Knowledge Management infrastructure

Knowledge Technology Lecture (8)

The American Productivity and Quality Center (APQC) (1997) suggests that for organizations to succeed in KM initiatives, a suitable IT infrastructure must be established.

Information technology has been defined as “The fundamental building block that supports and coordinates KM initiatives". For that reason, Davenport and Prusak (1998) termed it knowledge technologies or “Techknowledgies”.

Information Technology definition

There is a debate around the effectiveness of the IT-based system as a facilitator for the KM process.

Some authors argue a limited role for IT in the KM process because its effectiveness is highly dependent on:-

Whether an individual knows or not what he is looking for. How individuals modify, use and transfer their experiences

to others. An individual's trust in knowledge which resides in a

system .

The importance of technology for KM :

Also ,according to the resource-based view of the firm , all the information technology infrastructure can’t determine as a strategic asset ,it is a tangible; it is largely software-dependent; which is easily replicated, copied, or cloned even when protected by regulatory assets such as copyright, patents and licenses.

On the other hand Many authors maintain that technologies, if correctly

designed and implemented, can effectively support KM.

Information technology plays different roles in KM:-

1) Obtaining knowledge.2) Defining knowledge.3) Storing knowledge .4) Categorizing knowledge . 5) Indexing knowledge.

6- linking knowledge-related digital items.7-Seeking and identifying related content. 8- Flexibly expressing content based on

various utilization backgrounds. According to this viewpoint organizations

should have well-developed technology to leverage KM.

Knowledge-intensive firms (KIF) today are employing one technology or a combination of many key technologies;

Groupware - Messaging - Web browsers - Document management -

Search &Retrieval -Data mining Visualization – Group decision support

Knowledge Technologies in Practice

Three types of Knowledge technology are found.

Firstly, The knowledge -oriented technologies

such as group-ware and web browsers which directly process knowledge work and the sharing of knowledge within the organization.

Secondly, The function-oriented technologies such as office automation, robotics and desk-top

computing technologies those support operational level activities such as data processing, production, marketing ,and service delivery.

How IT helps in KM practice within different organizations;

Finally, The specialty-oriented technology,

Which supports specialized functions within the firm: those functions which require a high level of know-how, for example computer-aided design and manufacture software (CAD/CAM), and expert systems software

Knowledge Technology in Organizations

E- Bay : is an E-business example in which knowledge and its management forms the lifeblood: the fundamental nature of its work involves the use and convey the knowledge to market participants, and to the system itself.

It acquires Knowledge about sellers' offers, buyers‘ commitments, and participants' market experiences.

It assimilates knowledge, filtering, screening and organizing.

It also selects simplified knowledge as needed to satisfy participants' requests and applies in its own internal processing for such activities as coordinating participant interactions and enforcing rules of conduct.

E-Bay

It distributes knowledge about states (issuing alerts, showing auction status, indicating participant reputation),

about procedures (how to initiate auctions, how to ensure a safe trading experience)

and about policies ( trading tips, pays ) (All in all) .

What the E-Bay system does is an example of Knowledge management which cannot be done without the computer based technology

Ford Motor is a clear example of an organization which is heavily investing in knowledge technologies to redefine the auto manufacturing industry and create a SCA in the auto industry.

The organization has established the auto exchange mart -an intensive KM technology and electronic commerce system intended to shift the car-manufacturing model from a ‘push’ business model to the ’pull’ model, in which the consumer determines the precise configuration of the car before it is manufactured.

Ford Motor

Further, auto designers, marketers and production engineers are able to gain insights and knowledge about the customer. Thus, by effectively harnessing the capabilities provided by IT, Ford is attempting to create a SCA in the auto industry .

Microsoft also developed a project entitled ‘skills planning development’ (SPD), which focused on competencies needed to stay on the leading edge in the workplace,

It implemented an on-line system which contained a job rating system and rating database, as well as competency levels for employees.

This system had a web front end for easy access through Microsoft's intranet, and thus it achieved increased communication among employees and an increased advantage over competitors .

Microsoft

Knowledge technology and KM processes are closely tied together, as both of them help the distribution of knowledge vertically as well as horizontally within the organization.

So the main goal of many organizations today is to use advancements in KT to conduct KM

Knowledge Technology and KM Processes

K- Technology is a key enabler of the knowledge creation process. Building on Nonaka’s theory, IT is considered as another form of Ba by which the different modes of knowledge creation can be enhanced.

For example; data warehousing, data mining, document repositories and software agents have a great value in cyber Ba.

Also, information systems designed for the support of collaboration, coordination and communication processes are a component of interacting Ba.

KT and K-Creation Process

Intranets and email can also support individual learning (conversion of explicit knowledge to personal tacit knowledge) through capabilities such as computer simulation (to support learning-by-doing) and smart software tutors.

Furthermore, communication technology can increase the quality of k. creation by increasing the interaction among organizational members, sharing ideas and perspectives, which enables individuals to arrive at new insights and accurate interpretations.

Tacit to Explicit

Answering questionsAnnotation

e-mailCAD

Telecommunication technology

Tacit to Tacit

E-meetingVideo conference

Synchronous collaborationTelecommunication technology

Explicit to ExplicitText search

Document categorizationSimulationCAD- EMS

Explicit to TacitVisualization

Brows-able video\audio of presentation

Communication technologysimulation

Technology can provides solutions for the four conversion processes.

KT can increase knowledge transfer by extending the individual's reach beyond formal communication lines.

Computer networks, electronic bulletin boards and discussion groups create a forum which facilitates contact between the person seeking knowledge and those who may have access to the knowledge; such networks expose individuals to more new ideas

KT and K- Dissemination Process

Metadata and knowledge maps prove to be as important as the original knowledge itself, enabling individuals to rapidly locate either the knowledge or the individual who has the needed knowledge, more rapidly than would be possible without such IT-based support

Not : Metadata is defined as (Knowledge about where the knowledge resides)

In addition, informational communication technology has a direct and indirect influence on the motivation to share knowledge, because it can play different functions:-

1. Eliminate hindrances& obstacles 2. Provide channels to obtain information 3. Correct Knowledge flow processes 4. Identifies the location of knowledge

carrier and knowledge seeker. 5. Make searching and using knowledge far

easier

KT can have a positive influence on knowledge application, through enhancing k- integration and facilitating the capture, updating, and accessibility of organizational directives.

For example, many organizations are enhancing the ease of access and maintenance of their directives (repair manuals, policies and standards) by making them available on corporate intranets.

KT and K- Application Process

This increases the speed at which changes can be applied.

Also, organizational units can follow a faster learning curve by accessing the knowledge of other units which have gone through similar experiences.

Moreover, by increasing the size of individuals' internal social networks and by increasing the amount of organizational memory available, KT allow for organizational knowledge to be applied across time and space

K

Application

K

Dissemination

K

Creation

expert systemsworkflow systemscommunication technologygroupwareintranet

electronic bulletin boardsk-directoriesinternal networkscommunication channelsgroupware intranet

data mininglearning toolsjust in time learninggroupwareintranet

The most important technology in facilitating the main KM processes.

Techknowledgies Examples

Internet is a network to share knowledge with knowledge providers across the world –

Intranet provides same but restricted access from outside- that networks have been built in many corporations for information sharing and ecommerce

An extranet is a computer network that allows controlled access from the outside for specific business. Extranets are extensions to, or segments of, the private intranet .

Internet/Intranet/Extranet

Data mining is the exploration and analysisof large quantities of data in order todiscover valid, novel, potentially useful,and ultimately understandable patterns indata. Use a variety of decision trees and

modelling algorithms to discover patterns and correlations in vast amounts of data .

Use sophisticated data search capabilities.

Data mining

Allows to work on same document by multiple users

Maintain and update identical data on numerous PCs

Organising discussions Storing information Moving and tracking documents of groups Preventing unauthorised access of data Mobile use to access corporate network

Groupware tools

Shift to dynamic social web applications

Network effects critical to their success

Provide customer services free – Google ($200bn), YouTube ($1.6bn), Face book ($50bn)

WEB 2.0 PLATFORM

Allows content from different sources to combine with applications for different business processes

E.g. Getting insurance quote (price offer )from website

E.g. Starbucks helps customers locate nearest café once they’ve entered postcode

Information from external sources can be inaccurate or may change significantly in future.

MASHUPS

Blogs – adding thoughts or diary of events

Podcasts – audio blogs V.log – video blog Trackbacks – allows bloggers to see

who’s linking to them Can act as alternative to face-to-face

meetings to engage in problem solving

Engage with customers across boundaries

Twitter – micro-blogging site-(vine)

BLOGS

‘Connectors’ – social glue Information brokers on best deals etc.

‘Salesmen’ – good at convincing you and getting you to act.

Amazon is reliant on ranking of reviewers to develop trust with customers

Tipping Point Word OF Mouth Epidemics

Web pages that can be viewed and modified by anyone

Allows to create or change web content Places power and freedom in hands of

users rather than external ‘expert’ Works in progress on virtual ‘white

boards’ Can be open to manipulation and

vandalism Maintenance can be time-consuming

WIKIS

Individuals interact with others in community

Social network sites (SNS): Face book, MySpace, LinkedIn.

SNS tend to support pre-existing relationships rather than new ones

Benefit from social capital and self-presentation

Risk over privacy from third party securing personal information

Allows interaction with different people in network

On-line Social Networks

Database with query and reporting tools

Stores current and historical data from internal and external sources

Data mart – subset of data warehouse which contains summarised or highly focused data for certain users

Data Warehouse

Modelling – way of representing objects e.g. journal covers, weather maps

Rendering/presenting – makes computer generated image look like photograph e.g. texture mapping

Virtual reality

Visualisation

Computer-simulated worlds where users interact in real time through ‘avatars’

Avatars are ( 3-D )electronic cartoons of users; form of alter ego

(to represent your self in a cartoon form )

Conduct meetings, workshops and recruitment

Multinationals such as IBM, Dell, Ericsson, Bain

(3-D )VIRTUAL WORLDS

Capture and store past experiences as organisational knowledge

System searches for stored cases with similar profile to new problem

Adds unsuccessful cases to aid learning

Built on artificial intelligence technology

Case-based reasoning

Knowledge technology can lead to a greater breadth and depth of knowledge creation, transfer and application in organizations, resulting in the following :

1) Improving the decision making process

2) Increasing knowledge- transfer speed 3) Supporting knowledge codification 4) Improving knowledge productivity

The Impact of KT

5-Improving communication among organizational members

6-Reducing the time and cost of information access

7-Facilitating rapid searches 8-Supporting collaboration

The End