Module 1: What is KM?

Module Outline:
Meaning and types of KM
History of KM
Factors and Issues in KM
Factors and Challenges affecting
Knowledge Economy
Models of KM
 What is Knowledge Management?

Knowledge management is the systematic management of an organization's knowledge

assets for the purpose of creating value and meeting tactical & strategic requirements; it
consists of the initiatives, processes, strategies, and systems that sustain and enhance
the storage, assessment, sharing, refinement, and creation of knowledge.
http://www.knowledge-management-tools.net/knowledge-management.html

Knowledge management (KM) is the process(es) used to handle

and oversee all the knowledge that exists within a company.
Knowledge management relies on an understanding of
knowledge, which consists of discrete or intangible skills that a
person possesses.
 Two Main Types of Knowledge

1.  Explicit knowledge is knowledge or skills that can be easily articulated and understood,
and therefore easily transferred to others (this is also
called formal or codified knowledge). Anything that can be written down in a manual -
instructions, mathematical equations, etc. - qualify as explicit knowledge. 

2. Tacit knowledge, by contrast, is knowledge that is difficult to neatly articulate, package,

and transfer to others. These are usually intuitive skillsets that are challenging to teach,
such as body language, aesthetic sense, or innovative thinking.
A third knowledge type is implicit knowledge, which is information that has not yet been
codified or transferred, but that would be possible to teach. Implicit knowledge is different
from tacit knowledge, which is unlikely to be able to be codified.
 Four Categories of Tacit Knowledge

1. Factual Knowledge is measurable, observable,

and verifiable data.
2. Conceptual Knowledge relates to perspectives
and systems.
3. Expectational Knowledge is knowledge rooted
in expectations, hypotheses, or judgments.
4. Methodological Knowledge deals with
decision-making and problem-solving.
 Who Uses KM?

Small and big organizations/enterprise

IT/information systems and science, organizational

management, business administration, human resources
management, content management, or for personal use.
 History of KM

• Swedish financial service provider Skandia created the first Chief Knowledge Officer (CKO)
position, which paved the way for other companies to treat knowledge management as
an integral part of their structure.
1990s,

• Ikujiro Nonaka and Hirotaka Takeuchi published the first academic research on knowledge
management, and coined the SECI model (socialization, externalization, combination,
internalization) as a path of knowledge transfer
mid-1990s,

• with the evolution of computers, organizations began implementing more reliable storage
systems
late 20th
century
 History of KM

• The knowledge management life

cycle, which details how to store
and disseminate knowledge
throughout an organization, was
also set forth by business
KM in academics in the l990s and early
2000s; the four most popular
Business models are Wiig (1993), Zack
(1996), Bukowitz and Williams
Academics (2000), and McElroy (2003).
 Benefits of Using KM

• to make more
informed, faster,
Primary and ultimately
Benefits of more profitable
KM decisions.
 Benefits of Using KM

• Increase collaboration and idea

generation
 Optimize a culture of knowledge
sharing
 Protect intellectual capital
Secondary  Treat human capital as an asset
(which makes employees feel
Benefits of respected for their knowledge)
• Capture and store knowledge for the
KM future workforce
 4 Value Areas of KM

• Control: Not knowing where your

information is is the first step to losing it.
• Security: ‘You gotta keep the bait in the
bucket, not in the pond.’

4 Value
• Access: When you need your
information, you will get it faster.
• Responsibility: With all the eggs in one

Areas
basket, one is forced to carry the basket
more carefully, meaning you provide
better protection for your information.
 Challenges in KM

Creating a culture of flexibility and collaboration:

Security

Measuring knowledge
 Challenges in KM

Identifying an expert:

Document storage and management:

Disseminating knowledge throughout an organization:

 Challenges in KM

Continual improvement:

Determining where KM is housed: 

 How does KM Work?

People-centric

• Centered on people, relationships, and how people form learning

communities and other informal ways of knowledge sharing. This idea is
also known as ecological KM theory.

Process-centric

Interested in how the organizational structure and processes accommodate

and encourage knowledge sharing and organizational learning. This concept
includes the production processes, the organizational hierarchy, and the
cultural framework.

Tech-centric

• Focused on the technology that facilitates knowledge storage and transfer,

and aims to create technology systems that encourage knowledge sharing
Activity 1:
• Write a reflection paper on how to
be proactive to keep pace with the
challenges of the knowledge
economy?
Thank You!