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This can be quite a tricky question because there are multiple definitions from scholars and business owners on what knowledge actually is. One of the most well-known and commonly used methods for identifying knowledge is to break down knowledge into two different categories, each with its own characteristics. These definitions were initially created by Michael Polanyi in 1958.
These types of knowledge, their definitions, and some examples of these types of knowledge can be found below.
Explicit Knowledge: Knowledge that can be easily shared, either through the written or verbal form. An example of this would be the sales process for a business, which sales staff would have to follow.
Tacit Knowledge: Knowledge that you gain from individual experience and is therefore difficult to transmit to others. An example of this would be, knowing how to play the guitar.
Being able to break down information and knowledge into different categories makes it much easier for that knowledge to be further developed and disseminated within an organization. This is because individuals will know the best ways for the information to be disseminated, based on its nature.
Knowledge Management can be briefly defined as the process in which knowledge is created, shared, and used within an organizational structure by managing the flow of information within the organization. The overall goal of knowledge management is to help an organization reach its objectives by making the best possible use of the knowledge that is available. Knowledge is typically used in this manner to achieve increased employee performance, enhanced competitive advantage, and continuous organizational improvement.
The discipline of Knowledge Management first emerged in the 1990s and was handily pushed along by the technological revolution that occurred during that time period. The advent of computers and their ability to rapidly codify and disseminate information rapidly advanced the field of knowledge management. Nowadays, most organizations will utilize some form of Knowledge Management Software in an effort to improve organizational learning and development.
The development of knowledge management as a field has had a high impact on the success of modern businesses and it has been well-documented that businesses that practice effective knowledge management tend to perform better than those that don’t. This is because of the fact that individual development and organizational development take place at a faster rate, leading to an increase in performance overall.
Knowledge management is actually important for a number of reasons. First and foremost, it acts as a method for making the decision-making processes more efficient within an organization. This is because business owners and decision-makers can make better decisions when they have more knowledge and data at their disposal. This improved decision-making capability increases the competitive advantage and viability of the business in the long term. In short, if your organization isn’t making use of knowledge management, then you’re going to fall behind and your decision-making capability is going to greatly suffer. 74% of businesses estimate that effective knowledge management improves productivity by 10%-40%.
Another reason why knowledge management is important is that when employees and team members are armed with more knowledge, it is also easier for an innovative culture to take root within an organization. In the modern business world, it is critical to be innovative so that competitive advantage and profitability can be maintained. Good knowledge management is one of the easiest and most sure-fire ways to make sure this happens, and it also allows you to see upcoming problems within your industry much quicker than you would do normally. This is also a critical aspect of success as problems in organizations need to be dealt with quickly and effectively.
Finally, having effective knowledge management processes in place is also good for your employees. Effective knowledge management processes allow employees to learn and develop their own skills effectively. Being trained effectively is a part of this and employees with good training are more likely to succeed and less likely to leave your organization. The costs of replacing an employee and retraining their replacement can be a big expense in money and time. Merely training a new starter can cost around $1,252. This is another reason why it is critical to have good knowledge management processes in place.
Despite the benefits of knowledge management and the ways in which it can influence organizational success, there are still some ways in which barriers to effective knowledge management can be placed. Down below are some of the most common causes for problems relating to knowledge management.
Old Technology: Old systems can be a barrier to effective knowledge management for a number of reasons. They may be incredibly slow to work, have a lack of features that would be expected from modern systems and they may just be more difficult to use. This will have a huge negative impact on an employee’s ability to find the knowledge they need.
Lack of Employee Motivation: If an employee isn’t motivated by their work, how are they going to be motivated to share their knowledge or find knowledge for themselves? To get the most out of knowledge management, you need to ensure your employees are motivated and have reasons to be involved.
Easy Access To Information: This also ties in with obsolete systems, although even with new systems, if you make important information difficult to find, you’re going to suffer. When using a Knowledge Management System, you need to make sure that it is easy for users to get access to the information they need. Failure to do this will result in poor efficiency and productivity.
Now, we can get onto some of the things you can use to improve your organization’s knowledge management processes. Knowledge Management Software itself is software that is used by organizations to assist in the codification, dissemination, and updating of knowledge that is held within an organization. These systems allow employees to get access to information on processes, techniques, and workflows within a centralized location. This is particularly important when you have new employees that need to be trained and when you have retiring employees whose expertise you want to capture for the “next generation” of workers in your organization.
Another reason why Knowledge Management Software is incredibly useful is that in large organizations, it can be a great resource for preventing confusion, miscommunication, and preventable mistakes. This goes a long way to ensuring that your customers have a great experience and making sure that they want to continue doing business with you in the future. Down below are some bullet points on the key benefits of using Knowledge Management Software in your organization.
-Large amounts of information and data can be easily ordered.
-Collaboration is improved as information is more easily shared.
-Keep hold of knowledge collated by retiring employees, or those moving to new roles.
-You can create a knowledge repository for customers and users.
-Communication between isolated departments can be improved.
-Strengthen organizational processes using knowledge.
Companies may use Knowledge Management Software for a variety of different reasons. The two main reasons why Knowledge Management Software is used are to create an internal knowledge base for the benefit of the company and its employees and to create an easy FAQ section to benefit the organization’s customers. These are not the only reasons, however, as there are many more organizational benefits for the use of Knowledge Management Software. The bottom line though is that the use of Knowledge Management Software is generally used to increase the performance of organizations. It was found that 47% of companies that use Knowledge Management Software experience an increase in sales.
When you have the knowledge readily available, it prevents employees and team members from scrambling around for the answers to their questions. This frees up time for employees to get more work done and the ability for team workers to collaborate digitally also goes a long way in making sure that tasks are finished in an efficient manner. Automation, which can be found in many Knowledge Management Software also has a massively positive effect on organizational efficiency in general.
This question could be answered pretty quickly, just by saying ‘everyone’. We think that’s a bit of a cop-out answer though. Just because you may know that most people in an organization will use Knowledge Management Software, doesn’t mean you know why they’re using it. Different user groups will have different needs and requirements from their knowledge management and it is critical to identify these needs to ensure Knowledge Management Software is being used effectively.
New Employees: Knowledge Management Software is a great way to accelerate the growth of new employees and free up the time of the people training them. Rather than needing to be on hand to answer every question a new employee may have, the use of Knowledge Management Software can help managers to direct new hires to the appropriate resources that will help them to develop in their role.
Experienced Employees: The effective use of Knowledge Management Software will allow your organization to continue benefiting from the knowledge of ex-employers, even long after they’re gone. This is critical as the expertise of your ex-staff shouldn’t be forsaken, it can be a great learning tool for newer employees, and using this knowledge will likely keep your existing processes running smoothly. Especially when compared to a company that doesn’t use knowledge management.
Customers/Users: As previously discussed, customers or service users are also a big part of the demographic for Knowledge Management Software. They may have a question about how one of your products/services works, but may not want to wait to speak to someone. Having FAQs can help the customer to save time, yours and theirs whilst also giving them the answers they need.
Similarly, with other types of business tools, Knowledge Management Software can take multiple different forms depending on the intended use for the Software. Irrespective of these differences, all types of Knowledge Management Software are the same in the sense that they help users to create, encode and retrieve knowledge at a rapid pace. Down below, we’ll look into some of the different types of Knowledge Management Software that can be found.
Internal Knowledge Systems: These types of systems are the most common and are used internally by an organization to disseminate information and provide training for employees. These normally require an employee login and are used to increase internal efficiency and productivity.
External Knowledge Systems: These types of systems can normally be found on an organization’s website and don’t require any form of login. They are generally used to help answer questions from customers, users and these users can also be encouraged to answer questions from others. This can help to engage with your customers on an unprecedented level.
Hybrid Knowledge Systems: Despite the fact that many Knowledge Management Systems are one, or the other, there are some product lines that offer both in the same product. These systems are great because they offer a dual service that can be used to host knowledge in one location.
As we discussed previously, there are multiple different types of knowledge management systems and as a result, a lot of them will have different features. Despite some of the differences, many Knowledge Management Softwares will have common features. This is because the common features are normally the ones that have the highest necessity for organizations with their knowledge management strategy, Down below are some examples of the most common features in Knowledge Management Software.
Q&A Forums: A place where individuals can ask questions and get answers.
Searchable Content: A search bar that helps to search for content.
Public and Private Systems: Systems that can be accessed publicly and those that need a password/login to use.
File Sharing and Viewing: Files can be shared and viewed on the system between users.
Tagging Users: Users can be tagged in relevant content on the system.
Document Uploads: Relevant and important documents can be uploaded to the system.
Sharing Links: Links to important content and documents can be shared on the system.
Comments on Content: Users can leave notes and comments on specific content.
There are a number of different systems that operate similarly to Knowledge Management Software but still can’t be considered as such. Generally speaking, these systems are able to be integrated with the existing Knowledge Management Software, leading to a more in-depth and fit-for-purpose knowledge solution.
Content Management Systems: These systems can be easily integrated with Knowledge Management Software and will allow them to get files, documents from the CMS, and these can then be uploaded to the Knowledge Management Software. This makes the gathering and sharing of knowledge much more efficient.
Self-Service Systems: These are systems that allow customers to do things for themselves, rather than relying on the organization. These tools have a wide amount of variety, but knowledge management systems that are used externally and involve customers can be defined as self-service systems. Interestingly, 70% of users expect a website to have a form of self-service.
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