Knowledge Management
Reviewed and Updated: January 2008
There is no doubt that we live and work in a knowledge society. Knowledge management provides us with a means of looking at the way society organises itself and how it uses and preserves intellectual resources. To survive and thrive in this knowledge society, educational organisations must engender a knowledge culture in which knowledge and learning management systems are seen as a critical component in the future of teaching and learning.
While the term 'knowledge management' has many meanings, put simply, knowledge management refers to a method of capturing, organising, and storing knowledge and experiences (either internal and external to an organisation) and making this information available to others. It involves identifying a group of people who have a need to share knowledge, developing technological support that enables knowledge sharing, and creating a process for transferring and disseminating knowledge.
'Knowledge Management is the systematic process of finding, selecting, organising, distilling and presenting information in a way that improves an employee's comprehension in a specific area of interest. Knowledge management helps an organisation to gain insight and understanding from its own experience. Specific knowledge management activities help focus the organisation on acquiring, storing and utilising knowledge for such things as problem solving, dynamic learning, strategic planning and decision making. It also protects intellectual assets from decay, adds to firm intelligence and provides increased flexibility.' Dr Yogesh Malhotra
Websites
Better Practice Checklist - Knowledge Management
Produced by the Australian Government, this checklist provides guide to knowledge management considerations for agencies.
Knowledge management – glossary of terms
a simple glossary of the complicated language of knowledge management
Knowledge management – Archive
Contains a host of articles, still relevant, though the page was archived in 200f5.
EDUCAUSE - Knowledge and Learning Management Systems
The EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative website contains a definition and covers the importance of knowledge and learning management, along with research and analysis questions, project activities and links to resources and readings.
Intro to KM: Glossary of Knowledge Management (KM) Terms
A simple knowledge management glossary with links for specific terms. However, be warned, some definitions are pretty narrow, eg Intellectual Capital. Compare the definitions with other knowledge management glossaries, such as Knowledge Management Terms by Daniel Stuhlman.
Business.com
Business.com states their mission as being the Internet's only business-focused search engine and directory. Developed by a team of industry experts and library scientists, the Business.com directory contains more than 400,000 listings within 25,000 industry, product and service subcategories.
Google Web Directory
This spot on the Google Directory cites a range of web pages relevant to various aspects of knowledge management theories, methods and practices. It also includes links to related categories.
The BizTech Network – KMNetwork
Brint.com is a business technology knowledge portal and global community network. The portal is a large and popular resource for E-Business, Information Technology and Knowledge Management related content.
knowledge-management.net
This site is a good place to begin an exploration of the vast world of literature and information on the topic of knowledge management.
Publications
BERNBOM, G (Ed) 2000, Information alchemy: The art and science of knowledge management, volume 3, EDUCAUSE Leadership Strategies, Jossey-Bass.
Written for leaders in higher education, Information Alchemy presents a foundational introduction to knowledge management and its growing significance to campuses everywhere. Each chapter addresses a critical aspect of knowledge management, identifies key strategic issues, and offers practical advice and guidance on how such issues might be addressed.
BUKOWITZ, W & Williams, R 2000, The knowledge management fieldbook, Pearson Professional Education.
This text advises how to set up, manage, and exploit a knowledge management programme within an organisation. There are a number of case studies which follow almost every section.
CAPSHAW, S & Koulopoulos, TM 1999, Knowledge Leadership, DM Review.
This article presents the authors’ belief that 'the one thing that frequently distinguishes knowledge management projects among other strategic initiatives is the passion, fearlessness and confidence of the knowledge leader.'
MCDERMOTT, R & O’Dell, C 2000, Overcoming the cultural barriers to sharing knowledge, American Productivity & Quality Center.
What makes a culture that supports knowledge sharing? What are the characteristics of an organisation where the sharing of knowledge is a core value and an integral part of the culture? The central theme here is that organisations must build their knowledge management approach to fit their culture.
MILAM, JH Jr 2001, Knowledge management for higher education, ERIC Digest, ERIC Clearinghouse on Higher Education, Washington DC.
While knowledge management should not strike higher education institutions as a radically new idea, the problem is that it is such a 'wide open area of study that it is difficult to understand the implications of knowledge management for an educational setting' (Thorn, 2001, p. 25). This digest offers a basic introduction to the potential of KM for higher education.
NORRIS, DM 2003, A revolution in knowledge sharing, EDUCAUSE.
The pressure to transform our institutions of learning continues. Using technologies, best practices in knowledge sharing are not only diffusing rapidly but will be substantially reinvented in all settings: educational institutions, corporations and government organisations.
RUMIZEN, M 2001, The complete idiot's guide to knowledge management, Penguin Group, USA.
This book shows how to successfully implement and utilise knowledge management in any size company group. It explains the latest management buzzwords, offers advice on keeping open communication with customers and co-workers and maintaining a knowledge management program with the future in mind.
UBON, AN & Kimble, C 2002, Knowledge management in online distance education, University of New York.
In online distance education, knowledge is distributed across both time and space and may be constrained by social, cultural and language differences. In such cases, the support of best practices in knowledge management (KM) could be problematic. This paper tries to develop a set of guidelines to help overcome problems using tools and techniques from KM.
See also
Changing world of knowledge sharing: technology or connections? ARTICLE, eZine December 2007