Topic: Knowledge Management
Knowledge Management (KM) refers to a multi-disciplined approach to achieved
organizational objectives by making the best use of knowledge. It focuses on processes
such as acquiring, creating and sharing knowledge and the cultural and technical
foundations that support them. The purpose of Knowledge Management is to provide
the right information to the right people at the right time to enable informed decision
making which enables service providers to be more efficient and improve the quality of
service delivered.
What is Knowledge Management?
It is the management of knowledge within organizations.
Decision Making
Synthesizing
Knowledge
Analyzing
Summarizing Information
Organizing
Data
Knowledge Management is a process to help organization identify, select, organize,
disseminate and transfer Information. KM structuring enables problem-solving, dynamic
learning, strategic planning and decision-making. It is a Leverage value of intellectual
capital through reuse.
Knowledge Management may be viewed in terms of:
People – How do you increase the ability of an individual in the organization to
influence others with their knowledge?
Processes – its approach varies from organization. There is no limit on the
number of processes.
Technology – It needs to be chosen only after all the requirements of a
knowledge management initiative have been established.
Culture – the biggest enabler of successful knowledge-driven organizations is the
establishment of a knowledge-focused culture.
Structure – the business processes and organizational structures that facilitate
knowledge sharing.
Knowledge Management Cycle/Process
Create
Capture
Knowledge
Refine
Disseminate
Store
Manage
Knowledge Management Creates knowledge through new ways of doing things, then
identifies and captures new knowledge, then places this knowledge into context so it is
usable, then stores knowledge in repository and reviews for accuracy and relevance
and makes knowledge available at all times to anytime.
Benefits of Knowledge Management
Improves quality of service to users
Improve user satisfaction
Increase adoption of self service
Higher first call resolution rates
Reduce time to diagnose incidents and problems
Reduction in training time and costs
Faster adoption of new or changed services
Increase responsiveness to changing business demands
Managing Knowledge Management
Strategy: The objective is to manage, share, and create relevant knowledge
assets that will help meet tactical and strategic requirements.
Organizational Culture: Influences the way people interact, the context within
which knowledge is created, the resistance they will have towards certain
changes, and ultimately the way they share ( or the way they do not share)
knowledge.
Organizational Processes: the right processes, environments, and systems that
enable KM to be implemented in the organization.
Management and Leadership: KM requires competent and experienced
leadership at all levels like knowledge managers, brokers and so on.
Technology: The systems, tools, and technologies that fit the organization’s
requirements – properly designed and implemented.
Politics: The long-term support to implement and sustain initiatives that involves
virtually all organizational functions, which may be costly to implement (both from
the perspective of time and money), and which often do not have a directly
visible return on investment.
Two Types of knowledge
Explicit Knowledge – documented information that can facilitate action
Formal or codified
Documents such as reports, policy manuals, white papers, standard
procedures
Databases
Books, magazines, journals (library)
Implicit (Tacit) Knowledge – Know-how and learning embedded within the minds of
people.
Informal and uncodified
Values, perspective and cultures
Knowledge in heads
Memories of staff, suppliers and vendors
The KM Matrix by gamble and Blackwell (2001)
Type
Approach
Embodied Represented Embedded
Observe Gather Hypothesize
Sense
Contextualize Categorize Map
Organize
Share Disseminate Simulate
Socialize
Apply, Decide, Act
Internalize
This model presents a general theoretical framework, as well as specific guidelines for
implementation. The KM process is split into four stages.
First management must locate sources of knowledge
Then they must organize this knowledge so as to assess the firm’s strengths and
weaknesses and determine its relevance and reusability
This is followed by socialization, where various techniques are used to help
share and disseminate it to whomever needs it in the organization
Finally, the knowledge is internalized through use.