Knowledge Management

infrastructure

Knowledge Technology
 IT Infrastructure

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
Definition
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”.
 The importance of technology
for KM:
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.
 Role of IT in KM

Information technology plays different roles in

KM:-
1) Obtaining knowledge.
2) Defining knowledge.
3) Storing knowledge .
4) Categorizing knowledge .
5) Indexing knowledge.
 Role of IT in KM

Information technology plays different roles in

KM:-
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.
 KM technologies in practice

Knowledge-intensive firms (KIF) today are

employing one technology or a combination of
many key technologies;
Messaging - Groupware
Document management - Web browsers
Search & Retrieval -Data mining
Visualization -Group decision support
 How IT helps in KM practice
within different organizations
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.
 How IT helps in KM practice
within different organizations
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
KM Technology in organizations
 E-bay

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.
 E-bay

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
 KM Technologies and
KM Processes
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
 KT and K-Creation Process
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..
 KT and K-Creation Process

Also, information systems designed for the support of

collaboration, coordination and communication
processes are a component of interacting Ba.
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.
 KT and K-Creation Process
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.
 Technology can provide solutions for
the four conversion processes
Tacit to Tacit Tacit to Explicit
Socialization
E-meeting Answering questions
Video conference Annotation
Synchronous collaboration e-mail
Externalization
Telecommunication CAD
technology Telecommunication
technology
Explicit to Tacit Explicit to Explicit
Visualization Text search
InternalizationBrows-able video\audio of Document categorization
presentation Simulation
Communication technology CAD- EMS
simulation combination
Technology can provide solutions for
the four conversion processes
 KT and K-Dissemination Process
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)
 KT and K-Dissemination Process
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 and K-Application Process
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
 The most important technology in
facilitating the main KM processes

K K K

Creation Dissemination Application

electronic bulletin expert systems
data mining boards workflow systems
learning tools k-directories communication
just in time learning internal networks technology
groupware communication channels groupware
intranet groupware intranet
intranet
Techknowlogies examples
 Internet/Intranet/Extranet
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 .
 Data Mining
Data mining is the exploration and analysis
of large quantities of data in order to
discover valid, novel, potentially useful,
and ultimately understandable patterns in
data.
Use a variety of decision trees and modelling
algorithms to discover patterns and correlations in vast
amounts of data .
Use sophisticated data search capabilities.
 Groupware Tools
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

 WEB2.0 PLATFORM
Shift to dynamic social web applications
Network effects critical to their success
Provide customer services free – Google ($200bn),
YouTube ($1.6bn), Face book ($50bn)
 MASHUPS
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.
 BLOGS
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) The entertainment network
where videos and personalities get really big, really fast. Download Vine to
watch videos, remixes and trends before they blow up.
 Tipping Point
Word OF Mouth Epidemics
‘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
 Wikis
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
 On-line Social networks
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
 Data warehouse
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
 Visualization
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
 3-D Virtual Worlds
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
 Case based Reasoning
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
Impact of KM
 Impact of KM
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
 Impact of KM
5-Improving communication among organizational
members
6-Reducing the time and cost of information access
7-Facilitating rapid searches
8-Supporting collaboration