Final PRJCT

Creating a conducive environment for Knowledge Management
Bhagwan Parshuram Institute of Technology 1

Introduction to Knowledge Management
"Knowledge management is a relatively new and developing area which has introduced
a methodology for the planned capture and re-use of organizational knowledge. There is
no doubt that the importance of knowledge management has grown manifold.
Knowledge component of business activities is treated as an explicit concern of business
and plays a key role in strategy, policy and practice at all levels of the organizations
intellectual assets both explicit (recorded) and tacit (personal know-how) can yield
positive business results. In the context of supporting business objectives, knowledge
management is no longer seen as a fad but rather a business imperative - a survival
technique as a minimum.
Moreover, knowledge is the key differentiator between competing companies today.
This knowledge can be very difficult to create, maintain, refresh and measure.
Implementing a KMS incurs both money cost and time cost. Many companies are
following the practice of knowledge management, from IBM to Patni Computers, and all
face difficulties in sustaining a KMS.

1.1 Meaning of Knowledge Management
The term Knowledge Management has been borrowed from the corporate world,
which has used it as a strategy to seek as well as capture the knowledge residing in
peoples heads and consciousness to help the business remain on the progressive path
standing in a keen competitive environment. It is defined that KM is about putting
information and peoples competence to work together. KM refers to transfer of
knowledge into capabilities for effective action. It is a systematic process of finding,
selecting, organizing, distilling and presenting information in a way that improves an
employees comprehension in a specific area of interest. KM helps an organization to
gain insight and understanding from its own experience that helps to focus the
organization. Specific KM activities help focus the organization on acquiring, storing
and utilizing knowledge from such things as problems solving dynamic learning,
strategic planning and decision-making. It also protects intellectual assets from decay,
adds to firm intelligence and provides increased flexibility.

1.2 Need of Knowledge Management
Why do we need to manage knowledge? Ann Macintosh of the Artificial Intelligence
Applications Institute (University of Edinburgh) has written a "Position Paper on
Knowledge Asset Management" that identifies some of the specific business factors,
including:

Marketplaces are increasingly competitive and the rate of innovation is rising.
Reductions in staffing create a need to replace informal knowledge with formal
methods.

Competitive pressures reduce the size of the work force that holds valuable
business knowledge.
The amount of time available to experience and acquire knowledge has
diminished.
Early retirements and increasing mobility of the work force lead to loss of
knowledge.
There is a need to manage increasing complexity as small operating companies
are trans-national sourcing operations.
Changes in strategic direction may result in the loss of knowledge in a specific
area.
To these paraphrases of Ms. Macintoshs observations we would add:
Most of our work is information based.
Organizations compete on the basis of knowledge.
Products and services are increasingly complex, endowing them with a
significant information component.
The need for life-long learning is an inescapable reality.
In brief, knowledge and information have become the medium in which business
problems occur. As a result, managing knowledge represents the primary opportunity for
achieving substantial savings, significant improvements in human performance, and
competitive advantage. Its not just a Fortune 500 business problem. Small companies
need formal approaches to knowledge management even more, because they dont have
the market leverage, inertia, and resources that big companies do. They have to be much
more flexible, more responsive, and more "right" (make better decisions) - because even
small mistakes can be fatal to them.

1.3 Sources of Knowledge Management
The two sources of Knowledge are:
I nternal sources emerging from the operations of the organization- internal sources
include the organizational operations such as design, development, engineering, sales,
marketing, manufacturing, customer contact, etc. This is the basic source of
organizational information, which is controllable and can be easily canalized to
Knowledge Repository (KR). In the absence of any formal mechanism, this knowledge
remains in the minds of organization members and usually, disappears with them.
External sources such as Industry/Professional Associations, Commercial web sites etc.
There are many professional bodies such as IEEE, academic bodies such as universities,
research institutions, industry associations such as NEMA, and commercial
organizations. These sources usually make the knowledge available through web sites
and sometimes through publications. Some of them could be free services and some
could be for a fee. A well-designed KM should be able to take advantage of both the
sources to create and maintain a Knowledge Repository and allow members to easily
access the knowledge stored inside it.


1.4 Steps in Knowledge Management
1. Knowledge Capture: A systematic procedure for organizing, structuring knowledge to
make it accessible and usable to people.
2. Knowledge Organization: An organization that values and uses its own knowledge in
reflective ways that lead to profound shifts in directions, values, beliefs and operating
assumptions.
3. Knowledge Preservation: Once the knowledge is collected, and codified it has to be
stored in a suitable form in the organizations knowledge base. The knowledge can be
stored in forms such as individual employees, and by computer knowledge base. The
advantage with the computer is its unlimited memory and instant access. Intranets and
the knowledge bases are the tools, which store the organizational knowledge.

1.5 Significance of Knowledge Management
The strategically perspective, todays practice in KM still has a few demerits. The
reasons for this are manifold.
Firstly, the existing knowledge is captured and capitalized only to a low degree because
knowledge is messy in character.
Secondly, time factor- many employees are willing to document and use existing
knowledge but pressure of work in enterprise should be allowed to participate in
management but not in real practice. As a result, the uncultured knowledge cant be
utilized for KM purposes.
Knowledge is the business asset of any progressive organizations that get ahead.
The implementation of KM helps the information flow in the organization and in
implementing organization-learning practices. KM is not just managing or organizing
books or journals, searching the Internet for users or arranging for the circulation of
materials. Each of these can be an isolated part of KM.
KM is enhancing the use of organizational knowledge through information management
and organizational learning. The purpose is to deliver direct value to the business. The
knowledge is embedded in the processes and experiences, skills, wisdom and
capabilities of people. KM rests on two foundations, i.e., utilizing the organized
information and application of peoples competencies, skills, talents, thoughts, ideas,
imaginations, etc.,
KM aims to draw out the tacit knowledge people have, what they carry around with
them, what they observe and learn from experience, rather than what is usually explicitly
stated.
Managing knowledge goes much further than capturing data and manipulating it to
obtain information. The aim of KM is for business to become more competitive through
the capacities of their people.


1.6 Knowledge Acquisition
As we know, in the emerging knowledge society, knowledge is being recognized in an
increasing measure as a primary source of wealth production. Economies that can
efficiently exploit their knowledge resources are doing better than those that have
abundant natural resources but lack the knowledge to exploit them.
The vast and deep impact on the social and economic environment caused by technology
and globalization has forced organizations worldwide to make significant changes to
their objectives, strategies, and organizational structures in order to adapt, survive and
succeed in the 21st century. Organizations need to become wired, retooled and
networked; but also need to change both the extrinsic elements of their products,
activities and/or structures and their basic intrinsic way of operating-values, and mind-
set, and sometimes even their purpose. Organizations must learn very quickly in order to
adapt to rapid environmental changes to survive and succeed. Thus, todays organization
has little choice but to transform itself into learning organization.
One of the principal purposes will be the expansion of knowledge that comes to reside at
the core of what it means to be competitive and productive. The organization should
develop the capacity to collect, store and transfer knowledge and thus continuously
transform itself for corporate success. Technology should be judiciously utilized to
optimize both learning and productivity.

The knowledge subsystem is designed for the acquisition, creation, storage, transfer
and utilization of knowledge.
Acquisition involves collection of existing data and information from within and
outside the organization via environmental scanning, consultations, networks,
staff suggestions, etc.
Creation of new knowledge is mainly through problem solving, innovative
programs and conversion of implicit knowledge to explicit knowledge.
Storing is the coding and preserving of value-added knowledge for easy access.
Transfer and utilization refer to the mechanical, electronic and interpersonal
movement of information and knowledge throughout the organization as well as
its application and use by members of the organization wherever they are
located. These elements are ongoing, interactive and dynamic instead of being
sequential and independent.

A networked IT platform should be installed to support the knowledge systems.
Powerful system navigation and information exploration tools that use hypermedia,
dynamic visual querying and tree maps are useful. Employees should be enabled to
communicate freely with each other and share data and information across the
organization. To achieve efficiency in performance as many operations as necessary
should be automated within the organization. Centers of expertise and excellence should
be created with assigned responsibilities for collecting, storing, analyzing and

distributing knowledge. These centers can train workers in their specialties to ensure
availability of qualified workers and consulting services. The centers may have the
following functions in relation to the knowledge repositories:

The various tools that are used for the acquisition of knowledge are as follows:

Email and synchronous interaction tools.
Collaboration tools for community-building and networking; shared documents;
conversations.
Document or knowledge repositories.
Tools for knowledge capture, distillation and presentation.
E-learning tools and applications.
Staff and expertise directories; Yellow pages.
Calendars (personal, group and corporate); personal portals.

1.7 Knowledge Creation
Most, if not all, firms in developing countries are engrossed in activities to catch up with
advanced countries. Even the majority of firms in advanced countries are engaged in
catching up, as not all firms can be pioneers of novel breakthroughs even in these
countries. Nonetheless, research on organizational knowledge creation and innovation is
concentrated mainly in advanced countries and is focused mostly on the pioneering
process. Research on those subjects in the catching up process, particularly in
developing countries, is, however, scanty.

Knowledge creation, whether for imitation or innovation, takes place at two levels-
individual and organization. The prime actors in the process of knowledge creation are
individuals within the organization. Knowledge creation in organizations is not,
however, the simple sum of knowledge creation by individuals. Rather it is the process
that creates knowledge, which is distributed across the organization, is communicated
among its members, has consensual validity, and is integrated into the strategy and
management of the organization. Individual knowledge creation is, therefore, an
indispensable condition for knowledge creation in the organization but cannot be the
sufficient one. Organizations create knowledge only when individual insights and skills
become embodied in organization routines, practices, and beliefs. Only effective
organizations can translate individual knowledge creation into organizational knowledge
creation.
Knowledge creation is a function of an organizations absorptive capacity. Absorptive
capacity requires a learning capability and develops problem-solving skills. Learning
capability involves the development of capacity to assimilated existing knowledge (for
imitation), while problem-solving skills represent a capacity to create new knowledge
(for innovation).
Absorptive capacity has two important elements: prior knowledge base and intensity of
effort. First, the prior knowledge base refers to existing individual units of knowledge
available within the organization. Accumulated prior knowledge increases the ability
both to make sense of and to assimilate and use new knowledge. Relevant prior
knowledge base includes basic skills and general knowledge in the case of developing
countries, but it includes the most recent scientific and technological knowledge in the
case of industrially advanced countries. Thus prior knowledge base should be assessed
in its relation to the task difficulty involved. Second the intensity of effort refers to the
amount of energy expended by organizational members to solve problems. Learning
how to solve problems is usually built up over many practice trials involving related
problems. Such effort intensifies interaction among organizational members that
facilitates knowledge conversion and creation at the organizational level. The following
case gives an insight to the concept of knowledge creation.

1.8 Creating a Knowledge Sharing Culture
Realign incentive and reward program. "People do not do what you tell them, but what
you measure them for." HR needs to institute a system of rewards and recognition,
training and performance development practices - activities that reinforce the discipline
of sharing, documenting knowledge and reuse of others' ideas with pride to achieve
business goals.
People in business most often behave in a way that increases their career opportunities,
or recognizes their achievement. Most organizations reward individual effort or task
achievement. They reward something done in a crisis, but most incentive programs do
not reward avoiding a crisis. The best KM practitioners reward employees for learning,
sharing and collaborating.

Some of the steps HR could implement are:
Institute Team awards to recognize and reward excellent collaborative team
effort, which has strongly contributed to business results.
Ensure high visibility for teams which have excelled in knowledge capture /
sharing to deliver business excellence.
Many companies have found such team awards very useful in building up the
enthusiasm and commitment to collaborative team working and knowledge
sharing in the initial years, even though after a while, they might have
discontinued these once they moved beyond the need for such awards, once the
knowledge sharing is embedded into the culture. Few of these examples have
been illustrated below.
Xerox: By including knowledge sharing as a dimension for its prestigious
president's award, leadership at Xerox has demonstrated those senior
management values and rewards knowledge-sharing behavior. Also, at Xerox,
the worldwide Customer Services organization created a "Eureka Hall of Fame"
for technicians who author solutions that resolve the greatest number of
problems. It also created a "Validator's Hall of Fame" for the second level
engineers who test the solutions submitted by the technicians for validity. Hall of
Fame members receive cash awards and recognition.
Hewlett Packard Consulting: Senior management made explicit the desired
behavior of employees, in their "vision" statement: "Our consultants feel and act
as if they have the knowledge of the entire organization at their fingertips when
they consult with customers. We will recognize those consultants that share and
those that leverage other's knowledge and experience as most valuable members
of the HP team."
Leadership commitment is further evidenced by the Knowledge Masters
Award, which recognized excellence in knowledge creation and use. This
prestigious award recognized employees whose knowledge mastery best
exemplified the culture of balancing innovation with reuse; and contributed to
significant and measurable business impact. The nominations for these awards
were accompanied by written stories of why the individuals were being
nominated. The stories not only reflected the growing understanding for the
concepts and application of knowledge management but also provided stories
that demonstrated the business value of knowledge sharing.
Unilever's Path to Growth Awards recognizes outstanding achievements in
meeting the Company's strategic goals. There are three award categories,
embracing broader employee and business achievements. The three categories
recognize:
1. Measurable significant growth in either revenue or margin
2. Big ideas with demonstrable potential for future growth in either revenue or
margin, and

3. "Enterprise culture in action" - single-minded passion for winning, liberating
rigor and connected creativity.
This award is for collaborative team effort to create and share knowledge to innovate
and win. The "enterprise culture in action" award could be entered by everyone from
employees in HR or Research to those in manufacturing, distribution or in the Corporate
Center. The winner of this award could be anywhere in the business. As long as their
behavior or venture could be applied in other parts of the business with significant
benefit, it need not be a large-scale initiative. It could, for example, be a new way of
approaching a process or system that has been in place for a number of years. All entries
for the award must align with one of the strategic thrusts that make up Unilever's Path to
Growth. One has to make sure that at least one of the MBOs is a team MBO focused on
tangible results through capture / sharing of knowledge.

1.9 Roadblocks to Adoption of KM Solutions
There have been many roadblocks to adoption of formal knowledge management
activities. In general, managing knowledge has been perceived as an unmanageable kind
of problem - an implicitly human, individual activity - that was intractable with
traditional management methods and technology. We tend to treat the activities of
knowledge work as necessary, but ill-defined, costs of human resources, and we treat the
explicit manifestations of knowledge work as forms of publishing - as byproducts of
"real" work.
As a result, the metrics associated with knowledge resources - and our ability to manage
those resources in meaningful ways - have not become part of business infrastructure.
But it isnt necessary to throw up ones hands in despair. We do know a lot about how
people learn. We know more and more about how organizations develop and use
knowledge. The body of literature about managing intellectual capital is growing. We
have new insights and solutions from a variety of domains and disciplines that can be
applied to making knowledge work manageable and measurable. And computer
technology - itself a cause of the problem - can provide new tools to make it all work.
We dont need another "paradigm shift", but we do have to accept that the nature of
business itself has changed, in at least two important ways:
Knowledge work is fundamentally different in character from physical labor.
The knowledge worker is almost completely immersed in a computing
environment. This new reality dramatically alters the methods by which we must
manage, learn, represent knowledge, interact, solve problems, and act.
There are two main issues that have been identified as roadblocks/ barriers for
implementing Knowledge Management successfully in an organization. These
two issues are:
Conceptual / mindset related Issues: We need to create a culture of sharing.
Often knowledge is seen as power and in a competitive environment there could

be a tendency to hoard knowledge. Key to success of KM is creation of
knowledge sharing culture and elimination of organizational and cultural barriers
for communication. We should move from hoarding of knowledge to gain
power" to "sharing of knowledge to gain power."
Operational Issues: Time: The typical executive is already hard pressed for
time. He has no time for an additional initiative, if it is seen as a diversion from
focus on immediate results. So, it is important to integrate KM into existing
business processes in the company and embed into workflow. KM should not be
seen as a separate initiative, but should be integrated into current workflow as a
more effective way to achieve business results.

The experience of exemplar practitioners of KM demonstrates that it succeeds only
when we are able to signal to employees, strong senior management endorsement for
KM. Like all organizational transformation processes, KM needs to be led by senior
management.
You cant solve the problems of Information Age business or gain a competitive
advantage simply by throwing more information and people at the problems. Also, you
cant solve knowledge-based problems with approaches borrowed from the product-
oriented, print-based economy. Those solutions are reactive and inappropriate. Applying
technology blindly to knowledge-related business problems is a mistake, too, but the
computerized business environment provides opportunities and new methods for
representing "knowledge" and leveraging its value. Its not an issue of finding the right
computer interface - although that would help, too. We simply have not defined in a
rigorous, clear, widely accepted way the fundamental characteristics of "knowledge" in
the computing environment.


LITERATURE REVIEW

The knowledge management is generally defined as 'the collection of processes that
govern the creation, dissemination, and leveraging of knowledge to fulfil organisational
objectives. It has also been interpreted as a business philosophy that includes a set of
principles, processes, organisational structures, and technology applications that help
people share and leverage their knowledge to meet their business objectives." (Gurteen,
1999).
Bukowitz et al (1999) define knowledge management as the process by which the
organisation generates wealth from its intellectual or knowledge-based assets.
Koulopoulos & Frappaolo (1999) note that knowledge management emphases on the
re-use of previous experiences and practices, but its focus is on mapping these to the
changing landscape of the market.
But in most of the organizations even today the technology is at the second stage, but the
behavior of the employees is still stuck at the first stage, making it tough to learn from
the previous experiences and practices. The major reasons for the behaviour may be:
The employees are in a habit of browsing through the organization's intranet, but rely
more on personal interactions or the internet. The reason for such a behavior among the
employees is that the portals on the intranet are not being updated on a timely basis and
the networking among people seems to be stronger and faster than that.
Davenport (1997) suggested that the elements of knowledge management should
include:
Culture - the firms values and beliefs about information and knowledge
Behaviour and work processes - how people actually use information and
knowledge and what they do with it
Politics - pitfalls that can interfere with information and knowledge sharing
Technology - what information systems are already in place
Why knowledge management? The most common goals motivating a corporation to
undertake an effort to manage knowledge better include retaining key talent, improving
customer service, boosting innovation and promoting the development of unique market
offerings and increasing revenues and profits.
Most of the organisations now focus on four uses of knowledge management: (i) to
capture and share best practices (77.7 percent), (ii) to provide training or corporate
learning (62.4 percent), (iii) to manage customer relationships (58.0 percent) and (iv) to
deliver competitive intelligence (55.7 percent) (Dyer & McDonough, 2001).
According to Solomon (1994), opinion leaders are individuals who are knowledgeable
about various topics and whose advice is taken seriously by others (Solomon, 1994).
Opinion leaders can be found in all types of groups: occupational, social, community,
and others (Littlejohn, 1996). They often tend to be very socially active and highly
interconnected within the community (Solomon, 1994).

Most organisations have in fact realised the importance of the opinion leaders in
facilitating the organisational change. At NTPC too, a virtual organisation has been set
up taking care of promoting the objectives of KM and to develop a framework. The
critical input for success of this initiative is creation of knowledge domains areas of
specialised knowledge, where people can contribute for the development of knowledge
bases best practises, expertise directories, market intelligence etc.


3.1 About NTPC
Indias largest power company, NTPC, earlier known as National Thermal Power
Corporation Limited, was set up in 1975 to accelerate power development in India.
NTPC is emerging as a diversified power major with presence in the entire value chain
of the power generation business. Apart from power generation, which is the mainstay of
the company, NTPC has already ventured into consultancy, power trading, ash
utilization and coal mining. NTPC ranked 341
st
in the 2010, Forbes Global 2000
ranking of the Worlds biggest companies. NTPC became a Maharatna company in
May, 2010, one of the only four companies to be awarded this status.
The total installed capacity of the company is 34,854 MW (including JVs) with 15 coal
based and 7 gas based stations, located across the country. In addition under JVs, 5
stations are coal based & another station uses naptha/LNG as fuel. The company has set
a target to have an installed power generating capacity of 1,28,000 MW by the year
2032. The capacity will have a diversified fuel mix comprising 56% coal, 16% Gas, 11%
Nuclear and 17% Renewable Energy Sources(RES) including hydro. By 2032, non fossil
fuel based generation capacity shall make up nearly 28% of NTPCs portfolio.
NTPC has been operating its plants at high efficiency levels. Although the company has
17.75% of the total national capacity, it contributes 27.40% of total power generation
due to its focus on high efficiency.

In October 2004, NTPC launched its Initial Public Offering (IPO) consisting of 5.25% as
fresh issue and 5.25% as offer for sale by Government of India. NTPC thus became a
listed company in November 2004 with the Government holding 89.5% of the equity
share capital. In February 2010, the Shareholding of Government of India was reduced
from 89.5% to 84.5% through Further Public Offer.

3.1.1 Vision, Mission and Values

VISION
To be the worlds largest and best power producer, powering Indias growth.
MISSION
Develop and provide reliable power, related products and services at competitive prices,
integrating multiple energy sources with innovative and eco-friendly technologies and
contribute to society.
The core values of NTPC have been listed below. These values are also called as B-
COMIT
Business Ethics
Customer Focus
Organizational & professional Pride
Mutual Respect and Trust
Innovation and Speed
Total Quality for Excellence

3.1.2 NTPCS Contributions to Power Generation


The gross revenue of the company was Rs.400.113 billion, for the year 2007-08 and net
profit was Rs.74.148 billion.
At NTPC, People before Plant Load Factor is the mantra that guides all HR related
policies. NTPC has been awarded No.1, Best Workplace in India among large
organisations and the best PSU for the year 2010, by the Great Places to Work Institute,
India Chapter in collaboration with The Economic Times.
The concept of Corporate Social Responsibility is deeply ingrained in NTPC's culture.
Through its expansive CSR initiatives, NTPC strives to develop mutual trust with the
communities that surround its power stations.

3.1.3 Human Resource
NTPC believes in achieving organizational excellence through Human Resources and
follows "People First" approach to leverage the potential of its approximately 26,000
employees to fulfill its business plans. Human Resources Function has formulated an
integrated HR strategy which rests on four building blocks of HR viz. Competence
building, Commitment building, Culture building and Systems building. All HR
initiatives are undertaken within this broad framework to actualize the HR Vision of
"enabling the employees to be a family of committed world class professionals making
NTPC a learning organization.
To induct talent and groom them into a dedicated cadre of power professionals
"Executive Trainee" Scheme was introduced in the year 1977 for recruitment in the
disciplines of Mechanical, Electrical, Civil, Control & Instrumentation and now
encompasses Computer Science, Chemistry, HR and Finance disciplines also. Besides a
comprehensive one year training comprising theoretical inputs as well as on-the-job
training, the new recruits are also attached with senior executives under a systematic and
formal 'Mentoring System' of the company to integrate them into the Culture of the
company.
As part of post employment training and development opportunities, a systematic
Training plan has been formulated for ensuring minimum seven man days training per
employee per year and includes level-wise planned intervention designed to groom
people for assuming positions of higher responsibility, as well as specific need-based
interventions based on scientific Training Needs Analysis. NTPC has set up 15 project
training centre, 2 simulator training centre and an apex institute namely 'Power
Management Institute' (PMI). While the project training centre (Employee
Development Centre) has specialized in imparting technical skills and knowledge, PMI
places emphasis on management development. Besides, opportunities for long education
are also provided through tie ups with reputed Institutions like IIT-Delhi (M.Tech in
Power Generation Technology), MDI, Gurgaon (Executive MBA program), and BITS
Pilani (B.Tech) etc.
In order to realize the HR Vision of making NTPC a learning organization by providing
opportunities to continually learn new capabilities, a number of initiatives have been

taken. NTPC Open Competition for Executive Talent (NOCET) is organized every year
in which teams of executives compete annually through oral and written presentation on
a topical theme. Similarly "Professional Circles" have been formed department-wise
where Executives of the department meet every fortnight to share their knowledge and
experiences and discuss topical issues. In order to tap the latent talent among non
executives and make use of their potential for creativity and innovation, Quality Circles
have been set up in various units/offices in NTPC. Besides a management journal called
"Horizon" is published quarterly to enable employees to share their ideas and
experiences across the organization.
Demonstrating its high concern for people, NTPC has developed strong employee
welfare, health & well-being and social security systems leading to high level of
commitment. NTPC offers best quality-of-life through beautiful townships with all
amenities such as educational, medical and recreational opportunities for employees and
their family members. The motivation to perform and excel is further enhanced through
a comprehensive NTPC Rewards and Recognition system.
In order to institutionalize a strong Culture based on Values a number of initiatives are
taken to actualize the Vision and Core Values (BCOMIT) across the company. A culture
of celebrating achievements and a strong focus on performance are a way of life in
NTPC.
NTPC has institutionalized "Development Centers" in the company to systematically
diagnose the current and potential competency requirements of the employees with the
objective of enhancing their development in a planned manner. These Centers give a
good insight to the employees about their strengths and weaknesses, the gaps in their
competencies which they can bridge through suitable support from company. Due to
innovative people management practices there is a high level of pride and commitment
amongst employees as reflected in the various external surveys including Great Places
to Work for in India in which NTPC was rated third Great Place to work for in the
country in 2005.

3.1.4 SWOT Analysis of NTPC
KEY STRENGTHS
Largest market share in the domestic power generation and a broad customer
portfolio across the country.
Excellent track record of performance in project implementation and plant
operations.
Diversified thermal generation portfolio-multiple sizes and fuel types.
Highly skilled and experienced Human Resources exposed to state-of-the-art
technologies in project execution and power generation.
Navratna status

High brand equity among stakeholders
Strong balance sheet-ability to raise low cost debt.
Engineering skills in project configuration and package design.
Turnaround ability for old plants-demonstrated in the take-over plants at
Talchar, Tanda and Unchachar.
High credit rating indicating the high confidence of leaders
Established systems and procedures to institutionalize excellence in business
operations- received ISO accreditation in several functions/areas.
In-house training facility PMI, CENPEEP, R&D etc that assists in
development of the sector.
Thrust on reducing social cost of capacity growth-strong execution of
Resettlement & Rehabilitation plans.

KEY WEAKNESSES
Low risk-diversification of business portfolio: Consists primarily of
generation of generation assets.
Functional orientation hampering cross-functional perspective in decision
making.
Long and multi layered procurement process leading to long lead times and
process delays.
Fragmented IT architecture
Gaps in HR systems such as performance management, rewards and
incentives and career development.
Inadequate development of a strong knowledge management system that
could assist in improving efficiency and effectiveness in all aspects of the
business.
Hierarchy for decision making that affects responsiveness.
Role ambiguity and dilution within different levels of the organization

KEY OPPORTUNITIES
Expand generation capacities by putting up thermal and hydro capacities,
maintaining the position of a dominant generating utility in the Indian power
sector.

Broad base fuel mix by considering imported coal, gas, domestic coal,
nuclear power etc with a view to mitigate fuel risks and maintain long run
competitiveness.
Lead the development and commercial deployment of non-conventional
energy sources especially in the distributed generation mode.
Improve collections by trading, direct sale to bulk customers and the active
role in allocation in new plants.
Execute increased number of power plants that classify for Mega Power
Projects status, thereby reducing the cost of the projects and power and
power generated.
Forward integration into the distribution business in India.

KEY THREATS
Entrance of private players in the Indian Power Sector.
Low availability of fuel mix in India and high import prices might affect the
cost of electricity generation.
The existence of PSU culture affecting the organizational efficiency in
comparison of the Private work culture.
Lack of commitment to be aware of the ever changing needs of the
clients/customers.

3.2 Knowledge Management at NTPC

3.2.1 Organizational Transformation at NTPC
Before looking at the initiatives taken by NTPC to transform itself into a knowledge
sharing organization, let us focus on the areas that had been helping the organization to
grow and develop before Knowledge Management came into picture. NTPC received
the Navratna status in the very beginning as it was taking full initiatives for the
transformation of the experience of the persons involved in the engineering, erection,
commissioning and operations department to its other executives within the
organization.
The various initiatives that were being undertaken under the head of knowledge sharing
within the organization were:
Seminars, Trainings and Conferences: The employees undergoing major
trainings in their field of study had to give presentations to the rest of their department

members in order to share the experience and knowledge gained by them from such
educational sessions. It is still a practice in some departments to give presentations on
topics that are of importance to them or the organization as a whole. For emerging
technologies, the employees are also sent for trainings abroad. As per the company
guidelines, all the employees shall undergo at least 7 days of compulsory training in a
year.

Power Management Institute (PMI): For the purpose of imparting trainings to
employees as well as their families, NTPC had set up a culture of learning through
others where people having expertise in their respective fields came to PMI to share
their knowledge. All executive trainees are imparted training for a period of one year
before they join their respective departments. They are imparted with not only technical
trainings but trainings also in the fields of yoga, and other cultural activities. PMI also
conducts trainings for employees of other State Electricity Board.

Research and Development (R&D): A separate building in Greater Noida
consists of the various testing machines and having a learned staff of executives having
their doctorate in specialized fields of metallurgical science. They conduct testing of
different materials at various temperatures and different work conditions to select
materials for pressure vessels under high temperature workings. They also conduct
material tests to know the cause of failure during their working in power plants. This
data is helpful for engineering and O&M activities for power plant working and to get
higher PLF.
The only drawback that could be seen then was that there were less use of computers
and no such data storage machines for sharing the know-how were available. With the
introduction of computers and various search engines, people desired to get all the
information at their fingertips. No intranet service on which this information could be
made readily available to the employees for their official use was existent at that time.
On introduction of broadband facilities, NTPC thought of adopting a knowledge sharing
culture within the organization where data could be easily made available. To bring this
thought into effect, NTPC made a policy to have computers for all its employees. They
also gave loans to their employees to have computer at their homes so that they can
gather knowledge through internet as well.
The A T Kearney report had also suggested NTPC to become a learning organization by
accumulating the information from the various sources mentioned above and forming a
single platform from where such knowledge can be acquired and shared between the
employees. So, a knowledge sharing portal was made, which made all the important
information available to the employees of NTPC at the click of a mouse.

3.2.2 Knowledge Creation at NTPC
Knowledge creation occurs when there is interaction between tacit and explicit
knowledge. Nonaka & Takeuchi in their theory of organizational creation present a view
that, tacit knowledge and explicit knowledge are not totally separate but mutually

complementary entities. They interact with and interchange into each other in the
creative activities of human beings. This interaction is called Knowledge Conversion.
Before we discuss the knowledge conversion, let us see how different the two types of
knowledge as mentioned above are:

Tacit Knowledge Explicit Knowledge
It is Subjective It is Objective
Knowledge of experience Knowledge of rationality
Context specific Context free
Person based Codified/ documented

Modes of Knowledge Conversion
The assumption that knowledge is created through the interaction between tacit and
explicit knowledge allows us to see four different modes of knowledge conversion,
which are as follows:
From tacit knowledge to tacit knowledge, called Socialization.
From tacit knowledge to explicit knowledge, called Externalization.
From explicit knowledge to explicit knowledge, Combination.
From explicit knowledge to tacit knowledge, Internalization.

The table below shows the four modes of conversion.

Socialization
How to enable transfer of subjective tacit
mental models and skill based knowledge
which otherwise cannot be made implicit?
Externalization
How to capture/ codify the subjective, tacit
mental models and skill based knowledge that
resides in people and products of the
organization?
Internationalization
How to enable absorption and internalization
of the knowledge so that it becomes a part of
organizations way of working?
Combination
How to create new knowledge by recombining
what is already known to people in the
organization?

Knowledge Creation through Knowledge Spiral
Organizational knowledge creation is a continuous & dynamic interaction of tacit and
explicit knowledge.
Knowledge Spiral Dialogue

Learning by Doing

This interaction is shaped by shifts between different modes of knowledge conversion,
which are in turn induced by several triggers. See below to understand the process:
First, the socialization mode starts with building a field of interaction. This field
facilitates the sharing of members experiences and mental models.
Second, the externalization mode is triggered by meaningful dialogue or collective
reflection, in which team members articulate hidden tacit knowledge, otherwise hard to
communicate using appropriate metaphors and analogies.
Third, the combination mode is triggered by networking newly created knowledge and
existing knowledge from other sections of the organization, thereby crystallizing them
into a new product, service or system and
Finally learning by doing triggers internalization. The content of knowledge created by
each mode is different and is shown below:

Socialization
Sharing mental
models
Externalization
Creative Reflexion
Internalization
Learning by Doing
Combination
Networking
Field
Building Knowledge

MODE CONTENT
Socialization Sympathized Knowledge
Externalization Conceptual Knowledge
Combination Systemic Knowledge
Internalization Operational Knowledge

3.2.3 NTPC as a Learning Organization
Reaching the top is difficult; but, staying on top for long is far more difficult.
History is witness to this universal truth. Of those who have reached the pinnacle of
success, only a few who have learned with changing times have stayed there; the rest
have taken the quick ride down, unable to maintain their position owing to complacence.
Though the lesson has been in existence since time immemorial, just like almost all
management concepts, the recent past has seen terms like learning organization,
organizational learning, and knowledge management emerging as the buzzwords in the
market. This article attempts to define a few of these terms from NTPC perspective,
analyze the prevailing scenario and present a roadmap for the future journey.

3.2.3.1Essence of a Learning Organization
Myriad definitions for the term Learning Organization have been formed by experts
all over the world. One simple definition, provided by David A. Garvin goes like this:
A Learning Organization is an organization skilled at creating, acquiring, and
transferring knowledge, and at modifying its behavior to reflect new knowledge and
insights. The Learning Organization is the one that creates an environment where the
behaviors and practices involved in continuous development are actively encouraged.
The effective learning must be created and encouraged at individual, one-to-one, and
group level if the fourth level, organizational learning is to become operational rather
than inspirational. Each level can be seen as a sequential step, and those steps can be
envisaged as a Learning Pyramid.

The learning pyramid illustrates that:
An organization must climb up the pyramid, and must cover each step before
reaching the top; and
Climbing gets more difficult as one proceeds toward the top.


3.2.3.2 The Learning Pyramid
The goal of becoming a Learning Organization is achieved when learning becomes the
habit of each and every individual member of the organization.
Every organization that aspires to become a Learning Organization must have in place a
comprehensive system to assimilate, store and share knowledge throughout its
organizational structure. Putting differently, the towering edifice of a Learning
Organization is built upon the foundation of a strong Knowledge Management System
3.2.3.3 NTPC Perspective
NTPC, being a firm believer in the power of knowledge ever since the days of its
inception, has taken numerous initiatives towards becoming a Learning Organization
even before the term became a buzzword. These initiatives include Exhaustive Training
programs provided by the PMI, in-house seminars, lectures and workshops, company
sponsored B.S., M. Tech. and PGDBM programs, study leave for employees aspiring of
higher studies, forums like Professional Circle and Quality Circle, libraries, in-house
magazines and newsletters, intranet, various competitions like NOCET, Quiz contest,
etc.
In addition to all these, with the launch of ERP, a massive process for Knowledge
Management has also been undertaken in NTPC to assimilate, organize and make
available the vast repository of knowledge through a Knowledge Portal.

LEARNING
ORGANIZATION
GROUP
LEARNING
ONE-TO-ONE
LEARNING
THE INDIVIDUAL
LEARNER
The Total
Achievement
Group Interactions/
Discussions
Formal Mgmt
Practices,
Appraisal,
Coaching, etc.
The Base
Learning

3.2.3.4 NTPC- Its Stand Now
Today, NTPC has reached a stage where all these initiatives need to be critically
analyzed in order to weed out redundant / unproductive practices and to obtain
purposeful insights to better the system, and progress towards becoming a Learning
Organization in order to attain and maintain global supremacy in the complete spectrum
of its businesses.
A research undertaken to study the effectiveness of a few of NTPCs initiatives to
become a learning organization has provided a lot to think and act upon, for every single
member of this organization.
A) Knowledge Management & Knowledge Sharing Practices in NTPC

The vast repository of in-house knowledge needs to be made easily accessible to
all, with better user interface.
More encouragement from management side is required for people to share their
knowledge. Platforms for knowledge sharing at all the levels shall be developed
to enable knowledge sharing culture.
Attending Seminars / Technical meets needs to be encouraged. System for
sharing of knowledge gained by the attendees among their groups / departments
shall be put into place in order to improve the effectiveness of such initiatives.
People feel that the information available on the core business (Thermal Power
Projects) is important and relevant, but needs to be updated and shared regularly.
It is also felt that information on the new ventures viz., Distribution, Trading,
Nuclear and Hydro Power, Mining, Consultancy, etc. needs to be gathered,
categorized and made available to all.
To encourage knowledge sharing in an informal manner across the boundaries of
departments, informal forums like "Communities of Practices" should be
constituted.
Standardization of processes and procedures is required to be taken up in order to
reduce the cycle time of repetitive activities and minimize avoidable errors.
B) Competence Enhancement Programs like M. Tech. & PGDBM

The general perception is that the minimum experience criterion should be
brought down with increasing age, as the enthusiasm and capability to learn
diminish and people are not able to extract the most out of these courses.
Means to alleviate Monetary and Logistical issues and policy to prevent the loss
of seniority are needed to make these courses more attractive.
The course contents shall be made commensurate with NTPC's requirements.
Key areas for posting after completion of the course shall be identified so that the
learning is fully tapped.

3.2.3.5 Roadmap for the Journey Ahead
A) Reformation of Executive Education


Identification of key areas where specially trained manpower is required and
estimation of the quantum of such manpower in line with the companys
business plan
Design of course contents in concurrence with some major educational
institution to suit the specific requirements of the company
Optimization of course duration
Revision of minimum experience criteria to encourage participation of young
minds

B) Knowledge Management Portal: K-POWER
A web based Knowledge Management system, K-Power, is proposed, which shall be
accessible to all across the length and breadth of NTPC through the intranet. K-Power is
aimed at connecting people, bringing together dispersed workgroups and creating a
culture of sharing knowledge in NTPC.
In short, K-Power will be an integrated grid of knowledge to make sure each and every
part of the system remains connected and enlightened with knowledge power. It is
suggested to make K-Power the Home-Page of all browsers across the plants, projects
and offices of NTPC to make it ubiquitous.

ELEMENTS OF K- POWER
K- NEWS Latest news and competitive and regulatory
environment
News bulletin of NTPC
Press releases and articles
News about exhibitions and seminars
Whats new in K- Power
K- FORUM Online discussion platform
Trouble shooting, problem solving, FAQs with
answers
Sharing ideas and best practices
Discussions on Topic of the Week
Awards for meritorious contributions
K- TRAINING Schedule of training programs, workshops and
seminars
Nomination, reporting and participant evaluations
Web-based virtual classrooms
Technical videos
Online tutorials, practice exercises with solutions

K- QUIZ Interactive Quiz
Rewards as points earned
K- LIBRARY Easy access to the warehouse of existing knowledge
E-archives
Company policies, benefits, product catalogues and
standards
K- DIRECTORY Intranet based interface via which people register or
locate expertise
E-mail IDs and phone numbers of in-house skill
experts
K- LINKS Links with projects, other units and departmental
pages and internet
Links to web sites for accessing Standards, Acts and
Policies
K- FEEDBACK Feedbacks and suggestions of users for making K-
Power more effective and user friendly
K- HELPDESK Help topics on how to use K- Power and its various
links

C) Creating the Learning Habit: K-EEP

Resistance to learn and reluctance to teach have become the habit of many over the
years, and, they can be overcome only if some force is exerted by the top management
on the concerned parties. A formal Knowledge Enhancement & Evaluation Program
(KEEP) is suggested to imbibe the habit of learning & teaching into the organization.
The entire employee base of NTPC will be categorized into two sets viz., the
Learners those who have less than certain years of experience and the Tutors
those who have more experience. An online course, requiring about an hour of study
every week shall be completed by every learner. The course content shall start with
the processes involved in the immediate neighborhood of the learners current
position (department / group) and shall expand to other departments, division,
projects, etc. as the learning progresses.
At the end of each lesson, a mandatory online test shall be taken by the learner, the
scores of which shall form a part of his / her performance appraisal system.
The tutors shall be required to prepare the course material based on their knowledge
and experience. They shall also evaluate the tests given by the learners.

The quantity and quality of the course material prepared by each tutor shall form part
of his / her performance appraisal system.
Sufficient measures shall be taken to maintain the quality of the course contents
based on the organizations needs and initiatives.

3.2.3.6 More bricks to build a Learning Organization
Rewards and Recognitions for Knowledge Sharing
Standardization of processes to avoid Reinvention of Wheel
Strategic Carrier Opportunities
Strategic Job Rotation
Promotion of informal forums like Communities of Practices
Objective evaluation of effectiveness of various training programs
Corporate Knowledge Management Group headed by a Chief Knowledge Officer
reporting directly to the CMD


Scope and Objectives of the Project

4.1 Scope
The scope of this project is confined to the Engineering Office complex of NTPC in
Noida, where the summer internship had been undertaken by me.

4.2 Objectives of the Project
Primary objectives
To evaluate the environment for knowledge management in the organization.
To prepare a mechanism which enables NTPC to create a supportive
environment for knowledge sharing.
To know what are the contributing factors that would help in building up of a
conducive environment for knowledge management.

Secondary objectives
To ascertain the organizational awareness, which is the foundation of KM.
To determine if the employees feel there is need for knowledge management in
NTPC.
To know the employees perception towards knowledge management.
To identify the major source of information flow.
To see the effectiveness of knowledge transfer activities carried by NTPC.
To identify the loop holes restricting the full effectiveness of Knowledge
Management tools.
To know how frequently employees use KM tools.
To gauge the attitude of employees towards the creation of a culture which
encourages knowledge sharing.


Research Methodology
Research methodology establishes a framework of evaluation and re evaluation of
primary and secondary research. The technique and concepts used during primary
research in order to arrive at findings; which are also dealt with and lead to a logical
deduction towards the analysis and results.

5.1 Types of Research
Qualitative Research: It aims at studying and analyzing the quality or kind of research.
This research is qualitative as it focuses on Knowledge which is a quality aspect of an
organization.
Exploratory Research: It is when a study is undertaken with the objective either to
explore an area where little is known or to investigate the possibilities of undertaking a
particular research study. This research is exploratory as it explores the organizational
awareness, culture and environment of Knowledge Management.

5.2 Research Design
A research design is a logical & systematic plan prepared for directing a research study. It
constitutes the blue print for the collection, measurement, analysis and interpretation of
observations.
A sample is a representative part of the population. In sampling technique, information is
collected only from a representative part of the universe and the conclusions are drawn on
that basis for the entire universe.
A convenience sampling technique was used to collect data from the respondents. . It is
a non-probability sample. This is the least reliable design but normally the cheapest and
easiest to conduct .In this method Researcher have the freedom to choose whomever they
find, thus the name convenience.

Sample Size: 100 Employees of NTPC Ltd.
Sampling Unit: Employees of NTPC from all levels and departments
Area Covered: EOC-Sector-24, Noida.

5.3 Type of Data
The sources of data can be categorized as-

Primary Data

New data gathered to help solve the problem at hand. Primary data was basically
collected by getting the questionnaire filled by the respondents.

Secondary Data
Secondary data is the information that already exists, having been collected for another
purpose. Sources include trade publications and subscription services, data that has
already been collected and published for another research project that has been referred
for the project.
An intensive secondary data research was conducted to understand the full impact and
implications of Knowledge Management. Organizational environments of various
companies were reviewed in order to identify certain issues which needed to be dealt
with and assessed in order to make Knowledge Management initiative a success.

5.4 Data Collection Tool
The data collection tool in my research is Questionnaire
The questions shortlisted were incorporated by me in my primary data research work,
which consisted of two questionnaires. The first questionnaire was an objective,
generalized questionnaire that was filled up by 100 employees of NTPC. It basically had
questions concerning to the general awareness among people regarding the organization
and the prevalent Knowledge Management Systems in the organization.
The second questionnaire being subjective, had in-depth questions regarding the
problems and difficulties faced by the employees while working with the existing
Knowledge Management portals, and how these problems can be tackled and solved out.
This questionnaire was filled by only the top executives of NTPC. Simultaneous
interviews were also taken of the employees filling these questionnaires.

5.5 Data Analysis Tool
Pie Charts
Bar Graphs


Analysis and Interpretation

6.1 Analysis of Questionnaire- 1

AWARENESS ABOUT NTPC
1. NTPC has implemented SAP / ERP as its Human Resource Management
System.
Yes Dont Know No

Interpretation: About 96% of the employees were aware that NTPC has
implemented SAP / ERP as its Human Resource Management System.

2. NTPC has a Knowledge Management portal on its Intranet.
Yes Dont Know No

Interpretation: Only 2.17% were unaware of the KM portal prevailing at NTPC. The
rest of the employees had full knowledge of the existence of a KM portal.
95.60%
4.35%
IMPLEMENTATION OF
SAP/ ERP AS HRMS
YES
NO
97.83%
2.17%
KM PORTAL ON INTRANET
YES
NO

3. NTPC envisions being a GLOBAL PLAYER by 2017.
Yes Dont Know No

Interpretation: 93% of the employees knew of NTPCs vision of becoming a global
player by 2017. A few employees of about 6% had no idea about the same.

4. NTPC plans to diversify into the POWER DISTRIBUTION segment.
Yes Dont Know No

Interpretation: About 87% of the employees knew that NTPC has already diversified
into the field of power distribution. But 13% of the employees were doubtful when
asked about this question.

93.48%
6.52%
VISION OF GLOBAL PLAYER
BY 2017
YES
NO
86.96%
13.04%
PLANS TO DIVERSIFY INTO
POWER DISTRIBUTION
YES
NO

ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION
1. Employees are informed through intranet/ emails /circulars about any meetings
or important events.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: When asked if the employees were informed through intranet/
emails /circulars about any meetings or important events, about 78% replied in a
positive manner. 22% said they were sometimes informed about such events. There
was no such employee who replied in a negative way.

2. Employees are informed before any organizational change happens.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: Half of the employees replied that they were only sometimes
informed about major organizational changes. 13% reverted to this question in a
negative way while only 37% replied in a positive manner.
0%
50%
100%
YES SOMETIMES NO
78.26%
21.74%
0
INFORMED ABOUT
MEETINGS, ETC.
0%
50%
YES SOMETIMES NO
36.96%
50%
13.04%
INFORMED ABOUT
ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE

3. Employees are encouraged to implement innovative ideas in daily office work.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: On asking about the encouragement given to employees to
implement innovative ideas in daily office work, half of the sample said they were
allowed to innovate, while 43% of the employees said they were allowed to innovate
only sometimes. Only 6.5% employees said they were not allowed to implement
innovative ideas in daily office works.

4. Employees have a healthy interaction among themselves.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: When asked about the interaction that took place among the
employees in the work front, 71% of the employees said they had healthy
interactions, while 24% said the interaction sometimes did not remain healthy. Only
5% employees believed that their interaction among employees was not healthy.
0%
20%
40%
60%
YES SOMETIMES NO
50% 43.48%
6.52%
ENCOURAGEMENT FOR
INNOVATION AT OFFICE
0%
50%
100%
YES SOMETIMES NO
70.65%
23.91%
5.44%
HEALTHY INTERACTION
AMONG EMPLOYEES

5. HODs know all their juniors by name.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: 88% of the employees said that their heads of the department knew
them by name while only 10% said that the heads sometimes forgot their names.

6. When approached, employees help each other readily.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: 72% employees shared a helping attitude among themselves
while only 27% sometimes got a cold shoulder from among the employees when
in need of help.

0%
50%
100%
YES SOMETIMES NO
88.04%
10.87%
1.09%
HODs KNOW EMPLOYEES BY
NAME
0%
50%
100%
YES SOMETIMES NO
71.74%
27.17% 1.09%
READINESS TO HELP AMONG
EMPLOYEES

KNOWLEDGE AWARENESS

1. At times, duplication of activity takes place in two or more departments.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: There was a tough fight with 55% of the employees vouching that
duplication of activities does occur at times in two or more departments, while 44%
denying any kind of duplication of activities.

2. Sometimes mistakes happen as valuable information is not available at the right
time.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: 71% of the employees agreed on mistakes happening due to
unavailability of data with them, while 28% of the employees said that such mistakes
do not occur.
55.44%
44.56%
DUPLICATION OF
ACTIVITIES OCCUR
YES
NO
71.74%
28.26%
MISTAKES HAPPEN DUE TO
DATA UNAVAILABILITY
YES
NO

3. Are there any training programs conducted for the usage of KM system in the
organization.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: About 57% of the employees agreed on having training programs
initiated for using the KM portals on the intranet, while the rest 43% denied any such
service provided to them

4. Does the HR team have any contributions for the KM success.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: 62% of the employees agreed on HR having its contributions for
the success of the KM portal but 38% of the sample employees complained of
the HR team not giving any commendable inputs or contributions.
56.52%
43.48%
TRAINING PROGRAMS FOR
USING KM PORTALS
YES
NO
61.96%
38.04%
CONTRIBUTIONS OF HR
TEAM FOR KM
YES
NO

KNOWLEDGE SHARING CULTURE AT NTPC
1. I feel awkward in approaching others for help.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: It was surprising to know that 11% of the employees felt awkward
approaching others for help while 34% of them were sometimes hesitant even
approaching their colleagues. Only 55% of the employees showed no fear in
approaching others at times of help.

2. My colleagues cross-check information received from others.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: When asked if the employees cross check the information that they
have gained from their colleagues, 86% of the employees agreed on doing the same
at times or otherwise. Only 14% of the employees disagreed on any kind of cross
checking of information.
10.87%
33.70% 55.43%
FEEL AWKWARD
APPROACHIN OTHERS FOR
HELP
YES
SOMETIMES
NO
42.39%
43.48%
14.13%
CROSS CHECKING
INFORMATION OF
COLLEAGUES
YES
SOMETIMES
NO

3. I feel privileged in sharing information with my colleagues in other
departments/units.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: It was very nice to know that around 82% of the employees were
open to sharing knowledge among the employees. Only 17% of the employees
believed in keeping knowledge with themselves and not sharing it with all the
employees. They shared their knowledge only to a select group of their peers.

4. Sharing of data improves trust and co-operation with colleagues.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: Most of the employees agreed that sharing of knowledge improved
trust and cooperation among employees. Only about 11% of the employees were a
bit hesitant in this context.

81.52%
17.39%
1.09%
PRIVILEDGED IN SHARING
INFORMATION
YES
SOMETIMES
NO
86.96%
10.87%
2.17%
SHARING IMPROVES TRUST
AND COOPERATION
YES
SOMETIMES
NO

5. I feel sharing of critical information with others reduces my importance.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: It was good to know that most of the employees accepted the
fact that sharing of information had nothing to do with reduced importance
among the employees. But some employees still held the opinion that sharing of
information reduces importance among employees.
15.22%
26.09%
58.69%
SHARING INFORMATION
REDUCES IMPORTANCE
YES
SOMETIMES
NO

IN HOUSE KNOWLEDGE

1. Search my mailbox for mails regarding the topic.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: It was interesting to know that around 84% of the employees
referred to their mailbox for past mails on a certain topic while only 16% denied
referring to the mailbox for such topics.

2. Contact people I know and ask them.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: About 74% of the employees asked people around them for any kind of
information that they needed on a certain topic. Another 24% said they sometimes do
consult their colleagues but also try to find information from other sources.
0%
20%
40%
60%
YES SOMETIMES NO
56.52%
27.17%
16.31%
SEARCH MAILBOX
0%
50%
100%
73.91%
23.91%
2.18%
CONTACT PEOPLE AND ASK
THEM

3. Search my paper documents.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: 55% of the employees fully depended on past year documents for
their official work. Another 42% said they referred to past documents when their
colleagues could not help them provide information on a topic.

4. Refer to the materials available in the library.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: It also came to be noted that 90% employees refer to library
materials like journals, standards and books when they needed information on a
certain topic. Of these 48% went occasionally to the library while 42% visited the
library quite often.
0%
20%
40%
60%
YES SOMETIMES NO
55.44%
42.39%
2.17%
SEARCH PAPER
DOCUMENTS
0%
20%
40%
60%
YES SOMETIMES NO
42.39%
47.83%
9.78%
REFER TO LIBRARY
MATERIAL

5. Search the NTPC's Intranet.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: An interesting fact that came to picture was that almost all the
employees do refer to the intranet service of NTPC, though the frequency of these
visits varies. About 60% of the employees regularly browsed through the companys
intranet services.

6. Search on the Internet.
Yes Sometimes No

Interpretation: In spite of such high usage of the intranet facility by the
employees, about 78% of the employees still referred to the internet while doing
their work. The reason behind such a data was found to be the lack of awareness
among the employees regarding the information being made available on the
intranet.
0%
20%
40%
60%
YES SOMETIMES NO
59.78%
39.13%
1.09%
SEARCH NTPC's INTRANET
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
YES SOMETIMES NO
78.26%
20.65%
1.09%
SEARCH THE INTERNET

KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER EFFECTIVENESS

1. Training should be provided for employees.
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree

Interpretation: There had been full consent among employees regarding the imparting
of training among the employees in their work areas.

2. Induction Program for new recruits is necessary.

Interpretation: Only a negligible percentage of people were of the view that induction
programs should not be imparted to the new recruits in the company. They thought it to
be a waste of both time and money, although they did agree that it was an important
activity.
100%
0
TRAINING SHOULD BE
PROVIDED
YES
NO
98.91%
1.09%
INDUCTION PROGRAMS
FOR NEW RECRUITS
YES
NO

3. Mentoring system should be implemented.

Interpretation: All the employees on having mentoring programs for the employees of
NTPC. They also seemed to be happy with the existing mentoring program that is
running in the organization.

4. Quality Circles/Professional Circles should be encouraged.

Interpretation: The employees also agreed upon having quality/ professional circles at
the workplace. This was thought to increase their exposure in their respective work
areas.
100%
0
MENTORING TO BE
IMPLEMENTED
YES
NO
100%
0
QUALITY / PROFESSIONAL
CIRCLES TO BE
ENCOURAGED
YES
NO

5. Casual talks with Colleagues are helpful.

Interpretation: While 92% of the employees said that casual talks are helpful in an
organization, there were about 8% of the employees who totally disagreed with the
statement. They were of the opinion that casual talks leads to a lot of time loss and work
suffers due to these reasons.

6. Reading HORIZON and other NTPC Journals helps gain knowledge.

Interpretation: 95% of the employees were of the view point that magazines like
Horizon are a well of knowledge and takes up some of the important issues that help
build the knowledge of the employees. The rest 5% argued that such magazines are only
of the interest of the HR department and not of much worth to other departments.
92.39%
7.61%
CASUAL TALKS WITH
COLLEAGUES ARE HELPFUL
YES
NO
94.57%
5.43%
READING HORIZON AND
OTHER JOURNALS HELP
YES
NO

7. Attending Seminars, Conferences and Knowledge Forums organized by NTPC
are beneficial.

Interpretation: Majority of the employees agreed that attending of seminars/
conferences and trainings are beneficial to the employees and should be organized quite
frequently. Only a selected few complained that such seminars are a waste of time as
they take away important hours from their hectic work schedules.

8. Browsing through the Intranet (KMS) helps.

Interpretation: Of those having knowledge about the usage of the various KM portals
on the intranet found them to be very useful for work related activities. Only 4% of the
employees disagreed on this point as they were not having much knowledge about the
information available at these portals.
98.91%
1.09%
ATTENDING SEMINARS ARE
BENEFICIAL
YES
NO
95.65%
4.35%
BROWSING THROUGH KM
PORTALS HELPS
YES
NO

6.2 ANALYSIS OF QUESTIONNAIRE 2
1. Are you satisfied with the existing Knowledge Management System at NTPC?
Yes No

Interpretation: About 60% of the employees of NTPC seemed to be satisfied with the
existing KMS. The rest 40% were not fully satisfied and wanted certain changes in the
same.

2. How many articles of your field have been contributed towards Knowledge
Management from your group?
0 2 4 6 8

Interpretation: When asked about the number of articles contributed by each
department/ group in the last one year, it was seen not more than 6 articles maximum
were contributed by particular groups.
60%
40%
Satisfaction from existing
KMS
yes
no
37.50%
25%
25%
12.50%
Number of Articles
Contributed by group
zero
two
four
six
eight

3. Which Knowledge Management portfolio(s) do you generally refer for your work?
Information and Library Services
Knowledge Management in SAP
Knowledge Management in Engineering Division
Others

Interpretation: Most of the NTPC employees referred to the Engineering and
Information & Library portfolio, with only about 12% using the SAP.

4. Do you refer any publications (journals/codes/standards) in support of your work?
If yes, which are those?

Interpretation: The employees of NTPC generally refer to the codes, standards and
journals that have been laid down by the organization. They also refer to some
International Standards (IS) apart from the BIS, IEEE, IEC, ASME and ASTM.
47%
11.80%
41.20%
Portfolios Referred
Info n Lib
SAP
Engg. Div.
41.60%
20.80%
37.50%
Reference to Standards/
Journals/ Codes
STANDARDS
JOURNALS
CODES

5. Do your supporting groups/ departments contribute towards Knowledge
Management sources?
Yes No

Interpretation: About 70% of the employees said that articles were contributed by their
peers towards the KMS. 30% were not sure of the contributions done by their peers.

6. What would you suggest to strengthen the existing Knowledge Management System

Interpretation: This question bought forward the lack of knowledge of employees
about KMS. Many people had asked for standards and codes to be implemented in the
KMS. Standards and codes are not a part of KMS, but are still available on the NTPC
intranet. Majority of the employees are not aware of the same. Many emphasized that
there were not many articles on the KM site by engineering division. The employees
should consider themselves as a part of the KMS rather than being dependent on others
to contribute towards the system.

7. What are the key areas where you would like to improve the existing Knowledge
Management System?
..

Interpretation: Majority of the employees wanted to know the experiences of people
who go on sites for field work. Things like designing and testing came into light. People
asked for design guidelines and checklists of engineering designs as they have to
frequently deal with all such things in day-to-day practices.
70%
30%
Contributions of peer for KM
Yes
No

8. What, according to you, are the best sources of gathering knowledge?
.

Interpretation: Internet topped the list with 40% of the employees vowing for it. It was
followed by library with 20% of the people saying that they get most of the information
needed from the library. Discussions, seminars and job visits also provided some
knowledge to the employees.

9. Where do you gather knowledge regarding your field of study?
.

Interpretation: A good 32% of the employees said that they gathered most of the
information from the library books and journals. Internet came as the second best option
in the list for gaining knowledge. Other sources included seminars and trainings, job
visits and discussions among the employees.
20%
40%
13.30%
13.30%
13.30%
Sources of Knowledge as
per Employees
Library
Internet
Discussions
Seminars
22.70%
31.80%
18.20%
4.50%
22.70%
Sources of Knowledge for
Employees
Internet
Library
Seminars
Job Visits

10. Does NTPC send its employees for seminars/ trainings out of the NTPC premises?
Yes No

Interpretation: All the employees agreed that they were sent for trainings and seminars
outside the NTPC premises. All were pretty pleased by this act of the organization.

11. How often are you allowed to attend such seminars/ trainings?

Interpretation: When asked about the duration of these trainings and seminars, most of
them said that trainings are provided twice/ thrice a year. The employees were quite
satisfied with the duration of these sessions as there was a minimum of seven days of
compulsory trainings that had to be undergone by them.

100%
0 0%
50%
100%
150%
yes no
Trainings outside NTPC
premises
Series1

Findings

Through the analysis, it has been found that the employees have a sense of job security.
The groundwork to be done by the organization is basically related to the people aspect.

Though NTPC has a very low attrition rate, but a lot of employees were of the
perception that sharing of critical information among employees would hamper
their chances of progress/promotion, as all would be at par with same knowledge
gained from others. While interviewing, the employees exhibited a sense of
fear as they felt that sharing of critical knowledge and know-how or helping
their colleagues is not acknowledged in the organization.
The aim of NTPC or any organization implementing a KM strategy is to design a
methodology that is in sync with the mission, vision, values and culture of the
organization. To change the culture and the attitude of the employees is a
difficult task. People resist change and any coercion done by the organization can
ruin the work balance of the employees.
Due to poor communication and lack of commitment and motivation on the
part of employees and management the organizational awareness suffered.
Many of the employees were not fully aware about the KM portals. NTPC is not
working on enhancing the KMS, but majority of the employees agreed from
strong to mild that KM initiative is being taken up by NTPC. The KM portals on
its intranet are not being updated regularly. Employees are not educated enough
to understand the concept of KM and its application in every day work activities.
The employees had little understanding about the issues, which have been left
unaddressed by the management like the KM initiatives, ERP implementation,
etc. The knowledge transfer activities of Mentoring System, seminars and
conferences and reading the Horizon seemed to be gaining importance among the
employees with the change in time.
Out of 100 employees interviewed who had the clarity of concepts and were a
part of the KM initiative of NTPC till two years back said that The challenge at
NTPC is people, not the technology.

Looking at some of the other aspects,

Vision of KM: The right information to the right people at the right time.
Reality: Technology is available to the employees, but the employees do not seem to
change their working habits.


The ideal Knowledge Management environment will be the one where: Every
employee has the necessary tools for gathering, organizing, refining and disseminating
information. All information in a company is available to everyone who needs it.
Employees creatively contribute to the common pool of knowledge.
But, Today's reality is far from the ideal desired: Technology is at the second stage,
but the behavior of the employees is still stuck at the first stage.

The employees are in a habit of browsing through the organization's intranet, but
rely more on personal interactions or the internet. The reason for such a behavior
among the employees is that the portals on the intranet are not being updated on
a timely basis and the networking among people seems to be stronger and faster
than that.
Innovation is the key to Knowledge Management: Due to the age old work
style and the aging work force, innovation is not the buzz word amongst the
NTPC family. Innovative ways of working is not acknowledged by the senior
members of NTPC.
Human Resource managers can play important role in identifying the knowledge
core of NTPC and recommending ways to preserve the critical role, building
robust, long range plans to ensure top quality operations. They can also brief up
the employees how a little contribution from their side can help in the overall
development of the organization. They also have to make the people understand
that KM is not only a HR initiative but an overall organizational goal.
NTPC Ltd is a "Learning Organization" where the continuous improvement
requires a commitment to learning. At NTPC, people continuously expand their
capacity to create the results they truly desire. Here, new and expansive patterns
of thinking are nurtured, collective aspiration is set free, and people are now
continuously learning how to learn together. For the KM initiative,
implementation and sustenance a commitment and motivation to learn have to be
propagated by the organization, which NTPC is doing now.
The various departments had a very different pattern of responses. The Finance,
Information Technology, New Business Development departments agreed
towards the stronger side of the knowledge duplication happening in NTPC.
They agreed to mistakes happening because of the information being unavailable
at the right time. On the other hand, the Human Resource Department differed on
this ground. The HRMS-SAP/ ERP have reduced the duplication of information
and data redundancy to its minimal level.


Limitations of study

Sample size of 100 to represent the entire manpower strength is not a very
significant sample of the entire population.
The top executives were hesitant and reluctant to reveal some vital information
required for the research work..
Certain respondents eager to provide their contributions in the research work
were hard pressed with time and could not contribute their valuable support for
the same.
It was difficult to go for a detailed research in a limited period of 6 weeks.


Recommendations and Conclusion

9.1 Suggestions for successful KM initiative:

The aim of NTPC can be to manage knowledge by effective people management. As we
can't manage knowledge, we can manage the environment in which knowledge can be
created, discovered, captured, shared, distilled, validated, transferred, adopted, adapted
and applied.

NTPC would have to create:

Right Conditions: by way of common reliable infrastructure
Right Means: through common model, tools and processes
Right Actions: where people instinctively seek, share, and use knowledge
Right Leadership: where learning is rewarded and contributions acknowledged.

The ideal outcome is that people manage knowledge as a part of their daily business,
without thinking of it as an extra task above their routine official work, and that
leadership of the company and the company processes reinforce this. NTPC should
strive to achieve Unconscious Competence

For attaining the unconscious competence, following suggestions can be beneficial for
NTPC to attain a surety of succeeding in the KM initiative.

NTPC can lay stress on having a strong leadership that communicates and asks
for collaboration from its employees. Like any high priority project, KM will be
best implemented with determined champions and top management commitment.
NTPC would have to design the environment in such a manner that organizational
culture is open to all the levels. By encouraging best-practice sharing, NTPC would
aim at grasping the knowledge within the employees and also bring change in the
organization's processes. In this way, NTPC would successfully use the employee
input and knowledge that might produce a strategic advantage.

By augmenting the organizational awareness and organizational
communication at NTPC, the knowledge awareness, sharing and transfer
efficiency can also see an upward trend. The organizational environment
influences the attitude of the employee towards organizational knowledge. By
improving the organizational environment, there can be a positive change made in
the knowledge aspect of the organization.

NTPC can introduce KM only when it is ready for the change. At present, NTPC
needs to condition its People-Process-Technology. This is a task without which
NTPC's environment will not be apt for Knowledge Management and the initiative
can lead to loss of time and funds. Spurred by the paradigm shift in our economy,
many corporations pursue KM without evaluating whether they are organizationally
ready. NTPC being a PSU has been working on the lines of classical

management principles and cannot be successful in adopting KM without
major changes in culture, management attitudes, and communication skills.

At NTPC, KM would be a success only if the co-ordination between Human
Resource and Technology takes place. The two departments should work jointly in
incorporating KM as a part of the organizational processes.

KM is not a technological brainchild. KM is a technology emanating from the
knowledge of human brains captured by humans. The people element in KM can be
dealt in an efficient manner. Although intranets, knowledge-based tools, data
warehouses, and other computer-based software are a part of the way NTPC would
look at the future, but technology is only an enabler of KM. The knowledge that
NTPC would make available must be organized and disseminated to human
decision makers to be of any use to them.

NTPC would have to make changes in its Compensation System. To encourage
employees to contribute towards knowledge management, NTPC should have a
system of rewarding people who exhibit the right behaviors. Recognition is the
most powerful motivation Receiving acknowledgement for the contributions of the
employees makes a difference. NTPC can use more innovative ways like having
"MOST HELPING EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH" with regular Notice Board
entries to it. Also, such initiatives of helping colleagues can be made a part of the
annual appraisal. Instead of knowledge hoarding knowledge dissemination and
imparting can be made part of the appraisal criteria.

NTPC would have to build an atmosphere of trust and mutual understanding
amongst the employees. An employee would share things better with people he
knows and trusts. NTPC needs to develop new ways of developing mutual trust and
knowledge sharing reciprocity. Instead of sharing knowledge via web, i.e. without
meeting face -to- face, NTPC can also make a system of sharing know-how. The key
is to know the attitude and the temperament of Knowledge Giver and the
Knowledge Receiver, which would be impossible until the process of sharing
knowledge is made more interactive.

NTPC can encourage people to give and receive challenges. Challenging the
assumptions or firm beliefs takes some effort, as does receiving such a challenge.
The environment would have to facilitate internal - competition to create better
knowledge-base. For NTPC, it becomes imperative to start identifying the
internal knowledge sources and actively urge the employees to help in new
knowledge creation. If NTPC keeps on going with the traditional boss-order-
subordinate system, then it would not be able to sustain the pressure of knowledge
generation. Teams can be divided into competing groups that develop different
approaches to the same project/task and then discuss the advantages & disadvantages
of the proposals. It provides a variety of perspectives for the project from which the
best strategies can be chosen.


KM initiative would have to be in-sync with the strategic level intents of NTPC.
The leadership would have to adjust the KM strategy with the vision, objectives of
the joint ventures, market capture goals and desired customer satisfaction to be
achieved NTPC in the future time period.

For setting conducive environment for KM, the concept of organization and its
structure might have to undergo a slight change. NTPC may be suggested to have
more permeable organizational boundaries and to collaborate with all units joint
ventures to capture all possible knowledge.

Employees should be encouraged to exchange knowledge through various activities
like Job Rotation, Benchmarking, Scenario And Simulation Techniques.

NTPC can implement Redundancy Approach. Redundancy can be important as
it encourages frequent dialogue and communication. This creates a "common
cognitive ground" among employees and facilities the transfer of tacit knowledge.
For NTPC redundancy can be a Chaos to Concept Approach. In this, the
employees of NTPC share overlapping information they sense others are struggling
to articulate. Redundancy also spreads new explicit knowledge throughout the
organization so that the employees can internalize it.

The Mentoring System is a good and efficient way of sharing tacit knowledge. "We
can know more than we can tell". By giving more emphasis on the mentoring
activities, a lot can be learned from tacit knowledge of a mentor. NTPC may also
identify mentors from the corporate world and encourage sharing of knowledge
between mentors-men(tees). If Stress is laid upon building knowledge through
relationships in the mentoring system, it would help in better trust building too.

.


9.2 Model for Successful Knowledge Management Implementation

KM can make a difference in the processes of NTPC for getting business results from
their objectives. The key would be to introduce learning at every opportunity. Reusing
knowledge is faster than recreating knowledge.

Captured Knowledge: For NTPC the best way to store know-how is to build a
knowledge-asset which would have withdrawal from a "knowledge bank" at the
start of an activity and depositing new knowledge at the end.
Learn before Doing: NTPC would encourage employees to find out what
knowledge is out there before performing any piece of work.
Learn during the Activity: It would be a real benefit to the organization if done
routinely. An individual can learn from oneself (experience) and learn from
others (tacit and explicit knowledge).
Learn after Doing: It is an important component and would create an
environment that inspires the team/individual at NTPC to perform the next task
better.
Implementing this model would encourage knowledge sharing, as employees would
come together to face the challenges and interact in a manner which would increase the
trust and understanding. The main aim of the employees will not be to finish the task,
but the aim will be to collaborate in a way to complete the task in the best possible
manner.

CAPTURED
KNOWLEDGE
LEARN
DURING
LEARN
BEFORE
LEARN
AFTER

Conclusion

NTPC had always like other P.S.U.s been practising knowledge management though
not with a defined name. Each of the proceedings, every work done and the training
schedule, along with the contents have been documented which makes it easier for
knowledge sharing. Knowledge management was started as a HR strategy to help in
trainings, development, proper documentation and most importantly knowledge
retention. Though attrition rate at NTPC is very low still it has to cope up with the
knowledge that goes out with the employees retiring every year.
The technology is available to the employees, and the organization is ready. But the
employees do not seem to change their working habits. Employees in a majority are still
at ease with the old styles of working.
Innovation is the key to Knowledge Management: Due to the age old work style and the
aging work force, innovation is not the buzz word amongst the NTPC family. Innovative
ways of working is not acknowledged by the senior members of NTPC


BIBLIOGRAPHY

BOOKS:
Birchall, D. W. & Tovstiga, G. (2002) 'Assessing the firm's strategic knowledge
portfolio: a framework and methodology', International Journal of Technology
Management, vol. 24, no. 4, pp. 419-434
Strapko, W. "Knowledge Management," Software Magazine, 10(13), 1990, pp.
63-66.

ARTICLES:
NTPC journal - HORIZON
Articles on Knowledge Management from IGNOU

WEBSITES:
www.brint.com
www.citehr.com
www.wikipedia.com
www.kmworld.com
www.kmmagazine.com
www.ntpc.co.in
http://ntpceoc/ (NTPC intranet)

CASE STUDIES
Siemens
Oil Company of Malaysia
TATA Steel and Reliance
HLL
Infosys
TCS
Mckinsey

ANNEXURE- A
QUESTIONNAIRE
(BY THE HR DEPARTMENT)
PLEASE ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS AND AVOID LEAVING ANY
QUESTION UNANSWERED.

AWARENESS ABOUT NTPC

1. NTPC has implemented SAP / ERP as its Human Resource Management
System.
Yes Dont Know No

2. NTPC has a Knowledge Management portal on its Intranet.
Yes Dont Know No

3. NTPC envisions being a GLOBAL PLAYER by 2017.
Yes Dont Know No

4. NTPC plans to diversify into the POWER DISTRIBUTION segment.
Yes Dont Know No

ORGANISATIONAL COMMUNICATION
1. Employees are informed through intranet/ emails /circulars about any meetings
or important events.
Yes Sometimes No

2. Employees are informed before any organizational change happens.
Yes Sometimes No

3. Employees are encouraged to implement innovative ideas in daily office work.
Yes Sometimes No

4. Employees have a healthy interaction among themselves.
Yes Sometimes No

5. HODs know all their juniors by name.
Yes Sometimes No

6. When approached, employees help each other readily.
Yes Sometimes No

KNOWLEDGE AWARENESS
1. At times, duplication of activity takes place in two or more departments.
Yes Sometimes No

2. Sometimes mistakes happen as valuable information is not available at the right
time.
Yes Sometimes No

3. Are there any training programs conducted for the usage of KM system in the
organization.
Yes Sometimes No

4. Does the HR team have any contributions for the KM success.
Yes Sometimes No

KNOWLEDGE SHARING CULTURE AT NTPC
1. I feel awkward in approaching others for help.
Yes Sometimes No

2. My colleagues cross-check information received from others.
Yes Sometimes No

3. I feel privileged in sharing information with my colleagues in other
departments/units.
Yes Sometimes No

4. Sharing of data improves trust and co-operation with colleagues.
Yes Sometimes No


5. I feel sharing of critical information with others reduces my importance.
Yes Sometimes No

IN-HOUSE KNOWLDEGE
1. Search my mailbox for mails regarding the topic.
Yes Sometimes No

2. Contact people I know and ask them.
Yes Sometimes No

3. Search my paper documents.
Yes Sometimes No

4. Refer to the materials available in the library.
Yes Sometimes No

5. Search the NTPC's Intranet.
Yes Sometimes No

6. Search on the Internet.
Yes Sometimes No

KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER EFFECTIVNESS
1. Training should be provided for employees.
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly
Disagree

2. Induction Program for new recruits is necessary.
Disagree

3. Mentoring system should be implemented.

Disagree

4. Quality Circles/Professional Circles should be encouraged.
Disagree

5. Casual talks with Colleagues are helpful.
Disagree

6. Reading HORIZON and other NTPC Journals helps gain knowledge.
Disagree

7. Attending Seminars, Conferences and Knowledge Forums organized by NTPC
are beneficial.
Disagree

8. Browsing through the Intranet (KMS) helps.
Disagree

LEVELS E1-E4 E5-E7 E-7A-E9 Others

DEPARTMENT:


ANNEXURE - B

QUESTIONNAIRE

KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT
1. Are you satisfied with the existing Knowledge Management System at NTPC?
Yes No

2. How many articles of your field have been contributed towards Knowledge
Management from your group?
0 2 4 6 8

3. Which Knowledge Management portfolio(s) do you generally refer for your
work?
Information and Library Services
Knowledge Management in SAP
Knowledge Management in Engineering Division
Others ..
4. Do you refer any publications (journals/codes/standards) in support of your
work? If yes, which are those?
..

5. Do your supporting groups/ departments contribute towards Knowledge
Management sources?
Yes No

6. What would you suggest to strengthen the existing Knowledge Management
System
.


7. What are the key areas where you would like to improve the existing Knowledge
Management System?
..
..........
.

8. What, according to you, are the best sources of gathering knowledge?
..
.

9. Where do you gather knowledge regarding your field of study?
.

10. Does NTPC send its employees for seminars/ trainings out of the NTPC
premises?
Yes No

11. How often are you allowed to attend such seminars/ trainings?

LEVELS E1-E4 E5-E7 E-7A-E9

DEPARTMENT:
DESIGNATION:

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Creating a conducive environment for Knowledge Management

Bhagwan Parshuram Institute of Technology 1

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