KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS AND IT SUPPORT

Knowledge management systems are information systems which are perceived as facilitating organization learning by capturing important knowledge and making available to all the employees as required.Effective management of knowledge is important for the complexity of organizations. There are many knowledge based systems such as expert systems, information systems etc, Dutta (1997:79).Existing body of work on kms primarily consists of general principles of kms(Davenport 1997b), The major concern is that to have correct amount and type of knowledge which supports to the kms.

Knowledge management systems have been used by the organization recently, so little expectations are framed for the benefits and costs. The best results for the kms is the ability of organizations to be flexible and respond more quickly to changing market conditions, and also to be innovative as well as improving decision making and productivity (Strata, 1997: Harris, 1996). The benefits of kms used by the organization are improving project management, saving time, better serving to the clients and providing better measurement and accountability. Kms are multifaceted, its effectiveness is far more than just technology, cultural and organizational issues.

ROLE OF IT IN KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS


Organizations can be provided with vast electronic libraries with the help of Information Technology, many companies imagined a new world of leveraged knowledge due to Information Technology. E- mail and Internet have made it possible for professionals to locate things , no matter where they are located, like a geologist can compare data of an oil field to any similar field across the world to asses its commercial potential.

"Knowledge is experience. Everything else is just information" by Albert Einstein.

Many companies are thinking that linking people through electronic media, so that they can share the knowledge with each other and produce a new knowledge.For example a computer company group designed an electronic library of system configuration, so designers could draw from the pre- developed components. These companies believe that if they get people to documents their insights and draw each other work, they could create a web of global knowledge, which helps their staff to work with greater effectiveness and efficiency.


Information Technology has inspired this vision but itself cannot bring this vision into being, most of the companies found that leveraging knowledge is very hard to achieve. For example several years ago a IT group installed lotus notes, hoping it would lead to collaboration, but it was only used for E-mails. Studies show that IT normally reinforces an organization norms about documenting, sharing information, and using the ideas of others, computer based decision is no more considered as democratic than face- to -face decision making people need to build a relationship often through face- to -face meeting before they can effectively collaborate electronically.

As IT support in the Kms is the plus point in this paper but I argue with that, because IT doesn't give any kind of guarantee of success to any Kms, IT always focuses on business prospects but not on the organizational performance and competitive advantage strategies.


REFERENCES



G.E. Fryxell,"Managing the Culture of Innovation",L.R. Gonez-M afia and M.W. Lawless, eds., Organizational issues in High Technology Management (Greenwich, CT Jai press, 1990).


T. Burns and G.M. Stalkes, The management of Innovation (London: Tavistock publications, 1961); J.M Beyer "The Twin Dilemmas of Commitment and coherence Posed by High Technology,"(1990), pg 19-36.


Barlett, C. (1996) MC Kinsey and Company: Managing Knowledge and learning, Case 9-396-357, Boston, MA: Harvard business School.

Churchman, C.W. (1972) The Design of Inquiring Systems: Basic Concepts of systems and Organizations, New York, NY: Bencis books.

Harris, D.B (1996), Creating a Knowledge Centric Information Technology Environment. http// www.htca.com/ckc.htm.

HOW KNOWLEDGE CAN BE MANAGED IN AN ORGANIZATION?

As we know knowledge is the most important factor for any organization, so it is very important to manage the knowledge within the organization.In this paper i will explain some problems of knowledge processing and their solution to provide an appropriate knowledge processing capability. Some main problems of knowledge processing are :

1. Complexity
2. Uncertainty
3. Ambiguity
4. Equivocally


Complexity

Complexity means "a large number of parts that interact in a non-simple way".(Simon 1969, p.195), complex tasks have many steps and factors which effects the performance. Complex problems have many interrelated variables, solutions and methods.(Cambell 1988, Dill and Simon 1986, Simon 1962, wood 1986). The different elements and relationships which are considered simultaneously is a function of knowledge processing capacity which in turn a function of what is known and familiar to organizations and its members (Newll, Shaw and Simon 1962, Stabell 1978). Therefore having superior knowledge enables to manage greater complexity.

The response to complexity is to increase firms capacity to process or to reduce the level of complexity, richer knowledge provides a ability to process complexity. Knowledge stored in the familiar procedural routines provides to perform complex group processes (Cyert and March 1963, Nelson and Winter 1982). Therefore having appropriate knowledge and expertise helps to reduce the complexity. In the absence of knowledge and expertise, the complexity can be reduced by decomposition, i.e by breaking things into similar parts. Therefore organizations facing complexity must develop and bring appropriate knowledge, expertise and skills to solve the issues.


UNCERTAINTY

Information theory defines uncertainty as lack of enough information to choose from an exhaustive and well defined set of possible states, even if that set is not complex (Shannon 1949). According to Rumelt(1984) managing uncertainty is a must for any strategy. Events of strategies like evolution of technology, emergence of market etc can be highly unpredictable. These events provides different firms different opportunities to generate windfall rents etc. Thus firms must set themselves to capitalize on environmental uncertainty (Rumelt 1989). For example organizations deals with strategic uncertainty in such a way which portrays classical information theory.

Uncertainty can be reduced by:

1. Acquiring additional factual information or knowledge about something.

2. Improving acquiring , developing the knowledge and ability to predict, infer or estimate.

3. Organizational and technical resources to locate, refine, store and communicate knowledge reliability and meaningfully.

AMBIGUITY


Ambiguity represents a the inability to interpret or to make sense of something (Machlup 1980, Mackay 1969, Weick 1969). Deep ambiguity represents complete lack of knowledge . The solution of the ambiguity is to re frame a situation to something meaningful by acquiring knowledge from others or by learning and experience, surface ambiguity require a small mount of additional factual information to appropriate knowledge.

Deep ambiguity which means, the knowledge is not available at all it can be resolved by cycles of interpretation, explanation and social ratification. In an organization a key point is to provide rich and interactive face - to - face conversation. For example: British petroleum has done by breaking its organization into 90 autonomous business units to encourage unit interaction (Prokesch 1997). These interaction will develop the expertise and advice networks which can be available when needed.

The above three main explained problems of knowledge processing are combined, they can easily address any situation and solve the problems within organization which helps them in the development of an organization.


References

Bohn, R.E.,"An Informal note on knowledge and how to manage it", Harvard Business School Case Services, 1986.

Driver, M.J and S. Strenfert, " Integrative complexity: An approach to individual and groups as Information Processing Systems"

Aldich, H.E, Organizations and Environments (Englewood cliffs, NJ. Prentice. Hall ., INC, 1979)

Barney,J.B, "Firm Resources and Sustained Competitive Advantage", Journal of Management, vol. 17, 1991, pg 99-120.

WEB 2.0 TECHNOLOGIES



Web 2.0 is a set of internet activities and tools which are concerned with the communication and participation among the users, the use of this technology is increasing day by day by the users.World Wide Web (w.w.w) was invented by Briton Sir Tim Berners-Lee, some of the technologies like:
1 Podcasting
2 Tagging
3 Blogs
4 Wikis


Now i would like to explain the use of some of these technologies in an organization like Middlesex university, how is it implemented in the university and the benefits of these technologies to the university.

Podcasting
A podcasting is a digital media files, usually digital audio files or video, that is made available for download via web syndication.

RECORDING A COURSE PODCAST IN A CLASSROOM

If a teacher or a student want to record the lecture in a classroom it can be done with the help of pod cast, we can directly upload the course pod cast to your pod cast folder from the classroom computer. But it is important to inform at the beginning of the class. Podcasting can also be used in the office to get any important information.

Recording a public access podcast

Public podcast is different from course podcast, A public podcast is a general interest which is open to the public. On the other hand a course podcast is restricted to students who are registered for the course. General public cannot access a course podcast, unless the instructor makes his/ his course podcast available to the public.

Educational Uses

Podcasting can be used whenever audio or video will enhance student learning, One use of pod casting is to create an archive of class lectures that students can listen to at their convenience.Since many podcasts resemble radio style broadcasts, they are commonly used for news and updates,and because pod casting provides automatic updates,

Podcasting can be used whenever audio, particularly the human voice, and/or video will enhance student learning. One obvious use of podcasting in an educational context is to create an archive of class lectures that students can listen to at their convenience. However, given the distinctive features of podcasting, its potential goes far beyond reproducing course materials and making them available for review. Since many podcasts resemble radio-style broadcasts, they are commonly used for news and updates, and because podcasting provides automatic updates to anyone who subscribes, it provides an easy means of delivering up-to-date content to students, for playback at any time or any place. Instructors can use podcasting technologies to deliver to students items such as the following:

1. news/updates;
2. guest lectures;
3. student presentations;
4. student-produced podcasts;
5. interviews with guest experts;
6. tours/field work activities;
7. internship/residency content;
8. feedback/evaluations of student work;
9. supplementary materials such as speeches, music, and other audio recordings; and
10. short language lessons, or other lessons that help students develop listening and speaking skills.

IMPLEMENTATON OF PODCASTING IN MIDDLESEX UNIVERSITY

1.With the help of pod casting students can get information of the events in the university.

2. Instructors or students can record the lectures using pod casting.

3.If there is any important information in the lecture like bringing any slides to the class, any material or timings of the class , these things can be done through pod casting.

TAGGING

Tags are nothing but more than keywords used to describe a piece of data that might be a web page , digital photo , or any other digital document .(WIKIPEDIA)

USE OF TAGGING IN UNIVERSITY

If the university wants some information about a student as there are no of students in the university , for example if they the information about me, so to get my information easily they will search in the category of international students and then nationality I.e Indian and then year of joining the university , (international students, nationality and the year are the keywords) so with the help of tagging we can easily get the information about the student.

ATTACK CLOUDING

Attack clouding is like highlighting the subtitles of the main title for example knowledge management is the main title and knowledge sharing, knowledge creation, implementation of knowledge in an organization etc are the subtitles , so if the student wants to look at the lecture of the knowledge management with the help of tagging(attack clouding)he can easily get that here the keywords are lecture name, professor’s name, day room no. so these are the benefits for the students and also for the instructor’s.

META DATA

Meta data is the data about other data of any sort in any media, it’s a data which provides information about or documentation of other data managed within the application or the environment.(wikipedia) which is same as tagging.

Finally i can say that by using web 2.0 technology like podcasting, tagging, meta data,blogs etc we can have more benefits to the organizations like our Middlesex University and also develops the organization.

REFERENCE

• TROUTNER,JOANNE. “BEST SITES FOR EDUCATIONAL PODCASTS”.TEACHER LIBRARIAN 34 NO .3 (2007).

• MUNINDRA KHUND, TULIO LLSOA AND SHERRY HUTSON DECEMBER7, 2006, TULIO LLSOA AND SHERRY HUTSON.

• KAPLAN-LEISERSON, E.2005, "TREND: PODCASTING IN ACADEMIC AND CORPORATE LEARNING", LEARNING CIRCUITS, JUNE 2005.

• SWAIN, H., 2006, "LET THEM TUNE IN", THE TIMES HIGHER, FEB 3RD.(SUMMARIZED ON http:// www.lums.lancs.ac.uk/news/7196/ viewed 1st jan 2007)