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Knowledge management

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Knowledge Management or KM is a term applied to techniques used for the collection, transfer, security and management of information within organisations, in particular tools and techniques designed to preserve the availability of information held by key individuals. It is both a software market and an area in consultancy practice, related to disciplines such as competitive intelligence.

Overview

The knowledge management process strives towards a two-fold result of:

  • organizing existing knowledge, and
  • facilitating the creation of new knowledge.

Towards this end, KM has always existed on an informal basis i.e. brainstorming, colleagues chatting, ad hoc filing systems, mentoring etc. As an emergent business practice, KM has seen the introduction of the chief knowledge officer, and the establishment of corporate Intranets, wikis, and other knowledge and information technology practices.

Theory

KM uses a specific lexicon to explain the dynamics of knowledge transfer. For example in the last ten years, the Internet has seen groups establish discussions on the use of intellectual capital as a value metric; the meaning of tacit vs explicit knowledge; and more.

Knowledge, information and data (KID) are key terms, and a knowledge management strategy seeks to identify and categorise this information

  • Data is used to describe the world that extends between inorganic matter and biological forms i.e. empiricism.
  • Information is used to describe the world that extends between biological forms and social groups i.e. rationalism.
  • Knowledge is used to describe the world that extends between social groups and intellectual ideas i.e. taoism.

Practice

KM seeks to leverage the competitive advantage that comes with improved or faster learning and new knowledge creation. Interest in knowledge management is being driven in part by:

Since its adoption by the mainstream population and business community, the Internet has led to an increase in creative collaboration, learning and research, e-commerce, and instant information. With improved technologies, gone are the days of dusty bookshelves, missed messages and snail mail. In many respects, the practice of KM is an in-step or mirrored evolution that coincides with the growth of both IT and the Internet.

E-learning, web conferencing, and collaborative software are examples of the knowledge management process. Each application can expand the level of inquiry available to an employee, while providing a platform to achieve specific goals or actions.

Data Mining

Data mining is the practice of automatically searching large stores of data for patterns. To do this, data mining uses computational techniques from statistics, machine learning and pattern recognition.

Related Definitions

  • Knowledge management - an organizational process which transforms intellect into intellectual capital.
  • Intellectual capital - the intangible assets of a company which contribute to its valuation.
  • Chief Knowledge Officer - an executive responsible for maximizing the knowledge potential of an organisation.
  • Knowledge - that which can be acted upon.
  • Personal knowledge management - the organisation of an individual's thoughts and beliefs.
  • Enterprise knowledge management - the strategy, process or technologies used to acquire, share and re-use an enterprise's knowledge and understanding.

See also

External links

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