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98 Chapter 4

5. Analyze the type of knowledge to be captured and codifi ed, select the best approach
to use, and discuss its advantages and shortcomings for a given knowledge elicitation
application.

Introduction

The fi rst high-level phase of the knowledge management cycle, as seen in fi gure 4.1 ,
begins with knowledge capture and codifi cation. More specifi cally, tacit knowledge is
captured or elicited and explicit knowledge is organized or coded.
In knowledge capture, a distinction needs to be made between the capture and
identifi cation of existing knowledge and the creation of new knowledge. In most
organizations, explicit or already identifi ed and coded knowledge typically represents
only the tip of the iceberg. Traditional information systems departments primarily
deal with highly structured (records or forms oriented) data that makes up much less
than 5 percent of a company ’ s information. In knowledge management, we need to
also consider knowledge that we know is present in the organization, which we can
then set out to capture. There remains, however, that interesting area of knowledge
that we do not know about. This as-yet-unidentifi ed knowledge will require additional
steps in its capture and codifi cation. Finally, there is knowledge that we know we do
not have. We will need to facilitate the creation of this new, innovative content (refer
to fi gure 4.2 ).

Assess

Knowledge capture Knowledge sharing
and/or creation and dissemination

Contextualize

Knowledge acquisition
and application
Update
Figure 4.1
An integrated KM cycle