Processes
• Conflict, Power and Politics; p. 91
Weberian-based
– Traditional (automatic)
– Affective
(emotion shaped)
– Value Rational (action oriented to values)
– Calculative (Instrumental rationality)
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Hislop Ch.7-Power
• Power properties of Knowledge
– Scarcity
– Satisfy wants/needs
– Shortage of alternatives
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Hislop Ch.7
Power Resources
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Physical
Economic
Administrative K
Technical K
Normative (Individual Beliefs and Values)
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Coakes Primer
• What is Knowledge?
– Acquaintance with facts, truths or principles
– Familiarity or conversance with a topic
– State of knowing/perception
– Body of facts and truths accumulated over
time
– enlightenment
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Coakes Primer 2
• Web of Relationships View
• Explicit vs Tacit Knowledge
– Explicit: documented, archived or codified
– Tacit: application of multiple intelligences
– Start with web of social and cultural relations
within the organization
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Coakes Primer 3
• What is the KM Payoff?
• Faster decisions, improved efficiency and
effectiveness, develop innovative products
and services, and ultimately improve the
organization’s revenues and profit
• Improve the organization’s longevity and
chance of survival
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Coakes Primer 4
Successes
• Sieloff on p. 419 cites HP Success: with key of
encouraging innovation and sharing of
knowledge throughout the company
• Newell et al. cite linkage of KM and ERP
systems that were simultaneously deployed, the
key was complementarity of the two systems
• Pfeffer et al. p. 421 state that KM works best
when K generators also store, explain, and
coach others through implementation
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Coakes Primer 5
Failures
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Venture Capital Startups
Management is Critical
Chance of Success is Critical Too
Need Specific Objectives, Focus on Strategic
Priorities, and Top Management Involvement
• Personal Experiences
– Digital Audio
– Decision Analysis Software
– Cell Life Extension
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Coakes Primer 6
6 Traits of Successful CoP’s (p. 423)
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Clear business value proposition
Dedicated Skilled Leader
Coherent, Comprehensive K-Map for Core
Easy-to Follow K sharing
Appropriate Technology to Facilitate
Sharing
• Communication and Training Plans for
those Outside of the CoP
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Coakes Primer 6
4 More Traits of Successful CoP’s (p. 423)
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Update, Dynamic Roster of CoP Members
Key Metrics of Success to Show Results
Recognition Plan for Participants
Agenda of topics for Early Months of
Existence
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Coakes Primer 7
K Culture (Chait article p. 431)
• Valuing Knowledge and Placing it at the
Customer’s Disposal
• Democratizing Knowledge by De-linking it
from Individuals
• Valuing Diversity by recognizing no age,
experience, race or gender hegemony
• Accepting a new role for Management
• Focusing on the knowledge grid (see p. 79
in Dalkir)
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KM Tools Dalkir Chapter 8
Technology Classifications (Rollet)
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Communication
Content Creation
Adaptation
Personal Tools
Networking
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Collaboration
Content Management
E-Learning
Artificial Intelligence
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KM Tools Dalkir Chapter 8
Major Tools & Technologies p. 220
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K Creation and Capture
K Sharing and Dissemination
K Acquisition and Application
Content Management
Networking Technologies
Artificial Intelligence Technologies
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KM Tools Dalkir Chapter 8
More Tools
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Data Mining
Blogs
Groupware and Collaboration
Wikis
Networking
Filtering (p. 237)
Adaptive Techologies
Mercedes Benz assistance Center p.242
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KM Tools Hislop Chapter 8
Info. & Comm. Techs. (ICT’s)
• ICT Applications
– Search
– Create
– Utilize
– Share
– Integrate
Search
e.g., CAD
Decision Support Systems
Intrranets, e-mail
Groupware
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KM Tools Hislop Chapter 8
Concerns re; Objectivist View
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Codification of Tacit Knowledge
Are Tacit and Explicit K Inseparable
Fragmentation of the Organization
Contect dependence of K
Ability to Collect K Centrally
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KM Tools Hislop Chapter 8 p. 113
Communications Media Characteristics
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Face-to-Face Interaction
Video Conferencing Plus File Sharing
Telephone
E-Mail
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References
• Coakes,Elayne, “Knowledge Management-A
Primer,” Communications of the Association for
Information Systems, Vol. 4, 2004, pp. 406-489.
• Dalkir, Kimiz, (2005), Knowledge Management
in Theory and in Practice, Elsevier
Butterworth Heinemann, ISBN 0-7506-7864-X.
• Hislop, Donald, (2005), Knowledge
Management in Organizations - A Critical
Introduction, First Edition, Oxford University
Press, ISBN 0-19-926206-3.
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