Knowledge Management: Systems, Roles, and Business Value
The Role of Knowledge Management in Business
Knowledge management is a set of processes designed to create, store, transfer, and apply knowledge within an organization. A significant portion of a firm’s value hinges on its ability to effectively create and manage knowledge. Knowledge management promotes organizational learning by enhancing the organization’s capacity to learn from its environment and integrate knowledge into its business processes.
Major Types of Knowledge Management Systems
There are three primary types of knowledge management systems:
- Enterprise-wide knowledge management systems
- Knowledge work systems
- Intelligent techniques
Enterprise-Wide Knowledge Management Systems
Systems and Value for Businesses
Enterprise-wide knowledge management systems represent firm-wide initiatives to collect, store, distribute, and apply digital content and knowledge. Enterprise content management systems offer databases and tools for organizing and storing structured documents, as well as tools for managing semi-structured knowledge like e-mail and rich media.
Knowledge network systems provide directories and tools for locating firm employees with specialized expertise, who serve as crucial sources of tacit knowledge. These systems often incorporate group collaboration tools and portals to simplify information access, search tools, and tools for classifying information based on a taxonomy tailored to the organization.
Well-designed enterprise-wide knowledge management systems can deliver substantial value by enabling employees to locate, share, and utilize knowledge more efficiently.
Knowledge Work Systems (KWS)
Types and Value for Firms
Knowledge Work Systems (KWS) support the creation of new knowledge and its integration into the organization. KWS require:
- Easy access to an external knowledge base
- Powerful computer hardware capable of supporting software with intensive graphics, analysis, document management, and communications capabilities
- A user-friendly interface
Computer-aided design systems, augmented reality applications, and virtual reality systems, which create interactive simulations that behave like the real world, demand significant graphics and powerful modeling capabilities. KWS for financial professionals provide access to external databases and the ability to analyze massive amounts of financial data rapidly.
Organizational Change Through New Systems
Building New Systems and Change
Building a new information system constitutes a form of planned organizational change. Four types of technology-enabled change are:
- Automation
- Rationalization of procedures
- Business process redesign
- Paradigm shift
Far-reaching changes carry the greatest risks and rewards. Many organizations employ business process management to redesign workflows and business processes, aiming for dramatic productivity breakthroughs. Business process management is also valuable for promoting Total Quality Management (TQM), Six Sigma, and other initiatives for incremental process improvement.