Australian Institute of Management

www.aimqld.com.au

Managing Knowledge ManagementManaging Knowledge Management

Joanne JacobsBrisbane Graduate School of BusinessQueensland University of Technology

Australian Institute of Management

www.aimqld.com.au

Scope of the Presentation

• Rise of KM• Issues for managing KM• Key tenets of KM• Measuring KM• Risks and Trade-offs• Litigation and KM• Drivers for KM• Futures for managers and KM

Australian Institute of Management

www.aimqld.com.au

Rise of Knowledge Management (KM)

• Buzz word of business management • Wide range of ideas regarding definition• Range of ideas about which sectors

within an organisation are involved in KM• Sense in the software market that KM is

the domain of technology division and can be contained by software applications

Australian Institute of Management

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Definitions (I)

• “KM is the process through which organizations generate value from their intellectual and knowledge-based assets”SOURCE: Santosus & Surmacz (2001) The ABCs of Knowledge Management

• “Knowledge management is the management of the organization towards the continuous renewal of the organizational knowledge base - this means e.g. creation of supportive organizational structures, facilitation of organizational members, putting IT-instruments with emphasis on teamwork and diffusion of knowledge (as e.g. groupware) into place.” SOURCE: Thomas Bertels (1996) Knowledge Management Forum

Australian Institute of Management

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Definitions (II)

• “Knowledge Management is the collection of processes that govern the creation, dissemination, and utilization of knowledge. In one form or another, knowledge management has been around for a very long time. Practitioners have included philosophers, priests, teachers, politicians, scribes, Librarians, etc. …. Knowledge management is not a, "a technology thing" or a, "computer thing“. If we accept the premise that knowledge management is concerned with the entire process of discovery and creation of knowledge, dissemination of knowledge, and the utilization of knowledge then we are strongly driven to accept that knowledge management is much more than a "technology thing" and that elements of it exist in each of our jobs.”SOURCE: Newman, B (1991) An Open Discussion of Knowledge Management

Australian Institute of Management

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Definitions (III)

• Definitions range from:– Economical/capital based evaluation of

information investment– Technology oriented mechanisms for

storage and retrieval of information– Creative, content-oriented concerns

over information gathering as well as efficiency and legal implications of information utilisation

Australian Institute of Management

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Track/Level IT Track: Knowledge = objects

People Track: Knowledge = Process

Organisational Level

“Re-engineers” “Organisational theorists”

Individual Level

“AI Specialists”“E-Specialists”

“Psychologists”

SOURCE: Sveiby, K (1996-2001) What is Knowledge Management?

Australian Institute of Management

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Departments

• Human Resources (HR)• Organisational Communication specialists• Marketing• Information Technology Systems Analysts• Technical Services (Helpdesk)• Finance• Content creation divisions

Australian Institute of Management

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Technology and KM

• Often associated with accountancy and database systems

• KM is NOT limited to accountancy and database applications

• Technology networks (hardware) is a facilitator of KM

• Bandwidth limits KM and e-business information exchanges

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Technology for e-Business exchanges (information gathering)

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Costs of technology for e-Business exchanges (information gathering)

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Technology costs and KM

• As new investment, technology (equipment and personnel) represents the most significant investment for an organisation

• However, digitisation of existing information collection/storage processes does not necessarily represent new investment

Australian Institute of Management

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Managing KM

• Involves identification of KM needs for an organisation

• Involves appointment of specific personnel charged with KM coordination

• Involves rolling process of evaluation of KM needs and KPIs

• Involves liability for inadequate KM

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Rise of the CKO

• In the US, CKOs and CIOs rising 21% per yearSOURCE: Association of Executive Search Consultants, 2000-02

• Rise in service industries and overall productivity based on information coordination, thus rise in CKO job positions is a natural result– 552 positions on monster.com.au on 22 July 2002

• Role of the CKO in an organisation– Follow six key tenets (see over)

• To whom does the CKO report?– The CKO v the CIO– The CEO and the CKO

Australian Institute of Management

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Six key tenets of KM (I)

1. Understand who needs to know and what they need to know.

2. Pure automation of data processing should occur only where no human intervention is ever required.

3. As an organisation’s knowledge-based assets increase, they need to be categorised in portals and annotated for ready reference.

Australian Institute of Management

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Six key tenets of KM (I)

4. Archive only personal, contractual and any other information that may need to be used for legal purposes at a future date. And backup to hard media where appropriate.

5. Best Practice lasts a season. Revise terms for market leadership.

6. Avoid locking in to software and IT system infrastructure. Planning for IT systems for knowledge management should acknowledge a life span of no more than three years.

Australian Institute of Management

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Measuring KM

• Metrics– Progress, Gap between objectives and

positioning, cultural readiness, e-readiness, effectiveness, cost-benefits

– Available surveys often based on extant conditions of an organisation/location

• Evaluation of digital capital– Evaluation of human capital– Evaluation of technology capital

Australian Institute of Management

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Evaluating Digital CapitalInternetworked human capital Traditionally, human capital was viewed as the

sum of the individuals' capabilities in the enterprise — skills, knowledge, intellect, creativity, and know-how. It has replaced physical and financial assets in determining corporate success. In the digital economy, this capital can extend well beyond the traditional corporate walls — companies can have it without having to own it. Cisco's human capital includes the intelligence and know how of thousands of employees belonging to its business Web members.

Relationship capital Traditionally, customer capital was viewed as the wealth contained in an organization's brand, customer penetration, and reputation. When internetworked in a B-Web, customer capital becomes relationship capital, and intensifies into profoundly reciprocal linkages. Dynamic two-way relationships replace the old concept of the brand as a one-way image that the vendor establishes through print and broadcast media. Amazon.com has deep relationship capital with millions of customers, who have invested their time and effort to personalize their relationship with Amazon.

The capital in new business models As business-model innovation determines competitiveness and wealth, industry by industry, business Webs are destroying the old model of the firm. The lack of interest among VCs in funding B-to-C startups today reflects the lack of business-model innovation in most of these fledgling companies. Most are simply putting the next great thing on the Web, and hoping massive traditional advertising will attract customers. The action has shifted to B-to-B where new business models are exploding daily.

SOURCE: Tapscott, D (2000) ‘Do Profits Matter’, Business 2.0, http://www.business2.com/archives/0,1661,4,FF.html?volID=282

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Risks and Trade-offs• Industry leadership v litigation avoidance

– Benchmarks do not make industry leaders– High risk market leadership can involve financial,

procedural and social implications which can result in litigation

• Benchmarking issues– If based on technology rollout, the standard s-curve

of adoption-diffusion will appear to demonstrate plateauing of knowledge management growth

– If based on software standards or personnel trends, the benchmark risks being obsolete by the time of implementation

• Rise of e-security• High risk, high returns

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Litigation and KM• Accountability

– Shareholders– Public, governments

• Privacy– Of employees in the workplace– Of information provided by clients/consumers

• Access & equity– Knowledge management applications based on

technology must recognise consumer access to relevant equipment, as well as disability access within the workplace

• Security

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E-Security

• Not just a financial/e-commerce issue• In-confidence communication (Kernot’s

emails)• Tools

– Systems Administration and Networked Security

• Servers – Reliability– Carrier Service Providers and Service Providers

(see definition provided under the Telecommunications Act)

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Carriers?CarriersA carrier is the holder of a carrier licence granted under the Act. There are no restrictions

on the number of carrier licences which may be issued. Any corporation, partnership corporation or public body may apply for a licence.

The owner of certain telecommunications facilities … which are used to supply carriage services (services for carrying communications) to the public must either:

         hold a carrier licence; or          make arrangements to ensure that another licensed carrier accepts carrier-related

responsibilities for those network units. Service providersThere are two types of service providers - carriage service providers and content service

providers.A carriage service provider, in general, uses a carriage service to supply, or proposes to

use a carriage service to supply, carriage services to the public using network units owned by a carrier (for example phone or Internet access services).

A content service provider is a person who supplies, or proposes to supply, content services to the public (for example a pay TV service).

Where a carrier is engaged in these activities, they are also considered to be a service provider.

SOURCE: DCITA (1999) ‘Carriers and Service Providers’, http://www.dcita.gov.au/nsapi-graphics/?MIval=dca_dispdoc&ID=998

Australian Institute of Management

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Teleworking/telecommuting and KM

• KM drives teleworking; teleworking drives KM– General rise in teleworking (see over)

• Heightened role for managers– Monitoring (privacy implications)– Workforce coordination (CKO)

• Cost cutting and KM– Outsourcing and teleworking designed to

reduce overall information collection and dissemination costs

Australian Institute of Management

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Rise in teleworking

SOURCE: ‘Current State of Play June 2001’, National Office for the Information Economy, June 2001.

Australian Institute of Management

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Present Implications of KM

• Managers are developing more transparent codes of practice/conduct for information collection and storage– Privacy– Teleworking

• Important to note that CKO delegation of responsibility does not absolve managers from legal liability

• Rise of outsourcing for knowledge gathering functions

Australian Institute of Management

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Futures for Managing KM (I)

• Increasing telecommuting workforce, or increasing outsourcing for information collection

• Increased importance of Codes of Practice

• Increased industry regulation• Rise in insurance and litigation derived

from inadequate KM procedures

Australian Institute of Management

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Futures for Managing KM (II)

• Wide-scale appointment of CKOs in medium to large enterprises– Do not replace marketing and

organisational communication departments

– Tend to free up managers for the more strategic development and entrepreneurial responsibilities of an organisation

Australian Institute of Management

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Contact details

Joanne JacobsBrisbane Graduate School of BusinessQueensland University of TechnologyPh: (07) 3864 2065Fax: (07) 3864 1299Email: joanne@joannejacobs.netInternet: http://joannejacobs.net/