Components of Knowledge Systems

Comp angiotensin-converting enzyments of a fellowship worry System A Knowledge care System (KMS) refers to either a engineering- ground or non-technical interconnected congregation of buy the farms t lid have behaviour that enables or facilitates either (or a combination of) the discovery, capture, integration, sharing or economy of the familiarity directd by an governance to meet its objectives. It provide comprise a part of a Knowledge Management beginning(a) or dodging to improve the public utility company of an organisations intellectual capital. A knowledge circumspection carcass is inherently a soft open frame. This means that boundaries argon permeable and difficult to position.What may be useful to one person in one part of an organisation may be useless to someone else in an other department. Any knowledge management initiative must therefore establish clear achievable goals that deliver benefits to the organisation, or a sub-set of the organisation, and take into account user and stakeholder requirements. The key principle is that it must be useful and solve a problem. A successful knowledge management system is founded on a clear understanding of ? ? ? ? ? what the organisation considers to be organisational knowledge what the organisations knowledge goals are here knowledge resides in an organisation, and its form what knowledge components must be managed and finally the absolutely central consumption of people in any system. The essential components of a Knowledge Management System can be seen in the model at condition 1. Figure 1. Components of a Knowledge Management System The following table describes the components of a KMS. Component Description 1. Strategy A KMS should be part of a strategy that identifies the key needs and issues within the organisation, and provide a framework for addressing these. 1. 1. ProblemA problem or opportunity facing the organisation needs to exist. W hat special(prenominal) worldview justifies th e existence of a KM system? (What point of view makes this system meaningful? ) 1. 2. Purpose / objective A KMS should have an explicit Knowledge Management objective of some type such as collaboration, sharing good practice or the like. 1. 3. Policy Any KMS should be linked to an organisational policy 1. 4. ecesis Any KMS must be managed properly and a governance framework that articulates roles and responsibilities is a necessary part of a KMS. 1. 5. CultureThe culture, values and beliefs of the people within an organisation affects the way in which they may be receptive to a KMS. 1. 6. Risk W hat are the risks within an organisation to the success of a KMS? 2. Actors pot are central to any KMS and there are different participants with differing backgrounds and experiences. There are a number of roles to carry out a range of activities tangled in an effective KMS. 2. 1. Owner W ho owns the business process and has the authority to abolish this system or change its measures of p erformance? 2. 2. Source W ho/what currently holds the knowledge and where does it reside? . 3. Clients W ho are the beneficiaries of this particular system? (Who would benefit or suffer from its operations? ) 2. 4. Managers W ho is responsible for implementing this system? (Who would carry out the activities which make this system work? ) 2. 5. Enablers W ho else needs to be involved to make the knowledge system work such as IT administrators or HR support staff 2. 6. Boundary Spanners Those people who connect workgroups in the organisaiton 3. Infra organize Most KMSs will require some form of infrastructure to enable the system to function. 3. 1. FacilitiesW hat facilities are required to support the KMS function? 3. 2. Equipment W hat equipment is required to enable the KMS to function effectively? 3. 3. Repositories W here will the KMS store any information or knowledge? 3. 4. Instruments There may be a series of instruments, tools or templates required to support the capture, c reation and sharing of the corporate knowledge . This might also include directories, taxonomies or ontologies. 3. 5. Software Any software solutions that enable or comprise the KMS 3. 6. Networks The social or electronic networks that enable a KMS . 7. Hardware Is there are requirement for any additional hardware 4. Functionality KMSs are develop to support and enhance knowledge-intensive processes, tasks or projects of e. g. , creation, construction, identification, capturing, acquisition, selection, valuation, organization, linking, structuring, formalization, visualization, transfer, distribution, retention, maintenance, refinement, revision, evolution, accessing, retrieval and last but not least the occupation of knowledge, also called the knowledge life cycle. 4. 1. LogicA KMS may be based on some underpinning logic or conept 4. 2. Business rules Any system requires business rules to control the operation of the system. 4. 3. Transformation W hat transformation does this sys tem bring about? (What are the inputs and what transformation do they go by to become the outputs? ). There should be an transformation mode identified Socialisation alter / sharing Externalisation Knowledge capture Combination Business Intelligence Internalisation Knowledge Delivery 4. 4. Integration Does the KMS need to integrate with any other system? 4. 5. TailoringA KMS should sense the response of the invitee to the user of the KMS and preferably be able to adjust the mode, complexity, order and extent of the interaction being experienced by the client. 4. 6. Administration W hat administration is required in order to support the KMS? 4. 7. Reporting W hat reporting is required to support the management of the KMS? 4. 8. Procedures W hat processes need to be documented into procedures to be able to apply appropriate controls and guidance to support the KMS? 4. 9. Content Management W hat content management functionality is required to support the management of the KMS? 5.Delivery 5. 1. Mode Any KMS requires the delivery or facilitation of knowledge or a knowledge management service. coetaneous Technique Same Time, Same Place asynchronous Technique (AT) Different Time, Same Place Distributed Synchronous Collaboration (DSC) Same Time, Different Place Distributed Asynchronous Collaboration (DAC) Different Time, Different Place 5. 2. Facilitation A KMS must have an interface where people interact with the system. This could be a facilitator or utilise technology via Visual, Audio or Experiential/tactile modes to facilitate the interaction of the user/client with the system. . 3. Style The effectiveness of a KMS can be enhanced through the adoption of a style that is consistent with the culture of an organisation. Style sends important messages to a client about the KMS. 5. 4. Techniques Delivery of a KMS may require the application of skills and techniques in order to be successful. 5. 5. Access Control A KMS should identify and target clients to enable appropriate personnel and lock out inappropriate personnel. 5. 6. availability A KMS needs to be accessible to people with physical restrictions or a disability 5. 7. PersonalisationA KMS should be able to be personalised to suit the client 6. Content Some KMS will hold content to enable the system to function. 6. 1. Lifespan Content may be static, dynamic or compiled on the flee (mash-up) 6. 2. Authoring The content within a KMS needs to be effectively authored/prepared in a form that is usable to the client 6. 3. Publishing A publish process and model needs to be in place to authorise and control release of content 6. 4. Validation and referencing of Source Content needs to be obtained from authentic sources and the sources need to be identified and verifiable. 6. 5.Stewardship of the content Ownership/stewardship of the content is important as a management process to ensure the effective delivery and utilisation of the KMS 6. 6. round and update Any content held by a KMS should be subject to a review and update protocol. 6. 7. Security Any separate content held by a KMS must be adequately protected. 6. 8. Taxonomy Content held by a KMS may need to be sorted into an appropriate structure to enable easy discovery and use. 6. 9. Catalogue Any content held by a KMS may require cataloguing in order to better manage the information. 6. 10. var. ControlAny content held by a KMS should be subject to version control. 6. 11. Disposal Any content held by a KMS that is no longer relevant or valued should be disposed of. 7. Continuous improvement A KMS should be regularly reviewed to ensure that it is meeting the objectives identified in the strategy and requirements. 7. 1. Feedback Feedback on the utility of a KMS is important to identify issues that need to be addressed. 7. 2. Performance management A Performance Management sub-system should include Indicators, Levels/Measures, a collection process, analysis and reporting. 7. 3. Review and AuditThird par ty review or audit of the effectiveness of a KMS may be appropriate. 7. 4. Benefits Realisation Management of the KMS is required in order to ensure that the benefits are being realised and the organisation is achieving the objectives it set out to meet in the development and implementation of the KMS. References and Further Reading Durant-Law, G. , The Essential Components of a Knowledge Management System Knowledge Matters. Available at http//www. durantlaw. info/essential-components-ofknowledgemanagement-system Langton, N & Robbins, S. (2006). Organizational Behaviour (Fourth Canadian Edition).Toronto, Ontario Pearson Prentice Hall. Maier, R (2007) Knowledge Management Systems Information And conference Technologies for Knowledge Management. 3rd edition, Berlin Springer. Shelley, A, The Organizational Zoo Resources. Available at http//www. organizationalzoo. com/resources Snowden, D, Cognitive Edge. Available at http//www. cognitiveedge. com/blogs/dave/2009/09/defining_km. php Standards Australia, AS 5037-2005 Knowledge management a guide Tiwana, A. , 1999. Knowledge Management Toolkit, The Practical Techniques for Building a Knowledge Management System, Pearson Education.