Knowledge Management

By: Birhanu Fanta (MBA student)

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT .. 3

2. THEORETICAL /CONCEPTUAL DISCUSSION .. .. 4

3. OBJECTIVES TO BE ACHIEVED . 6

4. BASIC CHARACTERISTICS .. .7

5. PROCESSES/STEPS INVOLVED .. 8

6. CHALLENGES OF IMPLEMENTATION . 10
7. REMEDIALS 11
8. REFERENCES ...12

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 1. HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT

A brief history of knowledge management

Knowledge management (KM) is not new but rather newly structured concept. Although the
concept was not popularized until the last two decades of the 20th century, transmitting and
managing knowledge stretch back into distant history.

Knowledge management as a conscious discipline would appear to be somewhere between five

and fifteen years old. A number of management theorists have contributed to the evolution of
knowledge management, among them such notables as Peter Drucker, Paul Strassmann, and
Peter Senge in the United States. Drucker and Strassmann have stressed the growing importance
of information and explicit knowledge as organizational resources, and Senge has focused on the
"learning organization," a cultural dimension of managing knowledge. Chris Argyris, Christoper
Bartlett, and Dorothy Leonard-Barton of Harvard Business School have examined various facets
of managing knowledge. In fact, Leonard-Barton’s well-known case study of Chaparral Steel, a
company which has had an effective knowledge management strategy in place since the mid-
1970s, inspired the research documented in her Wellsprings of Knowledge — Building and
Sustaining Sources of Innovation (Harvard Business School Press, 1995).

By 1990, a number of management consulting firms had begun in-house knowledge

management programs, and several well-known U.S., European, and Japanese firms had
instituted focused knowledge management programs. Knowledge management was introduced
in the popular press in 1991, when Tom Stewart published "Brainpower" in Fortune magazine.
Perhaps the most widely read work to date is IkujiroNonaka’s and Hirotaka Takeuchi’s The
Knowledge-Creating Company: How Japanese Companies Create the Dynamics of Innovation
(1995).

To Mention some of pioneer Companies involved in the practice of Knowledge Management,

McKinsey & Company was trying to go beyond the electronic document management systems
being constructed by other consulting organizations, to develop a more human network-
response system. General Motors Corporation had initiated some diverse knowledge projects

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under Chief Knowledge Officer Vince Barabba. And Arian Ward at Hughes Aerospace and
Electronics Company was responsible for an innovative system to capture information about
recurrent problems in satellite development and how these problems were resolved. That work
quickly proved its value in shorter development cycles and fewer errors. High-tech organizations
including Xerox Corporation, Hewlett-Packard Company, and IBM were also early explorers of
knowledge practices (with varied success), trying to apply their undoubted technological
capabilities to managing knowledge. Several pharmaceutical firms had some early successes in
knowledge management, most memorably Hoffman-LaRoche Ltd. and Merck & Company. (IBM
System Journal, 2001).

In the following sections we will see the theoretical perspectives, objectives to be achieved, basic
characteristics, steps or processes or steps involved, challenges of implementation and some
remedial of Knowledge Management (KM).

2. THEORETICAL /CONCEPTUAL DISCUSSION

2.1 What is knowledge management about?

According to Wiig (1997), knowledge management is to “understand, focus on and manage
systematic, explicit and deliberate knowledge building, renewal and application” since the
purpose of KM is, in general “to maximize the enterprise’s knowledge-related effectiveness and
returns from its knowledge assets and to renew them constantly” (Wiig, 1997, 1).

Some Definitions:-

'... the process that govern the creation, dissemination, and utilization of knowledge…' (Newman,
1992).

'… managing the organization’s knowledge by creating, structuring, dissemination and applying it
to enhance organizational performance…' (O’Leary, 1998).

‘…process to acquire, organize, and communicate knowledge of employees so others may be

more effective in their work…' (Alavi and Leidner, 1999).

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Knowledge plays an increasingly important role in modern organizations. Business processes are
complex and dynamic, manual labor is being replaced by knowledge work, requiring a high level
of skills and expertise. Knowledge and skills that are of value to the organization tend to be
embodied in individuals difficult to substitute. Relationships between organizations nowadays
are highly intricate, the marketplace is global. The speed of transactions in the dynamic economy
requires the ability to interpret and respond to information about changes in the environment
almost instantaneously. Knowing when, how and what to innovate therefore is a key
competence for organizations (Amidon, 1997).

To cope with these characteristics, organizations need to think about the way they acquire or
create, manage and use knowledge. In a broader sense there is a need to rethink society, the
economy, organizations, work, methods and systems in terms of the role and requirements of
knowledge.

Knowledge management is an approach based on the central role of knowledge in organizations,

with the objective to manage and support knowledge work and to maximize the added value of
knowledge for the organization (cf. Tissen, 1998). Knowledge management aims at identifying
and analyzing knowledge and knowledge work, and at developing procedures and systems for
generating, storing, distributing and using knowledge in the organization. As information is an
appropriate vehicle for representing, storing and distributing knowledge, information and
communication technologies (ICT) play an important role in developing many knowledge
management applications. It is interesting to note that knowledge management marks a shift in
the role of ICT.

However, knowledge management is more than just the application of ICT for managing
knowledge-intensive applications. Knowledge management is predominantly a new way of
thinking about modern organizations. As a discipline, knowledge management helps managers to
relate all aspects of the organization to knowledge issues, answering questions such as how to
support knowledge workers, how to transform knowledge into successful products and services,
or how to maintain knowledge-rich relationships with the external world (e.g. customers,
suppliers, shareholders, trade unions, governments or consumer groups). Perhaps the best
definition of knowledge management is that essentially it is management (of knowledge
intensive organizations). As almost all organizations nowadays can be characterized as
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knowledge intensive, one can expect the buzzword ‘knowledge management’ to disappear soon
enough. What will remain is a set of new and productive concepts, work methods and technical
solutions that allow organizations to operate at a higher level of intelligence than before.

2.2 Types of Knowledge

To be brief due to lack of space I have summarized the types of knowledge so that it can add
value to this material as described below in the table.

3. OBJECTIVES TO BE ACHIEVED
The goal of knowledge management is to provide reliable and secure information, as well as
make it available throughout your organization’s lifecycle. There are three main objectives of KM
and they are:
1. Enable an organization to be more effective,

2. Ensure all employees have clear and common understanding, and

3. Provide complete and accurate information when needed, at any given point in time.

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The purpose of the Knowledge Management process is to share perspectives, ideas, experience
and information; to ensure that these are available in the right place at the right time to enable
informed decisions; and to improve efficiency by reducing the need to rediscover knowledge.

Other objectives of Knowledge Management are described hereunder:

• Improve the quality of management decision-making by ensuring that reliable and secure
knowledge, information and data is available through the service lifecycle

• Enable the service provider to be more efficient and improve quality of service, increase
satisfaction and reduce the cost of service by reducing the need to rediscover knowledge

• Ensure that staffs have a clear and common understanding of the value that their services
provide to customers and the ways in which benefits are realized from the use of those services

• Maintain a Service Knowledge Management System (SKMS) that provides controlled access to
knowledge, information and data that is appropriate for each audience

• Gather, analyze, store, share, use and maintain knowledge, information and data throughout
the service provider organization.

4. BASIC CHARACTERISTICS
TWO KINDS OF KNOWLEDGE

Knowledge is intangible, dynamic, and difficult to measure, but without it no organization can
survive.
Tacit: or unarticulated knowledge is more personal, experiential, context specific, and hard to
formalize; is difficult to communicate or share with others; and is generally in the heads of
individuals and teams.
Explicit: explicit knowledge can easily be written down and codified [1]

Comparison of information and knowledge by Sveiby (1997):

Information Knowledge
Static Dynamic
Independent of the individual Dependent on individual
Explicit Tacit
Digital Analogue

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Easy to duplicate Must be re-create
Easy to broadcast Face-to-face mainly
No instrinctic meaning Meaning has to be personally assigned

Several characteristics of knowledge have been described. Here are lists of the basic ones: -

• It can be difficult to transfer, capture and distribute knowledge.

• It is developed through learning processes.
• It depends on memory, past experience, expertise, knowledgetransfer mechanisms, and
opportunities.

• Knowledge is contextual and it can be re-used

• The values of knowledge may change over time
• Knowledge has to be renewed or maintained
• Facilitates effectiveness and ‘sense-making’
• Knowledge enables higher learning
• Knowledge creation and utilization is enhanced with technology.
• Benefits of knowledge obtained only if it is applied

5. PROCESSES/STEPS INVOLVED

Knowledge Management Processes

Knowledge management is a systematic process foracquiring, organizing, sustaining, applying,
sharing, andrenewing both tacit and explicit knowledge to enhance theorganizational
performance, increase organizationaladaptability, increase values of existing products and
services,and/or create new knowledge-intensive products, processesand services.

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Figure 2. KM Cycle

ENABLING TECHNOLOGIES FOR

Collaboration Communication
KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT

Data
Internet KM LIFE-CYCLE Mining
Create Share
Expert
Extranet
Systems

Search
Intranet
Engine
Identify Modify
Artificial
Web 2.0
Intelligence feedback

Machine
Act Apply Databases
Learning

Measurements Portals

Knowledge CULTURE PROCESS PRACTICE Web

representation technologies
INFLUENCING FACTORS

Source: person Education, Inc. (2017)

Though the Knowledge process is depicted in detail in the above picture, there are four basic
processes. These are, Knowledge Discovery, Capture, Sharing and Application.
Knowledge Discovery
Knowledge discovery may be defined as the development of new tacit or explicit
knowledge from data and information or from the synthesis of prior knowledge. It is
gained through Combination and Socialization.
Knowledge capture
It is defined as the process of retrieving either explicit or tacit knowledge that resides
within people, artifacts, or organizational entities.
Knowledge captured might reside outside the organizational boundaries, including
consultants, competitors, customers, suppliers, and prior employers of the organization’s
new employees. It is gained through Externalization and Internalization.
Knowledge sharing
It is the process through which explicit or tacit knowledge is communicated to other
individuals. It may take place across individuals, groups, departments or organizations.It
is gained through Socializationand Exchange.
Knowledge Application
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 It is the process of applying explicit or tacit knowledge to carry out some tasks. It is
gained throughDirectionand Routines.

6. CHALLENGES OF IMPLEMENTATION

Problems Related to Knowledge Management

Enterprises which implement the knowledge management process encounter numerous
problems and barriers which hinder their development. The research conducted by Bernard
BrunhesPolska (2004) which aimed to diagnose enterprises at an angle of knowledge
management methods and tools. Most frequently, senior executives, among others in human
resources, finance, marketing or IT, were the respondents. Within the framework of which 20
enterprises were studied, operating in such economic sectors as: the electric power industry,
telecommunications, banking, trade, and IT.
Resulting from the study has resulted in the most important barriers hindering the functioning of
the knowledge management system in large and small enterprises include: -
A) Remuneration system which does not award employees for searching knowledge and sharing
it,
B) Insufficient motivation from the superiors to share knowledge,
C) Lack of time to pass knowledge to others,
D) Lack of knowledge of employees on who possesses the information searched by them,
E) The company structure promoting so-called silo effect (communication only within
departments/sections),
F) Company culture not promoting the results of an individual and their knowledge on sharing
experiences,
G) Limited funds or Budget for the implementation of new solutions,
H) User-unfriendly IT system,
I) The lack of employees’ knowledge that their experiences may be useful to others,
J) “Hedge leveling” culture (disfavoring outstanding individuals by other employees),
K) The “not invented here” syndrome (unwillingness to use solutions created somewhere else),
L) Security- It is key (in most technical efforts) the provide the right level of security for your
data, and it’s no different for knowledge management.

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M) Turnover - There are two levels to this, and neither of them is very fun. Turnover is inevitable,
and sometimes the responsibilities tied to your community can fall through the cracks.
M) Insufficient training of employees on the IT system operation.

7. REMEDIALS
The remedial actions that have to be undertaken by a given organization will be as described

hereunder: -

A) Introduce Remuneration system which recognizes employees’ performance and contribution

for searching knowledge and sharing it within the organization,

B) Superiors should be highly committed to sufficiently motivate employees in the knowledge

sharing process,

C) Enough time and Budget has to be allocated to pass knowledge to others, specifically the

Company has to have a specific team dedicated to carryout Knowledge sharing activity,

D) Improve knowledge of employees who possesses the information searched by them,

E) The company structure has to encourage the overall Knowledge sharing between

departments which reduces redundancy of effort to gather and use information for decision

making,

F) Develop a Company culture in promoting the results of an individual and their knowledge on

sharing of employees’ knowledge and experiences that are useful to othersin the organization,

G) Introduce a User-unfriendly IT system,

H) Introduce a mechanism to favoring outstanding individuals who contribute more to the

intellectual asset of the organization,

I) Create better pay structure and better working environment and company culture to reduce

turnover so that the knowledge gained by senior employees stays with the company.

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 8. REFERENCES
Mohsen Gerami, Knowledge Management:(IJCSIS) International Journal of Computer Science and
Information Security, Vol. 7, No. 2, 2010, pp. 234-238

A scientometric analysis of knowledge management and intellectual capital academic literature

(1994-2008),Alexander Serenko, Nick Bontis, Lorne Booker, KhaledSadeddin and Timothy Hardie,
VOL. 14 NO. 1 2010, pp. 3-23

Mašić B. et al.: Evolution of knowledge management, Scientific review, Industrija, Vol.45, No.2,
2017

Caroline De Brún:Knowledge Management, NHS National Library for Health, July 2005

IkujiroNonaka, Georg von Krogh and Sven Voelpel, Organizational Knowledge Creation Theory:
Evolutionary Paths and Future Advances, Organization Studies 2006; 27; 1179

University of Alaska Office of Information Technology, Pink SCAN Assessment Report, ©Pink
Elephant Inc., 2012, Page 46 of 74

L. Prusak, IBM SYSTEMS JOURNAL, VOL 40, NO 4, 2001

Amidon, Debra M. (1997) – Innovation strategy for the knowledge economy. – Boston:
Butterworth-Heinemann, 1997.

Nonaka, I.; Takeuchi, H. (1995)- The knowledge-creating company: how Japanese companies
create the dynamics of innovation. - Oxford University Press, 1995.

Website:Wikipedia:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knowledge Management
Website:Encyclopedia:http://encyclopedia.com/Knowlwdge management
And Other online Sources

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