Product Description
Knowledge management (KM) - or the practice of using information and collaboration technologies and processes to capture organizational learning and thereby improve business performance - is becoming one of the key disciplines in management, especially in large companies. Many books, magazines, conferences, vendors, consultancies, Web sites, online communities and email lists have been formed around this concept.

This practical book focuses on the vast offerings of KM solutions-technology, content, and services. The focus is not on technology details, but on how KM and IT practitioners actually use KM tools and techniques. Over twenty case studies describe the real story of choosingand implementing various KM tools and techniques, and experts analyse the trends in the evolution of these technologies and tools,along with opportunities and challenges facing companies harnessing them. Lessons from successes and failures are drawn, along with roadmaps for companies beginning or expanding their KM practice.

The introductory chapter presents a taxonomy of KM tools, identifies IT implications of KM practices, highlights lessons learned, and provides tips and recommendations for companies using these tools. Relevant literature on KM practices and key findings of market research groups and industry consortia such as IDC, Gartner and APQC, are presented.

The majority of the book is devoted to case studies, featuring clients and vendors along the entire spectrum of solutions: hardware (e.g. handheld/wearable devices), software (e.g. analytics, collaboration, document management) and content (e.g. newsfeeds, market research).

Each chapter is structured along the "8Cs" framework developed by the author: connectivity, content, community, commerce, community, capacity, culture, cooperation and capital. In other words, each chapter addresses how appropriate KM tools and technologies help a company on specific fronts such as fostering adequate employee access to knowledge bodies, user-friendly work-oriented content, communities of practice, a culture of knowledge, learning capacity, a spirit of cooperation, commercial and other incentives, and carefully measured capital investments and returns. Vendor history, product/service offerings, implementation details, client testimonials, ROI reports, and future trends are highlighted.

Experts in the field then provide third-party analysis on trends in KM tools and technique areas, and recommendations for KM practitioners.

* The only book in which practitioners evaluate various KM solutions
* Case studies describe how real companies use KM tools and technologies
* Provides clear lessons from real successes and failures ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Makes KW useful
This is the handbook of KW, since it gets down to the nuts and bolts of how to make it work. ... Read more

Product Description

The volume of data in companies keeps on growing, and most often each business unit, such as marketing, sales, HR, accounting, production, etc., manages its own data. Then the question of how to optimize the interaction and synchronization of this data and how to guarantee its quality – in terms of consistency, regular updates, absence of duplicates, etc. – becomes essential. What is necessary is a vision and a process for how to avoid the problem of isolated data islands and how to integrate the data into a company-wide information pool?

The aim of this book is to outline methods and solutions for better data management, and, more particularly, the management of master data, i.e., data structuring numerous processes and used in several applications. To this end, the authors explain the notion of  "Master Data Management" (MDM), based on the essential "point of truth" concept. Their presentation is organized into three parts: Part I outlines the basic concepts, requirements and issues relating to data management. Part II details best practices, the architectures and solutions for improving data management, focusing in particular on the MDM concept. Finally, Part III details control methods and organizations based on the key concept of data governance.

This book targets IS responsibles who want to better manage their company's data as well as business managers or enterprise architects who want to analyze interdepartmental processes and applications. They will find much useful information on how to transform a strategic data-related vision into reality, whether it is a business-driven vision, e.g., focusing on customer-related processes, or an IT-driven vision, e.g., aiming at service-oriented architectures.

Product Description
The definitive overview of knowledge management, now available in paperback

This influential book establishes the enduring vocabulary and concepts in the burgeoning field of knowledge management.It serves as the hands-on resource of choice for companies that recognize knowledge as the only sustainable source of competitive advantage going forward.

Drawing from their work with more than 30 knowledge-rich firms, Davenport and Prusak—experienced consultants with a track record of success—examine how all types of companies can effectively understand, analyze, measure, and manage their intellectual assets, turning corporate wisdom into market value.They categorize knowledge work into four sequential activities—accessing, generating, embedding, and transferring—and look at the key skills, techniques, and processes of each.While they present a practical approach to cataloging and storing knowledge so that employees can easily leverage it throughout the firm, the authors caution readers on the limits of communications and information technology in managing intellectual capital. Amazon.com Review
When new-car developers at Ford Motor Company wanted to learn why the original Taurus design team was so successful, no one could tell them. No one remembered or had recorded what made that effort so special; the knowledge gained in the Taurus project was lost forever. Indeed, the most valuable asset in any company is probably also its most elusive and difficult to manage: knowledge. Authors Thomas H. Davenport and Laurence Prusak assert that learning how to identify, manage, and foster knowledge is vital forcompanies who hope to compete in today's fast-moving global economy.

Working Knowledge examines how knowledge can be nurtured in organizations. Building trust throughout a company is the key to creating a knowledge-oriented corporate culture, a positive environment in which employees are encouraged to make decisions that are efficient, productive, and innovative. The book includes numerous examples of successful knowledge projects at companies such as British Petroleum, 3M, Mobil Oil, and Hewlett-Packard. Concise and clearly written, Working Knowledge is an excellent resource for managers who want to better harness the experience and wisdom within their organizations. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (32)

old library book, good price
apparently the book was from a library. Still, the book was in quite a good condition for its price (ca 4usd)

References BP as a case of Success Story...Right
Some books' titles are better than the whole book. This book is a case in point.

When you sit back and ponder what is knowledge, it really is a wonder. The authors define 'Knowledge' as: "...a fluid mix of framed experience, values, contextual information, and expert insight that provides a frame work for evaluating and incorporating new experiences and information. It originates and is applied in the minds of knowers. In organizations, it often becomes embedded not only in documents or repositories but also in organizational routines, processes, practices, and norms." If you like this definition then buy this book.

But what is Knowledge, really?

We, at work, keep repositories of lessons learned in internal Wikis and try to have postmortems, all in the name of knowledge transfer from individuals to entire groups, sort of like pollination. But it seems that real Working Knowledge, as this book is so wonderfully titled, is almost always hard-earned by individuals. There doesn't seem to be any other way. It's 'hard' because of the errors made, but those errors seem to create walls of a labyrinth in our minds with a path from a problem to its solution. Seldom is there a straight hallway from the two points; that's when all the right errors are made. Some people are like that, though. They have hallways in their brain, but they can't see anything else. Getting the job done, on time, is what Working is, and to do so requires Knowledge, or experience.

Creating a good foundation
This was the first book I read on knowledge management and it gave me an excellent foundation. There are sections I still refer to after more than a decade as a professional knowledge manager. It is amongst those books I always recommend.

Learning knowledge that works
This book was used in my introductory class of a Knowledge Management course and helped me understand the course very well. The book is easy to read even for a knowledge management subject matter book. You can even read this book in any order and still get the author's point of view explicitly.

Excellent book and user guide
An organization can benefit immensely from its knowledge capital asset through the implementation of various KM projects, this book explains how and provides a guide. As an enabler, KM practices can be used to achieve various organizational objectives leveraging on the simple and easy to grasp concepts in this book. I love the examples of organizations cited and how they overcame their KM project challenges and where some others failed.

For anyone interested in Knowledge Management, this book is an excellent buy. Working Knowledge does not only introduce one to the concepts of KM, but also gives indept examples of organizations that have made KM a culture and how they strategically take advantage of this process to achieve specific benefits. It guides the reader on how to implement KM, technologies, failure signs to watch out for and much more. In my opinion, it is a worthy guide towards implementation.

I am glad I bought this book and I recommend it to anyone interested in KM. ... Read more

Product Description
Provides new concepts about how knowledge in organizations can be created and used for competitive advantage by describing knowledge-enabling conditions.Discusses 'practical approach' approaches to the amorphous, constantly evolving human realm of knowledge. DLC: Creativity ability in business. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

Documented and thoughtful
This book made me discover knowledge management. It is very well documented, very thougthful, easy to read... An excellent starting point.

Knowledge Enabling not KM !!
I had a pleasant surprise when a friend of mine decided to gift me "Enabling Knowledge Creation" by Georg Von Krogh, Kazuo Ichijo and Ikujiro Nonaka. It forms a sequel to "the Knowledge Creating Company" co-authored by Nonaka and Takeuchi published in 1995 . The first book was a seminal work which has profoundly influenced my views on Knowledge Creation (Nonaka refuses to entertain the concept of KM , resolutely denying that Knowledge
can ever be managed!) along with writers like Tom Davenport and Larry Prusak. However, the first book was open to a lot of criticism saying that it was just too "theoretic", "vague" and "generalised" ...Nonaka et al try and get more hands on, and tool bookish with this book.

However, this book is likely to disturb people who have read and formed ideas about KM by reading works of the American thought leaders.

In the start of the book the authors try and make the difference explicit.

In a passage titled "what's wrong with knowledge management?" they spell it out :

Pitfall I: KM relies on easily detectable, quantifiable information.
Pitfall II: KM is devoted to the manufacture of tools.
Pitfall III: KM depends on a Knowledge Officer.

While the premises of Knowledge Enabling and Creation are:

Premise I: Knowledge is justified true belief, individual and social, tacit and explicit.
Premise II: Knowledge depends on your perspective.
Premise III: Knowledge Creation is a craft , not a science.

The authors reiterate that organizational Knowledge Creation involves five main steps :

1. Sharing tacit knowledge
2. Creating concepts
3. Justifying concepts
4. Building a prototype
5. Cross-leveling knowledge.

To facilitate this the following 5 enablers need to be in place :

1. instill a knowledge vision
2. manage conversations
3. mobilize knowledge activits
4. Create the right context
5. Globalize local knowledge

The book is rich in case studies which show how different companies that follow these concepts are growing in leaps and bounds and innovating over others who remain stuck in the KM paradigm.

The authors note that in the Knowledge journey companies can be mapped in 3 phases, which might or might not be sequential.

1. The Risk Minimisers , whose focus is capturing and locating knowledge. The tools they use are data warehousing, datamining, Yellow pages, IC-Navigator, Balanced Scorecard, Knowledge Audits, IC-Index, Business Information Systems, Rule-based systems [these firms still view knowledge as a resource that needs to be collected and managed]

2. The Efficiency Seekers, who focus on transferring and sharing knowledge. The tools they use are internets, intranets, Lotus Notes/Groupware, Networked organization, knowledge workshops, knowledge workbench, Best Practice Transfer, Benchmarking, Knowledge-gap analysis, Knowledge sharing culture, Technology transfer units, Knowledge transfer units, Systems Thinking

3. The Innovators who enable Knowledge creation are typically those who embrace a knowledge vision, managing conversations, creating the right context, mobilize knowledge activists, globalize local knowledge, professional innovation networks, new organizational forms, New HRM-systems, new corporate values, project management systems, corporate universities, communities and storyboards.

Highly Recommended!
Dust off those liberal arts degrees before opening this challenging treatise on knowledge management, written by a trio of academics who call themselves "constructionists," quote Sartre and speak passionately of "post-modernism." Their work explains how to gain initiative and constructive input from workers by modifying traditional command structures - a grounded approach that is much more realistic than the revolutionary conversions called for by other experts. Managers who balk at the thought of granting autonomy or increased access to their employees may well be converted away from their hierarchical dogma here. We at getAbstract particularly recommend the lively knowledge-creation case histories and the wonderful section explaining how companies can create valid, imaginative futures. (What if IBM had imagined a world in which software was more important than mainframes?)

Sustainable advantage through knowledge enabling
In the many publications on Knowledge Management, the writings by Von Krogh and Nonaka (and, in this case, Ichijo) stand out in a number of aspects: 1) their emphasis of knowledge "management" as anessentially human and social process 2) their emphasis on linking knowledgemanagement with strategic focus and business results 3) the inspiringexamples and writing style.

This book is a clear showcase of theseelements. It provides a profound yet pragmatic guidance on the road tobecoming a learning organisation.Where capturing & locating, andtransferring & sharing knowledge are essential in achieving competitiveadvantage through knowledge, the real source of sustainable advantage is,as the authors claim, the continuous creation of new knowledge, as a resultof developing a strategic vision and an enabling organisation and cultureto realise that (evolving) vision.

Being involved in implementing anumber of the concepts in our organisation, I am convinced this bookprovides many ideas and tools that will help today's corporate world inreshaping our business for the knowledge economy.

Highly recommended!

Focus on knowledge creation, but what about integration?
The author's of this book are leading thinkers in the KM field. Perhaps the best way to describe this book is as a sequel to Nonaka's earlier 1995 book. But, we all remember what happened to Scarlett,again a much toutedsequel. Although this book was a slight disappointment since Nonaka has setreader's expectations a little too high with his earlier groundbreakingtitle "The Knowledge Creating ompany" that, for the most part,defined KM as we know it. An academic reader will appreciate theytheoretical insights provided and extensive references to supportingliterature. But there are some aspects that this book underplays: 1.Knowledge creation is fine, but knowledge integration is perhaps asimportant---an issue to which the authors pay little attention. 2.Excellent ideas aside, this book underplays the significance of empiricalevidence and most cases tend to be descriptive qualitative analyses. 3. Therole of technology is highly underplayed.4. The book has"sufficient" overlap with the authors' research papers in theuropean Management Journal. For academic readers who have read those, thismight be a little disappointing. 5. The concept of KM and it's relationshipwith innovation at architectural and component levels is not described inmuch detail.

On the positive side, you will find that: 1) Lots of issuesthat were barely touched uponin Nonaka's preceding book are described infurther detail. 2) The book is very well written and the tone is accsibleto both academic and non-academic readers. 3) the concept of BA iselucidated in further detail Readers who do not follow academic researchjournals might find that an interesting extension. 4) A link betweenstrategy and KM is well illustrated. For businesses, KM is of little valueif there are no results. The authors describe how to look for those results(or in lay terms, ROI). Academic readers will also find Nonaka's recentpaper in a recent issue of Organization Science (2000) to be of muchinterest. Academic readers must also realize that the approach here seemsto be "post modern," and indeed quite qualitative in the Europeanresearch tradition.

To sum my opinion, this book is a worthy addition tothe bookshelves; but, it is not to be read without reading Nonaka'spreceding book "The Knowledge Creating Company." A word ofwarning is in order: Academic readers will enjoy this title however,managerial readers might find it a little heavy and abstract. Indeed, thisbook stands out of the crowd with three authors who are well respected inthe American research circles---consequently, its high overall qualitycomes as no surprise. Recommended. ... Read more

Product Description
This Guide to the BPM CBOK(r) provides a basic reference document for all practitioners.The primary purpose of this guide is to identify and provide an overview of the Knowledge Areas that are generally recognized and accepted as good practice. The Guide provides a general overview of each Knowledge Area and provides a list of common activities and tasks associated with each Knowledge Area.It also provides links and references to other sources of information which are part of the broader BPM Common Body of Knowledge. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Better Than Sliced Bread
This is a well presented precise document.No waffle.I thoroughly recommend it to someone that has limited time and knows what they want assistance with. ... Read more

Product Description
The market for business knowledge is booming, as companies looking to improve their performance pour billions of dollars into training programs, consultants, and executive education.Why, then, are there so many gaps between what firms know they should do and what they actually do?Why do so many companies fail to implement the experience and insight they've worked so hard to acquire? The Knowing-Doing Gap is the first book to confront the challenge of turning knowledge about how to improve performance into actions that produce measurable results.

Jeffrey Pfeffer and Robert Sutton, well-known authors and teachers, identify the causes of the knowing-doing gap and explain how to close it.The message is clear-firms that turn knowledge into action avoid the "smart talk trap."Executives must use plans, analysis, meetings, and presentations to inspire deeds, not as substitutes for action.Companies that act on their knowledge also eliminate fear, abolish destructive internal competition, measure what matters, and promote leaders who understand the work people do in their firms.The authors use examples from dozens of firms that show how some overcome the knowing-doing gap, why others try but fail, and how still others avoid the gap in the first place.

The Knowing-Doing Gap is sure to resonate with executives everywhere who struggle daily to make their firms both know and do what they know.It is a refreshingly candid, useful, and realistic guide for improving performance in today's business. Amazon.com Review
Every year, companies spend billions of dollars on trainingprograms and management consultants, searching for ways toimprove. But it's mostly all talk and no action, according to JeffreyPfeffer and Robert I. Sutton, authors of The Knowing-DoingGap. "Did you ever wonder why so much education and training,management consultation, organizational research and so many books andarticles produce so few changes in actual management practice?" askStanford University professors Pfeffer and Sutton. "We wondered, too,and so we embarked on a quest to explore one of the great mysteries inorganizational management: why knowledge of what needs to be donefrequently fails to result in action or behavior consistent with thatknowledge." The authors describe the most common obstacles toaction---such as fear and inertia---and profile successful companiesthat overcome them.

Among the companies that Pfeffer and Sutton say do it right: GeneralElectric, the Men's Wearhouse, SAS Institute, Southwest Airlines,Toyota, and British Petroleum. The book, based on four years ofresearch, is broken into chapters with titles such as "When TalkSubstitutes for Action," "When Fear Prevents Acting on Knowledge,""When Internal Competition Turns Friends into Enemies," and "TurningKnowledge into Action." Each chapter contains tips on what to do andwhat to avoid, and provides examples of how a lethargic companyculture can be transformed. The Knowing-Doing Gap is a usefulhow-to guide for managers looking to make changes. Yet, as Pfeffer andSutton point out, it takes more than reading their book or discussingtheir recommendations. It takes action. --Dan Ring ... Read more

Customer Reviews (34)

An excellent book on why organisations don't do what they know they should
"I know kung fu."

In the Matrix, when Neo wants to learn kung-fu all he has to do is upload a fighting module. A few seconds later and he's sparring with Morpheus in a virtual dojo. Living in a computer simulation and being bred as an energy source for a machine master-race has its disadvantages, but at least you get to learn stuff fast. Here in the real world, much knowledge is gained the hard way - by doing. You can't just upload it. Or store it, index it or e-mail it around.

This is one of the factors behind what Jeff Pfeffer and Bob Sutton call 'the knowing-doing gap'. In this book, Pfeffer and Sutton examine why companies don't do what they know they should. The first problem is language. 'Knowledge' is a noun, so we treat knowledge as a concrete object we can manipulate, like steel or books. In reality, it's a process; the process of riding a bike, speaking French or running a company. Hence companies don't truly know what they claim they do. They might have their mission statements written down on small, laminated cards; and they might say - and even believe - that people are their most valuable assets, but this isn't true knowledge, and won't become so until they act.

Pfeffer and Sutton give plenty more reasons too. Here are just a handful:

An emphasis on talk, rather than action. It's easier to judge people on what they say than what they actually do, and that's often how we hire, reward and promote. The guy with the quick put-downs, rapid-fire banter and sarcastic comments is perceived as smarter than the quiet one in the corner who bothers nobody, knuckles down and gets stuff done.

If action is harder than talking, then mindless action is harder than thoughtful action. When organisations hit a problem, rather than think it through afresh they tend to follow the path laid down before, often by people long-gone and in circumstances lost in history. Processes fossilize and are never challenged. Sacred cows get fat when they should be slaughtered, just because "that's how we do things round here".

Internal competition, whether it's bonuses determined by forced-ranking or having an employee of the month, is often a zero sum game that benefits some individuals but that harms entire organisations. In such competitions, there are two ways to succeed. The hard way is to out-perform your coworkers. The easy way is to sabotage them, or belittle their achievements. It's no surprise that many people settle for the easy option.

This is a fantastic book. Like most of Pfeffer and Sutton's work, and as you'd expect from two Stanford professors, it's based on solid research. Case studies are used to illustrate theories and bring them to life, rather than to 'prove' them as many business books do. As well as explaining why the knowing-doing gap exists, the book gives ideas on how to fix them. Is your organisation paralysed by internal fighting? Then find an external enemy to focus on - that's what Apple did with IBM when they launched the first Macintosh in 1984. Is your company trapped by its history? Examine, make explicit and challenge the assumptions that lie behind its sclerotic procedures. Are your people afraid to make mistakes? Make it explicit - with your deeds and not just your words - that there is a soft landing available for those who try and fail.

The beauty of this book - like other works of Pfeffer and Sutton - is that much of it seems like common sense once you've read it. Pfeffer and Sutton have a knack of articulating ideas that you feel you already half know, but that are just - but only just - out of your grasp. As you read, you can sense them coming into focus, crystallizing out of the fog of your mind. Of course concentrating purely on short-term financial success can kill a company's culture. Of course you should commit to metrics that reflect, and don't contradict, your underlying philosophies. Of course pitting colleagues against each other is going to backfire, and of course the absurd idea that this could ever work is based on sloppy sporting analogies. But it's only once Pfeffer and Sutton have made these points - and many others - lucid that they become obvious.

Although excellent, the book - as Pfeffer and Sutton acknowledge explicitly throughout - contains one flaw. A text whose thesis is that knowledge can only be earned through action, and then hopes to teach it through words, is bound to have only partial success. Read this book - and if you're running, or working in, any organisation larger than a handful of people then you should - and you will only have taken the first step to learning about the knowing-doing gap and how to fix it. The next step?

Action

Great book!
This book is a good read.It can take a little time to get to the point sometimes, but the points that are made are valid and helpful.

Still the Best Book on Execution and Implementation
There have been a lot of books published on what it takes to "execute" strategy or to "implement" organizational change since Pfeffer & Sutton first published this book in 1999. I still think it is the best, as it shows why gaps between knowledge and organizational happen, and offers detailed suggestions about how to overcome problems like the smart-talk trap, dysfunctional competition, and overly complex measurement systems.

The book has a knowing-doing gap
I bought the book with much expectation, as the idea (knowing-doing gap) was quite fascinating. The book does a good job of sensitizing readers to the issue of the knowing-doing gap which is a pervasive problem in a variety of walks of life. However, in the end, the authors suffer from the same problem that they are describing - they do a good job of "knowing what the problem is", but fail to provide concrete guidance on how to close this gap.

This book Is The Best of The Best!
This book hits the nail on the head.It's straight forward, easy to read format makes it a must read for every business leader who wants to get out from under knowing what to do and move to DOING the things that need to be done to move their organization forward! ... Read more

Product Description
Many organizations are now realizing that their competitive edge lies mostly in the brainpower-the intellectual capital-of their employees and management. To stay ahead of the pack, companies must leverage their knowledge, internally and externally. But it is not enough to develop lessons-learned databases. Experts now believe the current savior of organizations is knowledge management-the conceptualization, review, consolidation, and action phases of creating, securing, combining, coordinating, and retrieving knowledge-in short, the process of creating value from an organization's intangible assets.Jay Liebowitz, one of the leading knowledge management and expert systems authorities in the world, brings together over thirty articles contributed by the top researchers and practitioners to produce what seems destined to become the key reference for this emerging field. With it you will find:"How to create a knowledge-sharing environment"How senior executives can show tangible benefits using methods that value the intellectual capital-especially the "human capital" within the organization"How knowledge management is not the same as information management"How senior management commitment and involvement are essential to the success of a knowledge management system ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Worthy of a review, let alone a read.
First of all this a REAL book on knowledge management.This is not a touchy feely book about how employees are afraid of KM because they will lose their jobs although there is a section that contains common org problems.This is however a book for individuals who practice KM or implement KM programs. Basically, without the context of having been through a KM project this book will be useless to most people.This is not the place to start.Try Idiots Guide to KM, which btw is an excellent place to start - I recommend it to my customers all the time, Working Knowledge, or the KM Toolkit all of which will serve as far better primers on the subject.Having led 40 KM projects in the last 3 years I can say this book has been a treasured resource since getting it a few months ago.

Knowledge Management - Here, Now and Here's How
This book is truly a great resource regarding Knowledge Management.It is a compendium of information concerning knowledge and the management thereof.This Handbook is divided into five sections of high levelinformation: Strategy, People and Measures, Elements, KnowledgeTechnologies, and Applications.Within each section real world expertsprovide sound foundations of the methodologies, techniques, and practicesin this field.Many concepts discussed throughout this handbook arepresented in an bulletized manner for easy assimilation.I found thenumerous figures and diagrams in this text-like book complex but full ofvaluable information as to the relationship of Knowledge Managementdefinitions, concepts and issues.

Knowledge Management is about the"brainware' or "human capital" that exists in a corporation. Today a corporation must invest in their human capital throughcertification programs, training and education courses, forums andknowledge sharing sessions to maintain and keep their competitive edge. Some believe that 70 to 80% of what's learned is through informal meansversus formal methods like reading books, brochures and documents.Nonethe less, all knowledge must be captured and managed effectively andefficiently.

Outstanding review of KM and all of its related components.
I am currently using this book as a reference for completion of my dissertation in the area of knowledge management.The book takes a no nonsense and factual look at this new and exciting area.Organizations whodo not understand these concepts will soon loose their competitive edge. This book will provide all of the necessary insight to begin a knowledgemanagement program within your organization. ... Read more

Product Description
In a world where the only certainty is uncertainty, the one sure source of lasting competitive advantage is knowledge. The best companies survive by consistently creating new knowledge, disseminating it widely throughout the organization, and quickly leveraging it in their business processes and their products.

In The Knowledge-Creating Company, Ikujiro Nonaka shows how your company can exploit its knowledge to continually innovate and reinvent itself in the face of relentless change. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (19)

The Founding Text of the Knowledge-Creation School
This book has its origins in an article the two authors wrote for the Harvard Business Review in 1986 about new product development in Japanese companies. Rather than construct a complex theory, complete with flow charts and diagrams, they used a simple metaphor: developing a new product is more like a rugby game than a relay race. Under the relay approach, new-product development proceeds sequentially from phase to phase--concept development, feasibility testing, product design, development process, pilot production, and final production--with one group of functional specialists passing the baton to the next group. Under the rugby approach, the product development process emerges from the constant interaction of a multidisciplinary team whose members work together from start to finish. As in rugby, the ball gets passed within the team as it moves as a unit toward the goal.

Because project teams consist of members with varying functional specializations, the issue of learning was considered a key aspect of product development. The article focused on two dimensions of learning: across multiple levels (individual, group, and corporate) and across multiple functions. But although the authors devoted sections to cross-fertilization and transfer of learning, they didn't develop the epistemological dimension of learning, and their focus was more on the learning organization than on the knowledge-creating company. Japanese firms' reliance on trial and error and on learning by doing wasn't analyzed in terms of the prevalence of tacit knowledge and processes of organizational knowledge creation.

In their book, Nonaka and Takeuchi introduce a key distinction between two kinds of knowledge: explicit knowledge and tacit knowledge. Explicit knowledge can be expressed in words and numbers and shared in the form of data, scientific formulae, specifications, manuals, and the like. This kind of knowledge can be readily transmitted across individuals formally and systematically. Tacit knowledge, on the other hand, is highly personal and hard to formalize, making it difficult to communicate or share with others. Subjective insights, intuitions, and hunches fall into this category of knowledge. Difficult to verbalize, such tacit knowledge is deeply rooted in an individual's action and experience, as well as in the ideals, values, or emotions he or she embraces.

There are two dimensions to knowledge creation: epistemological and ontological. The epistemological level describes how knowledge is converted from one type into another through processes of socialization (from tacit knowledge to tacit knowledge), externalization (from tacit knowledge to explicit knowledge), combination (from explicit to explicit) and internalization (from explicit to tacit). The ontological level refers to the knowledge-creating entity: it includes individual, group, organizational, and interorganizational levels. A knowledge spiral emerges when the interaction between tacit and explicit knowledge is elevated dynamically from a lower ontological level to higher levels.

The authors believe that Japanese companies are especially good at realizing this exchange between tacit and explicit knowledge during the product development phase, and that there is a distinctively Japanese approach to knowledge creation. Epistemologically, Westerners tend to emphasize explicit knowledge and the Japanese tend to stress tacit knowledge. Ontologically, Westerners are more focused on individuals, while the Japanese are more group-oriented. These differences give rise to a wholly different view of the organization: not as a machine for processing information, but as a living organism. People in Japan emphasize the importance of learning from direct experience as well as through trial and error. Like a child learning to eat, walk, and talk, they learn with their minds and bodies. This tradition of emphasizing the oneness of body and mind has been a unique feature of Japanese thinking since the establishment of Zen Buddhism.

The Western philosophical tradition, culminating with Wittgenstein, stresses that "we cannot say what we cannot think". But through metaphors, analogies, and pictures, people put together what they know in new ways and begin to express what they know but cannot yet say. As Polanyi put it, "We can know more than we can tell". The concept of tacit knowledge focuses on highly subjective insights, intuitions, and hunches that are gained through practical experience. This messy knowledge can prove indispensable in elaborating new concepts. As the authors underscore, "Ambiguity can prove useful at times not only as a source of a new sense of direction, but also as a source of alternate meanings and a fresh way of thinking about things. In this respect, new knowledge is born out of chaos".

Another important contribution of this book is to highlight the importance of middle managers and the role they play in the knowledge-creation process. Middle managers serve as a bridge between the visionary ideals of the top and the often chaotic reality of everyday business. They synthesize the tacit knowledge of both front-line employees and senior executives, make it explicit, and incorporate it into new products and technologies. Their contribution points toward a model of management that is neither top-down nor bottom-up, but "middle-up-down". In this model, knowledge is engineered by middle managers, who are often leaders of a team or task force, through a spiral conversion process involving both the top and the front-line employees.

Coming from a rich research field that combines theoretical speculation and practical experience, this management book is unlike any other. In no other text you will find discussions on the philosophy of Descartes and Nishida juxtaposing figures depicting the mechanics of a disposable cartridge in a photocopier. The case studies are not just vignette illustrations reduced to their skeletal form, they are thick descriptions replete with technical specifications and biographical details of key participants. There are no laundry lists of implementable measures or mnemonics of keywords that conjure the image of an alphabet soup. Instead the theory is illustrated by rich diagrams and stories, emphasizing the role of pictures and metaphors in conveying knowledge in a non-verbal form. The Oxford University Press ought to be commended for bringing this volume, the first in a series, to the attention of a public that seldom gets management books worthy of a rereading.

Not as advertised.
The website ("Look Inside") shows a 257+ page book. This book is 59 very small pages. I am very unsatisfied that I have to pay to return this.

This is not a book and it's free online anyway
The only thing you need to know about this "book" is that it's not a book at all, but an article that is available for free online as a 10 page PDF file.Google the title and save yourself the $8.95 plus shipping that I spent to find that what was shipped to me I already had on my hard drive.The "book" is 56 pages double spaces and the size of a small birthday card.As to the concepts discussed, I find them highly interesting but in fairness I'm still investigating this subject so I'll leave the analysis to others better qualified but the central theme that knowledge is tacit and created in Japanese firms vs. quantifiable, objective and structured in IT systems in the western world is worthy of consideration.Two stars for this idea having value for anyone looking to re-create the organizational knowledge structure of a company, but I'm being generous.It feels like I got ripped off.

Instructive and valuable
Interesting title---a little dated. The introductory portion of the book is worth the journey. A few of their examples are dated at best, but their "knowledge spiral" and their exploration of tacit and explicit knowledge was well done. The knowledge model----separated from "structure" is very good, however when they wander into the realm of organization structures I found their analysis wanting----mind you, it was good, but there was too much anecdotal and not enough meat. This was a ground breaking study---their introduction of a "hypertext" model into organization structure is fascinating (I believe their examples don't exemplify/expand their hypothesis as there is very little data to support the correlation of their idea to actuals). Overall the authors did a good job of exposing Western audiences to another way of managing knowledge---and I learned a lot. Highly recommended if you are interested in knowledge management.

Not even worth one star
I was very disappointed by this book. Not only was it painful to read, because it dragged on and was full of academic nonsense, the authors views were also unconvincing and based on old research.

This book is outdated and not relevant to the way Japan is today. The authors use a lot of research and examples from the 80s and even the 70s. They make the claim that Japanese firms experienced a lot of success in the late 70s and 80s because of their superior ability to "create knowledge." They seem to be in complete denial that Japan's economic bubble had anything to do with this "success" that they are talking about.Also, the book was written over 10 years ago, before the financial crisis and before people realized that a lot of this so-called success was just cooked in the books by accountants.

They do give some reasonable examples of knowledge creating firms that are successful, but that's all they are, just a few examples and not an accurate representation of the whole picture of Japanese Management. Also, most of the examples are of Japanese manufacturing firms. What about the service sector? Suspiciously they did not use examples of companies from Japan's service sector, which are extremely inefficient and not the text book perfect examples of successful "knowledge creating" firms.

The theories and models in this book are a bunch of overly abstract vague pretentious academic nonsense. The real life examples are so nebulously related to the theories and models that most successful (or unsuccessful) companies can be used as examples.

If you want to read a bunch of nonsense based on old research with the names of Harvard professors and some philosophy thrown in to make the nonsense seem legit and intelligent, then by all means, read this book. But if you are like me and want to learn about Japanese management, don't waste your time or money on this book.
... Read more

Product Description

The rapidly growing demand for online courses and supporting technology has resulted in a plethora of structural and functional changes and challenges for universities and colleges. These changes have led many distance education providers to recognize the value of understanding the fundamental concepts of both e-learning and knowledge management (KM)—including the e-learning economic model and how to change the current culture of delivery system providers.

Supplying a complete examination of the synergy between KM and e-learning, Knowledge Management and E-Learning begins by considering KM practices, techniques, and methodologies in e-learning. These chapters explain how knowledge capture, retention, transfer, and sharing can help enhance the e-learning experience.

Edited and written by leading authorities in the fields of knowledge management and e-learning, the book contains international case studies that illustrate the applications of KM to e-learning in businesses, government agencies, and universities in the United States, Canada, Mexico, United Kingdom, Europe, and Asia. The text is divided into four parts:

1. Setting the Stage
2. Methodologies and Techniques
3. Case Studies and Applications
4. Industry Perspectives

This groundbreaking reference discusses the use of digital media engagement and social media to enhance the e-learning experience through the ability to share knowledge among various communities and individuals. It details key KM and social networking methodologies, trends, and technologies. The text concludes with a summary of current and emerging trends by those at the forefront of this rapidly evolving field.

Product Description
John Muir was an early proponent of a view we still hold today--that much of California was pristine, untouched wilderness before the arrival of Europeans. But as this groundbreaking book demonstrates, what Muir was really seeing when he admired the grand vistas of Yosemite and the gold and purple flowers carpeting the Central Valley were the fertile gardens of the Sierra Miwok and Valley Yokuts Indians, modified and made productive by centuries of harvesting, tilling, sowing, pruning, and burning. Marvelously detailed and beautifully written, Tending the Wild is an unparalleled examination of Native American knowledge and uses of California's natural resources that reshapes our understanding of native cultures and shows how we might begin to use their knowledge in our own conservation efforts.
M. Kat Anderson presents a wealth of information on native land management practices gleaned in part from interviews and correspondence with Native Americans who recall what their grandparents told them about how and when areas were burned, which plants were eaten and which were used for basketry, and how plants were tended. The complex picture that emerges from this and other historical source material dispels the hunter-gatherer stereotype long perpetuated in anthropological and historical literature. We come to see California's indigenous people as active agents of environmental change and stewardship. Tending the Wild persuasively argues that this traditional ecological knowledge is essential if we are to successfully meet the challenge of living sustainably. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

Review: "Tending the Wild" by M. Kat Anderson
This is an extraordinarily comprehensive and insightful book on a subject not well known and even less appreciated by the general public and many natural resource managers ---viz. the careful management and use of a diversity of plants by Native Americans necessary for their subsistence and daily life. It is basednot only on historical records and collections, but on many interviews with tribal elders,extensive field observations and skillfully-designed field experiments that replicate and confirm specific traditional agricultural/horticultural practices.It makes for very absorbing and enlightening reading.

Absolutely Genius
In her book Tending the Wild, M. Kat Anderson has painted a very different picture of indigenous peoples than most civilized people could even begin to fathom. She begins by taking us through the history of California and its Native peoples. Using accounts of explorers, missionaries, pioneers and anthropologists she shows how those of our culture came to California with no understanding or lens with which to understand native land management. Rather, like everywhere else, civilization saw resources to extract, came and conquered California and her people. With California's wildlife & Native cultures now decimated, newer research has shown that Native land management actually contributed to enhancing the biological diversity and abundance of life. Anderson argues that if we wish to restore our mutual relationship with nature, we must learn these ancient management techniques and implement them immediately. Although she uses only California Natives to back her thesis, we can witness these same principles among indigenous cultures the world over. This book works not only as a history of indigenous horticulture in California, but mostly as a beginners manual for those who seek to understand more about sustainable, indigenous land management. This book rocked my world. Don't miss out, buy it now!

Top 10 Environmental Book
In the last three years, I have watched 500,000 acres of San Diego county burn.I came to M. Kat Anderson's book after we nearly lost our home, which is neatly tucked between two pieces of reservation land; I got infinitely more understanding than I thought possible.She has given us a timely, well researched work, that gives homage to the people who came long before us.

This book will sit on my shelf, next to "1491" (another must read, Americas before Columbus).The land nourishes all of us, regardless of race, color or creed.We need to learn from the past practices, to better care for the land.Many environmentalists use "pristine" when describing wilderness, and it is a misnomer.Without fire, there are no sprouting redwoods.Controlled burns are necessary.But try and tell your local political leaders that.
Buy this book, read it and understand.

Splendid!
Kat,
its wonderful!!! Long live the Wendell Berry Club.
Miss ya,
Joseph and Linda the cattail botanist!

Instant Classic
This book should become required reading for all High School and University students, teachers, and researchers with an interest in North American anthropology, ethnobotany, botany, biology, historical ecology, fire history, forest management, and history.It will be of particular value to readers with an interest in cultural and natural resources management, agricultural sustainability, and federal Wilderness policy, among other topics.

The book is excellently written, organized, and indexed, for both general reading and specific reference uses.It is a wonderful addition to Anderson's other major contribution to science, Forgotten Fires. ... Read more

Product Description
For project managers in charge of complicated,10-person-plus projects, one of the best ways to take control andproduce predictable, repeatable results is to focus on both complextheory and practical techniques.

Modern Project Management helps them do that, filling in theknowledge gaps and answering the questions of this often misunderstoodprocess. By going through project management step-by-step, the bookpresents an integrated approach that balances theory, methods,psychology, and practice, and helps even novice project managersachieve superior results. Readers will learn how to:

* Plan the project to maximize productivity
* Motivate others to execute the plan
* Analyze the actual results
* Rework and tune the plan as the project is executed.

Also included with this book is a project management toolset calledModern Manager. Easily installed on a personal computer, this softwareis far more than just a scheduler. It features tools designed to helpproject managers plan, estimate, monitor, and control projects. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (12)

A Solid Effort!
Author Norman R. Howes tackles project management in all its intricate bureaucratic glory, and brings the process up-to-date in what is essentially a book of instructions. Helpful in designing and tracking projects, this clear, crisp manual comes with Modern Project software, the program used to carry out the project management steps delineated in the book. The book, like any owner's manual, is very list-oriented. Howes does not teach you how to manage a project, either practically or theoretically, as much as he outlines the managerial process. His step-by-step guide focuses on detailed information telling readers how to take advantage of the software as they manage projects. While we from getAbstract recommend this guide specifically to project managers - who should keep it on hand, particularly if they use the related software package or want to learn more about it - the book is also designed to be used in corporate training programs and college classes.

Modern Project Management
Great book.Clear, well thought-out, and useful.I am using the method and tools to manage a series special event projects with 19 staff and 6 other vendors.Everyone has read the book so we all have a common understanding, and everyone is using the tool to generate reports - very cool.

Good practical stuff
Doesn't cover every aspect of PM but every aspect it covers is done very well.An easy read that can change how you do things.The enclosed software reinforces your knowledge.

Measuring Earned Value Correctly
I concur with other reviewers that this book is
extremely valuable, insightful, and comprehensive.It
provides clarification of several Project Management
concepts that are typically glossed over and sometimes
completely ignored in other texts.Perhaps the most
important contribution the author makes is in his
explanation of the subtleties of Earned Value - the
primary measurement for a project's performance.Many
Project Managers that I have worked with do not
understand how to measure Earned Value and end up with
incorrect measurements, or simply fail to use this
critical indicator altogether.I recommend this book to
all project managers who want clarification on this and
other topics that will help them improve their own
performance as managers.

A really modern treatment of project management
This book focuses on modern project management concepts and techniques, but covers the standard stuff like what you will find in the PMI PMBOK. The project management system that comes on the CD with the book contains tools you won't find even in expensive PM systems. There are at least a couple dozen tools on the CD and an example project you can use to try the tools out on. ... Read more

Product Description
This book is a collection of eye-opening interviews with CEOs from major international corporations- Nokia, Unilever, Toyota, Bosch are just some of the many included. The CEOs discuss their innovative approaches to new challenges and opportunities in their business. A fascinating insight into the minds of global leaders. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (3)

How to ensure that intellectual assets are secured...and remain secure

In the preface, Kevin Desouza explains that in addition to demonstrating how organizations are vulnerable to breaches in security, he details how most breaches can take place without the use of sophisticated technological mechanism. "My goal is writing this book is simple, but salient: to help organizations realize that their core resources - intellectual assets - are under constant attack, and that protecting this resource is as important as any other strategic agenda. Organizations that take necessary steps to protect their knowledge will thrive in today's competitive environment, often at the expense of their less-prepared foes."

Readers will especially appreciate Desouza's skillful use of two reader-friendly devices in Chapters 2-6: "Possible causes of security breaches" and "Preventive measures." He provides a checklist for each when exploring protection of intellectual assets at the level of employees (Chapter 2), the human aspects of technical security breaches (Chapter 3), the nature of intellectual asset security when engaging with external entities(Chapter 4), the nature and dimensions of physical security (Chapter 5), and protection of intellectual assets during crises (Chapter 6). Then in the final chapter, Desouza focuses on seven strategic considerations that must be carefully thought through when devising a viable security program for intellectual assets.

All are critically important and best identified within his narrative, in context. However, I do not hesitate to suggest that Desouza offers the best single source I have yet encountered for decision-makers in any organization (regardless of its size or nature) that currently fails to protect its security effectively both internally and externally, especially now when its core resources - its intellectual assets - are under constant attack.

Those who share my high regard for this book are urged to check out Creating New Wealth from IP Assets co-authored by Robert Shearer and other members of the National Knowledge & Intellectual Property Management Taskforce as well as Paul Goldstein's Intellectual Property: The Tough New Realities That Could Make or Break Your Business, Alexander I. Poltorak and Paul J. Lerner's Essentials of Intellectual Property, Carla O'Dell's The Executive's Role in Knowledge Management, and If Only We Knew What We Know: The Transfer of Internal Knowledge and Best Practice co-authored by O'Dell and C. Jackson Grayson.

The Human-Side of Security Strategies
"Managing Knowledge Security: Strategies for Protecting Your Company's Intellectual Assets" (by Kevin C. Desouza) is an eye-opener. Unlike books that talk about technology-based security strategies, the book spots a human-side of security strategies. Desouza asks readers to think about the most important assets that companies have to protect and claims that technology is not always a solution to secure those important assets. For example, the most important assets for a company can be senior executives. Desouza asks companies whether they have a back up plan, if their executives are down. Desouza also explains a case that how companies end up to compromise their knowledge assets through conversations made by careless senior executives at the airport. Desouza explains these cases by using illustrative examples from his experiences as a competitive intelligence officer. In addition to these examples, each chapter explains the factors that may contribute to security breaches and provides actionable strategies. The book covers security strategies from internal employees to strategic alliances. This is a must-read.

Smart people will read this book...
This is another informative publication by Kevin C Desouza.I really like this book, and in my opinion it is a contemporary classic in the making. This text is passionately written with clarity and brevity providing readers with a concise and comprehensive overview of the major issues concerning the complex processes of securing intellectual assets.This book spurs debate and stimulates critical thinking.Its strengths are its connection to real life scenarios plus the possibility to use it as a serious platform for discussing business practices.Crammed with spot on insights and excellent advice, this is an important book and delivers valuable lessons to the reader.It would be of extreme interest to both CEOs, directors and managers of companies (for obvious reasons) and to academics to whom I would recommend adopting it to use in a wide range of courses.An excellent book...there is a definite need for a thoughtful book of this type.It is worthy of recognition and deserves a lot of credit - it's a must read!


... Read more

Product Description
A real-world guide to the essential principles of knowledge management. Shows how KM and CRM technologies work, and how they impact the IT infrastructure. Also shows how to use team-building and goal-setting exercises to create excellent KM/CRM projects, and how to align e-business strategy and technology choices. Softcover. DLC: Knowledge management. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

crammed full of information
This is one heck of a book. I had to get it for a class in Knowledge Management.
This is not an easy read. It was written for those who are already in the management profession and is definitely not "dumbed down" for the ignorant masses.
But if you are sincerely want a comprehensive understanding this seems like a decent book.

Review from an Experienced Marketing Manager w/ an MBA
This book is a must read for any Executive through manager in a company that is entertaining a CRM implementation.The book covers many helpful hints and constructs that will help save time, money, and human capital.In today's business climate of collaborative solutions pitched by the major competitors (SAP, Siebel, PeopleSoft, J.D. Edwards, etc.), many of their software offerings, solutions, and web sites are geared from their perspective.It's not too hard to get lost in all of their jargon.This book shows the other side--from an business point of view--to implementing a knowledge CRM business strategy.The book covers how to evaluate people for the team and progress throughout the project.The tables throughout the book are outstanding as they compare, contrast, list critical success factors, metric measurement, audit questions and methods, etc. ... Read more

Product Description
Verna Allee, whose groundbreaking book 'The Knowledge Evolution' helped usher in the exploding field of knowledge management, has brought her experience-tested insights into an exciting new synthesis, penetrating to the very heart of value creation. 'The Future of Knowledge' strips away traditional business thinking to reveal the new patterns of management thought and practice essential for success in a more complex world.

With a gift for making the complex simple and practical, Allee weaves together diverse threads such as business webs, communities of practice, knowledge technologies, intangibles, network analysis, and biology to show why organizations must be supported as living systems before their natural networked pattern of organization can emerge.

Embodying Allee's visionary approach, 'The Future of Knowledge' brings forward a practical view of new theories, frameworks, tools, and methods offering businesses a guide to managing the increasing levels of complexity within their organizations and in society at large.

'The Future of Knowledge' works on many levels:
* At the strategic level, the new tools are intangible scorecards and understanding value networks
* At the tactical level, the knowledge management tools for exchanging and applying knowledge are knowledge networks and communities of practice
* At the operational level, a wealth of new technologies is supporting the codification, storage and delivery of the knowledge people need to complete their routine tasks.

* Leading expert takes us to the next stage of
value creation in business
* Provides the next step in creating a framework and a tool to manage intangible assets to build high peroformance in the knowledge-based economy
* Author of the bestselling 'The Knowledge Evolution' ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

A lot of build-up for few new insights
I was very enthusiastic about the topic. Section I drops quotes from some of the most insightful people around, like Fritoj Capra. Section II says that technology has to be better at helping people share information. Section III says that Communities of Practice help generate new knowledge (a lot of 'borrowing' from E. Wegner for this section). Section IV says that you have to map a system by looking at participants, their outputs and the required inputs. Section V is a summary. The big 'insight' is that people seek intangibles that aren't always seen with a direct dollar value. No kidding, every car salesman in the world knows that he is not selling transportation, he is selling an image. Isn't that the whole idea behind conspicuous comsumption? No one really needs a Hummer, but what intangibles does one get? Very simply, intangibles are easy to measure in that they are all converted to an object, eventually. Ideas are made into books; engineering concepts are made into machines. That's where the price comes out. All in all, the book reads like a power brochure with several self-promotional descriptions in the book. Pass on this one and try out any of the authors she name drops in Section I.

A new organizational imperative
There is a colossal organization structure issue that large corproations haven't yet faced. It is that the basic tool and meme for organization - the organization chart with structure, jobs and reporting lines - can not function in the new world of open innovation, process-driven organization, collaborative networks and roles in processes rather than jobs in structures.

Verna Allee has a novel solution in her concept of Value Networks. It passes the conceptual test by offering a new idea of how value is created via intangibles, and the credibility test by providing real-life, very large scale examples. She challenges us to think in an entirely new way about organization. She may have the answer for the 21st century, and you owe it to yourself to at least read it and consider it.

A great piece!
I'd definitely recommend it not only to the Knowledge Management professionals, but to the general public. It's a fun and easy read.

Value Networks: Seeing the unseen value of intangibles
In today's crowded marketplace of business publications, it takes something that bit special to stand out and be noticed.A decade ago, Peter Senge's The Fifth Discipline was widely regarded as one of the seminal business books of the 1990's, introducing to an appreciative and expanding audience the integrated concepts of systems thinking and the "learning organisation".This new book by fellow American author Verna Allee carries the potential to compete for similar accolades in this current decade.

The idea that there should be any enthusiasm about another book on knowledge would normally be questionable, given the number of books published on knowledge management in recent years, and the attendant hype accompanying such new challenges to business thinking.What makes Allee's contribution special is the elegant manner in which she takes a living systems approach to connect knowledge and value in a profound yet pragmatic way.

The focus on value is particularly appropriate for business given that profitability, the lifeblood of any commercial enterprise, depends on the discovery and creation of value.With the new era of the "extended enterprise" model of the organisation, in that any company competes in a supply chain and wider business ecosystem of customers, suppliers, joint venture partners and other stakeholders, the value network approach is a potentially powerful one in helping to identify, investigate and, ultimately exploit key relationships within the network.

Where Allee perhaps scores highest with her approach is in her treatment of intangible deliverables within value networks, and the introduction of a simple, practical set of tools to assist with the mapping of both intangible and tangible relationships.Because value networks take a living systems perspective, it deals with real people - either individuals, small groups or teams, business units, organisations, industry groups, communities or nation states - dealing with value exchanges flowing between participants in the network, linked by arrows showing the transactions and deliverables of value exchanges.

The power of value networks lies in its simplicity and practicality.As well as providing a structured framework for dealing with intangibles, it also raises interesting questions and challenges assumptions about the real nature of networks in action and the value being created (or destroyed) within these networks.

If business leaders aspire to understand the deeper dynamics of value creation in their extended enterprise networks, The Future of Knowledge will provide them with the philosophy, the roadmap and the tools to guide them.

A refreshing new look at established concepts
In this book Allee considers the changing nature, structure and identity of organizations, and the larger patterns of change that are currently unfolding in society. Taking the view that businesses are evolving into 'networked patterns of living systems', Allee observes that we require a different mindset and management tools to respond to these changes. This new mindset includes thinking of organizations as living systems, understanding the principles of networks and how they operate, taking a 'whole-system' view of the organization, understanding how intangibles go to market, and the significance of value networks, people and relationships.

Overall, the book offers a fresh, thought-provoking look at what have become already become well-worn concepts in the knowledge management field. Allee has synthesized a diverse array of ideas and concepts and theories from multiple disciplines to this work.

Part I tends to be a little abstract and theoretical and some of the ideas here about the new knowledge economy and intangible assets will not be new to anyone familiar with knowledge management. However, it does provide a useful context for subsequent chapters. At the end of chapter 5, the checklist of 'where we are now in the learning journey or knowledge continuum' is a useful summary of current thinking. Allee takes an organic view of knowledge networks and communities, such that rather than trying to create them in organizations, it is better to simply find those that already exist and make them visible to themselves and the rest of the organization.
The discussion on how intangibles 'go to market' challenges the notion that we can create value from them in the same way that we do from tangible assets. But perhaps the most interesting section of the book is that which discusses mapping value networks, and the practical examples that are provided. It is here that Allee brings together the concepts discussed in Part I and we begin to see the whole picture that she is building. These chapters will be of particular interest to practitioners who are attempting to grapple with creating value from knowledge in their own, or their client's organizations, and identifying where to focus their attention.
Allee has the capacity to discuss complex issues in a simple and straightforward way without allowing us to feel that we've been shortchanged. Essentially, each chapter offers a simple message. In her discussion of communities of practice, there is a clear message is that knowledge cannot be separated from the human networks that create it, use it and transform it. Similarly, in Chapter 6, she argues that the best technology infrastructure does not guarantee knowledge sharing - organizational intelligence is not a technology question, it is a human question.
At one point, Allee refers to the ancient saying that one cannot step into the same river twice (pp. 143) because the water is never the same water. This is analogous to what Allee has done with in this book - although the concepts, and ideas may seem familiar and have certainly been discussed previously in the plethora of books and articles currently available, she has presented them in a refreshing new way and brought together diverse ideas to challenge our assumptions. It is well worth reading. ... Read more

Product Description
Today when most executives consider the intellectual capital of their organization, they focus on the present. They seek tools and techniques to exploit their organizational knowledge for some immediate gain. There is an emerging shift in thinking that will provide a lasting competitive advantage the shift is from the present to the future. This book is unique in that it focuses on what executives should be doing now (or soon) to ensure the next generation of organizational leaders know what we knew. In other words, are we creating organizational memories today, which will be useful to the next generation of leaders? Will today s baby-boomer based practices pass the test of time? Are our current processes the most relevant ones for the next generation of organizational leaders?To answer these questions the book is divided into three parts. Part 1 is introductory in nature and provides a concise overview of knowledge management: its genesis, the theory of knowledge, and the types of knowledge that exist. Part 2 builds on this foundation and highlights some of the successes and failures during the past two decades as baby-boomer executives struggled to develop effective ways of sharing what their organizations know. A review of projects suggests that many first generation knowledge management projects were based on collecting and classifying information. Second generation knowledge management projects shifted the focus to codifying tacit knowledge and combining explicit knowledge to create new knowledge.Part 3 focuses on emerging ideas that show great potential. Today we are seeing some very promising results from third generation knowledge projects, which focus on connecting people and facilitating collaboration. Some pioneering organizations are now reaping the benefits of using social media tools such as wikis for collaboration and commercial social networking tools, for connecting people. These emerging tools and techniques provide flexible, agile, and intuitive solutions for connecting people with people and facilitating coordination, communication, and collaboration. ... Read more

Product Description
Today, companies capture and store tremendous amounts of information about every aspect of their business: their customers, partners, vendors, markets, and more. But with the rise in the quantity of information has come a corresponding decrease in its quality--a problem businesses recognize and are working feverishly to solve.
Enterprise Knowledge Management: The Data Quality Approach presents an easily adaptable methodology for defining, measuring, and improving data quality. Author David Loshin begins by presenting an economic framework for understanding the value of data quality, then proceeds to outline data quality rules and domain-and mapping-based approaches to consolidating enterprise knowledge. Written for both a managerial and a technical audience, this book will be indispensable to the growing number of companies committed to wresting every possible advantage from their vast stores of business information.

Key Features
* Expert advice from a highly successful data quality consultant
* The only book on data quality offering the business acumen to appeal to managers and the technical expertise to appeal to IT professionals
* Details the high costs of bad data and the options available to companies that want to transform mere data into true enterprise knowledge
* Presents conceptual and practical information complementing companies' interest in data warehousing, data mining, and knowledge discovery ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

Misleading
This book is NOT about enterprise management, it's about SQL.If I had wanted a book on SQL, I would have bought a book about SQL.I wanted a book on Enterprise Knowledge Management.This is not it.

Excellent practise book in data quality
David has written an excellent data quality book. He focuses on a real works around data quality. He presents a practical approaches how to solve a different types of quality defects and also pointed out main quality principles. But reader must think how to apply mentioned principles and approaches in reader's organization.

Simply, good reading with application on a real cases.

David Loshin's book and quality improvement of New Zealand National Health Information
At the time the book was published I worked as a data quality manager at the New Zealand Ministry of Health focusing on the implementation of the Data Quality Strategy for National Health Databases. It was a great help for us. We've implemented many of David Loshin's principles. Most importantly it helped us to understand that the majority of our DQ problems were not due to the poor data management processes, but because of the inadequate system's design or poor data model, which was either conceptually or contextually incorrect, incomplete or inaccurate.

Its all in the Details
Most of the literature on Data Quality focuses on the challenges of creating and maintaining a data warehouse. Thankfully, for those of us trying to improve the integrity of the information in our OLTP databases, this book presents a methodology which is not specific to any one data environment.

This book is packed with lists of cases to consider for each step of the methodology.Each case is nicely documented.Actually, much of the book is taken filled with the documentation for each case, which may cause a person to lose sight of the methodology that is being presented.

I am person who prefers to learn concepts.I am not as interested in memorizing details.Hence, I would read this book, skipping most of the documentation in the lists, instead focusing on understanding the methodology.Thereafter, I would use this book as a reference when needing information on a particular step of the methodology.

Data Quality in the Real World
As a data warehouse practitioner for over 12 years, I was recently challenged at my current employer to help assemble a global data quality team and process.Having done much of the work before on a piecemeal basis, we made steady progress.

When I received my copy of "Enterprise Knowledge Management," I found two important things:
1. We were definitely on the right track, and
2. There were some things we had missed.

David Loshin has put together an excellent field guide to all aspects of data quality.It is very easy to understand, and contains practical, effective suggestions.Most importantly, it is a true "soup to nuts" guide to data quality.There is very little that you might need to improve your company's "knowledge quotient" that you will not find here.

I have heartily recommended this book to a number of people when asked about data warehousing and data quality.You'll not find a better handbook anywhere. ... Read more

Product Description
The Encyclopedia of Knowledge Management is the most comprehensive source of coverage related to the past, present, and emerging directions of knowledge management. Edited by the well-respected knowledge management researcher, Professor David Schwartz of Bar Ilan University (Israel), the Encyclopedia of Knowledge Management provides a broad basis for understanding the issues, technologies, theories, applications, opportunities and challenges being faced by researchers and organizations today in their quest for knowledge management. Hundreds of contributors and advisors from around the world have conferred their expertise to this publication, making this encyclopedia a single source of reliable and modern-day research in the field of knowledge management. The Encyclopedia of Knowledge Management documents the past, present, and possible future directions of knowledge management. The Encyclopedia of Knowledge Management provides a broad basis for understanding the issues, technologies, theories, applications, opportunities and challenges being faced by organizations today in their quest for knowledge management. ... Read more

Product Description
This book introduces readers to a wide range of knowledge management (KM) tools, techniques and terminology for enhancing innovation, communication and dedication among individuals and workgroups. The focus is on real-world business examples using commonly available technologies.
The book is set out in a clear and straightforward way, with definitions highlighted, brief case studies included that illustrate key points, dialogue sections that probe for practical applications, and written exercises. Each chapter concludes with discussion questions, review questions, and a vocabulary review. An Online Instructor's Guide is available.

* Easy to read, user-friendly introduction to knowledge management
* Full of practical applications for business professionals
* An Online Instructor's Guide is available, with power point slides, case studies, exercises and review questions ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

Not really worth the time or money
I thought this would be a good book, but I was wrong. It was assigned as supplemental reading for my BA in MIS degree and I had only read the first two chapters. Those chapters seemed very interesting, so I recently went back after almost two years and finished reading the book. I read all the chapters but didn't do any of the exercises. About 1/3 of the way through the book, my excitement waned. The book started to focus more on organizational behavior (OB), which is a beneficial topic, but NOT what this book is supposed to be focused on.

Starting around chapter 5, the OB stuff was really being pushed and I couldn't tell that I was reading a book on KM. A more appropriate title for the book would be along the lines of "Organizational Aspects of Knowledge Management." Since KM involves sharing of knowledge between people, skills in communications and OB are crucial in facilitating KM. The actual KM information in this book could honestly be summarized in one chapter.

If you have taken courses in communications and OB, you can pretty much get by with reading only chapters 1 - 5. For someone who has no OB knowledge, this book could be beneficial for learning OB, but as far as teaching anyone anything *significant* about KM itself, this book fails. After reading this book, you'll know what KM is and have a very limited knowledge of some of the methods and tools used in KM. As I mentioned before, all that information could be summarized in one chapter.

One of the most absurd things about the book is that it provides no end of chapter summary. This is very ironic since the book is about managing knowledge. Wouldn't it be easier to manage the knowledge gained in each chapter if the chapters had summaries? And in a few chapters, the authors inappropriately use computer networking as an analogy for some of the KM concepts. Those analogies are obviously targeted at IT professionals. But if someone with a business background reads this book, that person wouldn't be very familiar with computer networking.

Another annoying thing was that the authors threw in bits and pieces about project management (PM). If the reader doesn't have a PM background, what benefit is that to the reader?

And the book has numerous figures that have no reference. I can't recall reading any book that had so many figures without any references. By reference I mean that the figures weren't referred to in the text at all. I'm being tough on these things because this is a book on KM. And a big part of KM is the ability to effectively transfer knowledge. The way this book is written, transferring knowledge doesn't seem to be a high priority.

In summary, this book should focus more on KM itself instead of OB. And the analogies should be generalized for readers of diverse backgrounds--not everyone who reads this book will have an IT or PM background. For me, this book reinforces my previous knowledge of OB and PM, but fails to add significant KM knowledge. The bulk of the useful KM stuff is in chapters 1 - 5, so at least I was able to take something away from my readings.

The people who gave excellent reviews must know the authors or publishers. I can't imagine that an educated person could learn much from this book and would actually pay for it unless it was a required text for a course. Maybe, just maybe, I can see someone giving it 3 stars, but no way can a 5 star rating be legit.

Not a very good textbook
This is advertized as a textbook, but if it is, it certainly is not on the college level. This might qualify for a high school textbook. It is written on a lower level than the KM for Dummies book!

Dont' waste your money. You can get Frappaolo's text on KM for less money and it is a better resource.

Too basic
The book is focused more on personal KM than on KM as a field. Very useful the introductory part, though.

Excellent Book!
This book was my first introduction to Knowledge Management.Truthfully, I could not be more pleased!I'm a Director of Sales for a leading insurance company and am responsible for 250 offices across the Northeast U.S.Our organization has struggled for many years with the very issues addressed in this text and I found the insight gained to be invaluable.

It is easy to see that the authors, Groff and Jones, are experienced management professionals.They adeptly and expertly framed the content in an enjoyable and easy to understand manner that is directly applicable in multiple business scenarios.In fact, I utilized several of concepts from the text in developing our annual business plan.Through these initiatives, we expect to improve efficiency and overall productivity resulting in increased profitability for the business unit.

Without a doubt, this text is a tool that will assist my organization in maximizing results in today's quickly changing business environment.

understandable and valuable
KM in Business is written in such a manner that it is understandable for even a computer novice such as myself.The applications for small Mom & Pop operations as well as large firms makes it a must have for any business owner.It deserves a place in business classes at college or high school.As an owner of two retail businesses, I find it invaluable. ... Read more

Product Description

Despite its explosive growth over the last decade, the Web remains essentially a tool to allow humans to access information. Semantic Web technologies like RDF, OWL and other W3C standards aim to extend the Web’s capability through increased availability of machine-processable information.

Davies, Grobelnik and Mladenic have grouped contributions from renowned researchers into four parts: technology; integration aspects of knowledge management; knowledge discovery and human language technologies; and case studies. Together, they offer a concise vision of semantic knowledge management, ranging from knowledge acquisition to ontology management to knowledge integration, and their applications in domains such as telecommunications, social networks and legal information processing.

This book is an excellent combination of fundamental research, tools and applications in Semantic Web technologies. It serves the fundamental interests of researchers and developers in this field in both academia and industry who need to track Web technology developments and to understand their business implications.