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Introduction to Knowledge Management 11

A popular misconception is that KM focuses on rendering that which is tacit into
more explicit or tangible forms, then storing or archiving these forms somewhere,
usually some form of intranet or knowledge portal. The “ build it and they will come ”
expectation typifi es this approach: Organizations take an exhaustive inventory of
tangible knowledge (i.e., documents, digital records) and make them accessible to all
employees. Senior management is then mystifi ed as to why employees are not using
this wonderful new resource. In fact, knowledge management is broader and includes
leveraging the value of the organizational knowledge and know-how that accumulates
over time. This approach is a much more holistic and user-centered approach that
begins not with an audit of existing documents but with a needs analysis to better
understand how improved knowledge sharing may benefi t specifi c individuals, groups,
and the organization as a whole. Successful knowledge-sharing examples are gathered
and documented in the form of lessons learned and best practices and these then form
the kernel of organizational stories.
There are a number of other attributes that together make up a set of what KM
should be all about. One good technique for identifying these attributes is the concept
analysis technique.

The Concept Analysis Technique
Concept analysis is an established technique used in the social sciences (i.e., philoso-
phy and education) in order to derive a formula that in turn can be used to generate
defi nitions and descriptive phrases for highly complex terms. We still lack a consensus
on knowledge management – related terms, and these concepts do appear to be complex
enough to merit the concept analysis approach. A great deal of conceptual complexity
derives from the fact that a word such as knowledge is necessarily subjective in nature,
not to mention value laden in interpretation.
The concept analysis approach rests on the obtaining consensus around three major
dimensions of a given concept (shown in fi gure 1.2 ).
1. A list of key attributes that must be present in the defi nition, vision, or mission
statement
2. A list of illustrative examples
3. A list of illustrative nonexamples
This approach is particularly useful in tackling multidisciplinary domains such
as intellectual capital, because clear criteria can be developed to enable sorting
into categories such as knowledge versus information, document management versus
knowledge management, and tangible versus intangible assets. In addition, valuable