Page 218 - DCAP208_Management Support Systems

Unit 13: Knowledge Management

Introduction Notes

In simple terms, knowledge management refers to the process of acquiring, organizing, storing,
sharing and using knowledge by organizations. Knowledge management is a branch of
management that aims at attaining the optimum business performance through the synergy of
people, processes and technology in creating and sharing relevant knowledge. To succeed in
any venture, including business ventures, sufficient knowledge is required. Knowledge
management has become necessary as we have moved from a society where information was
scarce to a society where there is a glut of information. The problem today is generally not about
procuring information but deciding which information to use.

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Caution Organizations should be careful in acquiring relevant data and processing those
in an ever-changing business landscape.

It is equally important for businesses to discard obsolete information and acquire the latest
information to survive and stay competitive. In this unit, we will discuss the concept of knowledge
management.

13.1 Knowledge Management Activities

Knowledge management (KM) is a process that helps organizations identify, select, organize,
disseminate, and transfer important information and expertise that are part of the organization’s
memory. The term knowledge management often leads to confusion, resulting in knowledge
management activities being individually identified rather than grouped as part of a knowledge
management program to eliminate confusion and help ensure buy-in and support from the
organisation. Knowledge management activities in an organization include knowledge
identification, knowledge acquisition, knowledge application, knowledge sharing, knowledge
development, knowledge creation, knowledge preservation and knowledge measurement. These
activities are discussed below.

13.1.1 Knowledge Identification

An enterprise must state its business strategies and objectives. The knowledge requirements
have to be identified to meet these goals. The difference between what the enterprise requires
and what it currently has is what is called the knowledge gap. Besides that, it can be used to
identify the knowledge gap of the individual employees which is shown in Figure 13.1. A to C
shows the current and specialized knowledge that employee requires in an organization. If the
individual employee has the existing knowledge from A1 to B1, there will be a knowledge gap
in the employee which is shown from B1 to C1.

Figure 13.1: Schemata of Individual Knowledge Needs

Source: http://www.ipcsit.com/vol36/004-ICIIM2012-M20038.pdf

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