Why knowledge gets stuck within the organization?

- Knowledge gets stuck within professional groups

- Lack of knowledge exchanges occurs when there is a huge status differences between
professional groups
- Knowledge sharing can be shared through directors as they play a very important role as
they are involved in all kinds of operations and they have a shorter path to communicate
with others and they tried to translate knowledge in a language that is accessible as they
are tended to be trusted by other professional groups
- Juniors is the knowledge brokers as they rotate quickly between departments, learn more
recent insights about professional practices
- Managers play a similar brokerage role as junior in an organizational as they are able to
communicate with others and at the same time, they occupy a prominent decision (the act
or process of deciding; determination, as of a question or doubt, by making a judgment:
They must make a decision between these two contestants. ... something that is decided;
resolution) with the intra-professional group.
Solution to knowledge exchange:
- Introducing forms of inter-professional training
- Fostering social gatherings for example informal meeting or other informal events
- Knowledge share can be shared through active collaboration within the organizations
1. Trait knowledge is the knowledge that’s in our heads
2. Explicit knowledge is relatively easy to capture and store in database and documents as it
may be either structured or unstructured
Problems that arises when transferring knowledge:
 general lack of time to share knowledge, and time to identify colleagues in need of
specific knowledge
 poor verbal/written communication and interpersonal skills;
 lack of leadership and managerial direction in terms of clearly communicating the
benefits and values of knowledge sharing practices
 communication and knowledge flows are restricted into certain directions (e.g. top-
down);
 hierarchical organization structure inhibits or slows down most sharing practices;
 lack of integration of IT systems and processes impedes on the way people do things
 lack of transparent rewards and recognition systems that would motivate people to share
more of their knowledge
Why Pratt & Whitney is a good example of learning organization??
1) Established a generative learning environment.
2) Invested heavily in ICT e.x: ERP to SAP solution
3) Respond quickly to plant maintenance issues
4) Facilitate decision making process
5) Easier access to information
6) Facilitate sharing of information between different functions
7) Give customers detailed information immediately
WHY WE NEED KNOWLEDGE SHARING?
 Enable us quickly and effectively to find relevant information & expertise and that can
aid into decision-making & problem solving.
 Expertise can be shared
 Turnover and job changes don’t cripple the system
 Reduces Costs
 More Efficient use and reuse of Knowledge assets
 Enhance functional effectiveness
 Increases value of existing products and services
Developing and implementing a knowledge management/transfer plan
 Identify critical tasks and activities.
 Define each task and activity.
 Develop a knowledge transfer plan
OCB
- OCB is the special type of work behavior that are defined as individual behaviors that are
beneficial to the organizations
- OCB = LOVE
3 types of employee:
 Engaged Employees: The engaged employees are those who work with full passion and
are emotionally attached to the organization. They are innovative and provide new ideas and
consistent performance to move the organization forward. They personalize the company’s
goals and objectives, and always work above and beyond their job requirements for the
betterment of the organization.
 Not Engaged Employees: Such employees do put in their time, but not passion and
energy into their work. These are the ones who do only what is asked of them. These
employees can hold either a negative or positive attitude towards the organization. They
consider their job as a paycheck, nothing more.
 Actively Disengaged Employees: These employees are unhappy, resentful, and spread
negativity within the organization. However, despite doing less than the minimum, these
employees last longer in the firm by removing employees whom they perceive will attain
higher positions soon.
Measures of OCB:
 Helps other employees with their work when they have been absent.
 Exhibits punctuality in arriving at work on time in the morning and after lunch and other
breaks.
 Volunteers to do things not formally required by the job.
 Takes the initiatives to orient new employees to the department even though it is not part
of their job description.
5 dimensions of OCB:
- Altruism refers to voluntarily helping others with a specific work-related task, such as
assisting a co-worker with heavy work load.
- Courtesy involves discretionary behaviors that aim at preventing work related problems,
for example-providing advance notice to colleagues when something is changed by you
which may affect them.
- Conscientiousness refers to exceeding the minimum role requirements of the
organization. It involves punctuality, adherence to company rules, regulations and
procedures when no one is watching.
- Sportsmanship means willingness of employees to tolerate less-than–ideal organizational
situations without complaining and sacrificing one’s own personal interest.
- Civic virtue refers to employees’ deep concerns and active attention in the existence of
the organization, such as giving one’s own suggestions for development in a meeting.
Conflict Management
Types of conflict:
- Intrapersonal conflict is when you have internal conflict about yourself, your actions,
thoughts, feelings, values. That’s an intrapersonal conflict because it’s related to how you
feel and view yourself.
- Interpersonal conflict is conflict between two or more people that you are close with.
That is your more stereotypical argument with your spouse, partner, friend etc.
- Intra-group conflicts are these conflicts occur between individual members of the same
group (team, family.)
- Intergroup conflicts are these occur between groups, regardless of the size of the groups
(classes, teams, nations). A conflict between two gangs, each representing a different
neighborhood, would be an example of an intergroup conflict.
VIEWS OF CONFLICT
1. Traditional view: The belief that all conflicts are harmful and must be avoided
2. Human relations view: That belief that conflict is a natural and inevitable outcome in
any group
3. Integrationist view: The belief that conflict is not only a positive force in group but that
it is absolutely necessary for a group to perform effectively
Process to solve a conflict:
1) Identify
2) Brainstorm
3) Evaluate
4) Choose the best way
5) Implement
6) Evaluate
7) Follow up
8) Celebrate your success!
 1. Accommodating
People who accommodate are unassertive and very cooperative.
 Value of own issue/goal: Low
Value relationship: High
Goal: I lose, you win
"I am nicer than you are" – and may result in reduced creativity in conflict situations and
increased power imbalances.
2. Avoiding
People who avoid conflict are generally unassertive and uncooperative.
 Value of own issue/goal: Low
Value of relationship: Low
Goal: I lose, you lose
 avoidance can be destructive if the other person perceives that you don’t care enough to
engage. By not dealing with the conflict, this style allows the conflict to simmer and heat
up unnecessarily
 3. Collaborating
Collaborators are both assertive and cooperative.
 Value of own issue/goal: High
Value of relationship: High
Goal: I win, you win
finding creative solutions that satisfy all the parties.
Collaboration takes time and if the relationship among the parties is not
important, then it may not be worth the time and energy to create a win-win
solution.
4. Competing
People who approach conflict in a competitive way assert themselves and do not cooperate while
pursuing their own concerns at another’s expense.
 Value of own issue/goal: High
Value of relationship: Low
Goal: I win, you lose
"if you are not with me, you are against me."
5. Compromising
Compromisers are moderately assertive and moderately cooperative.
 Value of own issue/goal: Medium
Value of relationship: Medium
Goal: I win some, you win some
Compromising maintains the relationship and can take less time than collaboration and
resolutions might mean splitting the difference or seeking a middle ground position. The
downside to compromising is that it can be an easy way out and reduces new creative options.