Supporting Knowledge Management The Challenge

Knowledge Management
One of the enduring topics in the field of IT since the mid 1990s Greatest corporate assets walk out the door every evening Taking with them another crucial asset, knowledge

 Attempts to capture knowledge in computer systems continue Not something that can be captured in a machine But, it only exists inside a persons head Unlike information !! Many feel that the term KM creates a wrong impression The M in KM brings in the we can control it mindset
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 Knowledge cannot be controlled or engineered [So, the basic mechanical metaphor is wrong] However, knowledge can be leveraged through processes and culture [The biological or ecological metaphor is much better] The more people are connected, and the more they exchange ideas, the more their knowledge spreads, And can thus be leveraged !!

 This view is still being debated, and raises questions If we cannot disembody knowledge, how do we better manage the knowledge within people to leverage this asset? Tony Brewer [Managing Knowledge, Wentworth Research Program, 1995] researched this topic As we move from a service economy to a knowledge economy, organizations move towards managing their intellectual capital in a more formal and deliberate way
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 In essence, knowledge exists in two states Tacit/Implicit knowledge

Exists within a persons mind Is private, and Unique to each person Combination of intellect, experience and information

Explicit knowledge
Articulated Made public Visible resides in documents, books etc. Easy to capture, transfer
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 Western management practices have concentrated on managing explicit knowledge But, cultivating and leveraging tacit knowledge is just as important Effective knowledge management requires transferring knowledge between these two states HOW? Because knowledge is not a physical asset, it cannot be described in terms of manufacturing analogies, such as storing it in inventory It needs to be thought of in ecological terms, such as nurturing it, cultivating it, and harvesting it
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 Furthermore, ways to transfer knowledge back and forth between its tacit and explicit states are crucial Generally, a result of encouraging the free flow of ideas and information Many of todays organizational norms, departmental boundaries, and national differences inhibit this!! The process of transferring tacit knowledge to others is a key part of managing knowledge knowledge sharing IT is an enabler barriers fall, knowledge flows, and sharing increases Unfortunately, free time is not seen as important

A model for Managing Knowledge

Due to the increasing emphasis on knowledge, it is now called intellectual capital that firms possess A model proposed by Giga Information Group [Best Practices in Knowledge Management, 1997] for managing intellectual capital

A knowledge Management Framework

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 A cyclic model Four stages representing what people generally do with knowledge First they create it or capture it from a source Next they organize it and put it into categories for easy retrieval Then, they distribute it (push), or access it (pull) Finally, they absorb anothers knowledge for their own use, or to create more new knowledge Thus, the cycle begins again
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 The four stages create 3 types of intellectual capital Human Capital Structural Capital, and Customer Capital

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 Human Capital consists of

Knowledge, skills, and innovativeness of employees Also company values, culture, and philosophy

Created during the knowledge creationcapture, and knowledge absorption-reuse stages These 2 stages focus on getting people together to share knowledge Deal with the people aspects of knowledge management Main question How do we get people to have more knowledge in their heads?
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 Structural Capital capabilities embedded in hardware, software, databases, organizational structure, patents, and trademarks that support employees and relationships with customers Formed in the knowledge organizationcategorization and knowledge distributionaccess stages These stages focus on moving knowledge from peoples heads to a tangible company asset These stages deal with the technology issues Main question How do we get knowledge out of peoples heads and into a computer, a process, a document, or another organizational asset?
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 Customer Capital is the strength of a companys franchise with its customers Concerned with its relationships and networks of associates When customers are familiar with a companys products or services, the company can call that familiarity, customer capital May be
Human relationships with the company Structural products used from the company

Main question Is there any short-cut to gain customer capital?

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 Giga Info group discovered that Human capital and structural capital stages require different mindsets Companies had to use different approaches to grow each one The techniques for one do not work for the other Building human capital needs touchy-feely people-centric approaches Building structural capital take the typical IS approach, using technology for problem solving To succeed in leveraging intellectual capital, companies need to do both
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Building Human Capital Main question How do we get people to have more knowledge in their heads? Four ways: Create it Capture it Absorb it, and Reuse it

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 Knowledge Creation and Capture: Generates knowledge by nurturing employees, or Acquire it from outside Deals with both human and customer capital Companies emphasizing this phase of managing knowledge use high-touch approaches
Creating a sharing culture Urging people to meet in person, or electronically Encouraging innovation
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Case Example Buckman Laboratories An industrial chemical company in Tennessee 1200 employees around the world The concept of sharing knowledge and best practices has been around in Buckman for over 15 years The companys code of ethics reinforces the sharing culture They believe that successfully transferring knowledge depends 90% on having the right culture and 10% on technology KNetix a knowledge transfer system, the Buckman knowledge network
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 Aim/Goal to bring the knowledge of all the employees to bear on a customer problem analysis anywhere in the world whether in Europe, South Africa, Australia/New Zealand, or Japan To get people to communicate with each other Develop trust in each other Trust that one person was interested in the others success Trust that what one person received from others was valid and sincere, and Enough trust in the culture to help someone else
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 Ten years ago, people traveled all over the world to see each other with lots of face-to-face meetings Today they also stay in touch in between meetings making communications more continuous People ask for information via forums TechForum One influential company-wide shared conversation was during Buckmans global sales awards A large cash award was shared among top 3 salespeople worldwide The entire award structure was restructured in front of all employees top management did not dictate terms Rare opportunity for solving an important, sensitive issue taking along everyone!!
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 Conversations are the basis for transferring knowledge Experts identify threads of conversation Valuable streams of reasoning are collected, edited Given key words, and stored in the forum library Virtual teams are always in action Self-building knowledge base is created Later used for what-if analyses, and can be mined later to create new knowledge Another prime benefit timely, high quality responses to customer needs A new employee gets immediate advice from a 25-yr experienced veteran colleague
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 Knowledge Absorption and Reuse: Addresses the notion of getting knowledge into peoples heads There it can be enhanced and reused High touch approaches emphasized in this phase Also focused on nurturing interactions among people Two important actions: Recognize the knowledge brokers Support communities of practice
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 Recognizing Knowledge brokers Discovering who has what knowledge is a big step in the right direction to fostering knowledge sharing Dr. Seemann Patricia [Building Knowledge Infrastructure: Creating Change Capabilities, 1995] The Rudy Problem Suffered during downsizing! Crucial, but unrecognized asset Giving Rudy a title would have sent a positive signal that knowledge sharing was recognized in the Co. They are/can not be appointed. They just emerge from within! And when they emerge, they need support !
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 Support communities of practice T-Shaped managers: One approach to foster knowledge sharing Morton Hansen [Harvard Business School] and Bolko von Oetinger [Boston Consulting] Executives who have both a Vertical role running a business unit, and A horizontal role sharing knowledge with their peers in other business units It helps counterbalance the tendency to compete with each other, and hoard expertise However, success does not just happen reward!
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Building Structural Capital Main question How do we get knowledge out of peoples heads and into a computer, a process, a document, or another organizational asset? Dr. Seemann created online yellow pages of knowledge brokers Rudys name was there! These yellow pages are a form of structural capital Companies emphasizing building structural capital generally use high-tech approaches Two phases:
Knowledge Organization and Categorization Knowledge Distribution and Access
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Knowledge Organization and Categorization: Creating best practices knowledge bases Valuing intellectual capital Knowledge Distribution and Access: Emphasizes Pushing knowledge out to users, and Accommodating users who pull information to themselves Also uses high-tech approaches Focused on implementing networks and networking tools to access human and structural capital Intranets and groupware are the IT-based tools
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Building Customer Capital Strength of a companys franchise with its customers The percentage of customer mindshare in its industry Brand recognition is a part of customer capital Familiarity with ones products is another

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The Cultural Side of Knowledge Management Success in KM comes as much from the changing organization behaviour as from new technology There will be cultural barriers Red Flags Being seen as a whistle-blower or messenger of bad news (Shoot the messenger) avoid presenting early warnings Losing ones place as a gatekeeper knowledge brokers may feel threatened with a KM project KM does take time experts may hide so that they are not bothered by requests; others may not participate as there is no reward, so they think

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Some Examples
British petroleum uses desktop teleconferencing to connect its drilling repair specialists around the world
ONGC is working on a similar idea now

KOL (knowledge online) system of Booz Allen provide detailed resume of every employees experience

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