Defining the knowledge organization

Knowledge and the way it is managed is a key success factor for organizations in the current dynamic environment. Specialists including Prusak, Davenport, Senge and Bennet have contributed through their research and analysis on how organizations can evolve by managing knowledge, as well as on the
organizational factors that make the difference between success and failure. From their work, we derived the following characteristics of a knowledge organization:

An organization that anticipates and quickly adapts to a changing environment by:

absorbing and integrating feedback from partners, suppliers and customers;
applying practices that encourage the use of ideas of others and acknowledge the capabilities of employees to improve decision making and organizational effectiveness;
working in teams to achieve better and more balanced decision-making and to share knowledge and learning;
eliminating unnecessary processes while maximizing added value.

Well-functioning knowledge organizations thrive on a balanced combination of hierarchical management and individual, self-organizing (teams of) individuals who can be cross-coupled as needed. The balance achieved
between these two components of the system will depend upon the specific environment, mission, and leadership of the organization.

The question remains whether many organizations that consider themselves knowledge organizations are not in fact hierarchical or bureaucratic organizations of knowledge workers, characterized by one or more of the
following:

focus on organizational stability and the accuracy and repetitiveness of internal processes;
autocratic decision making by senior leadership with unquestioned execution by the workforce;
use of technology to improve efficiency and expect employees to adapt;
fixed processes to ensure precision and stability with little concern for value.

The majority of changes that an organization has to go through to become a knowledge organization is cultural, but technology can facilitate the process.

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Comment by Nancy White on June 29, 2010 at 7:39pm: Tom, thanks so much for sharing the Spanish version. We need more of these bridging practices, especially now that SIWA (the Spanish/S. American KS group) has intertwingled with KM4DeV!

Comment by Md Santo on May 28, 2010 at 2:55pm: The accurate model of a Knowledge Organization is Human Being. Human being equipped with 3 knowing tools. The first is human (physical) senses or peripheral nerve system representing Knowledge with Lower Consciousness (KLC). The second is human mind brain or central nerve system representing Knowledge with Medium Consciousness (KMC). And, the third is human consciousness DNA integrated with organ system representing Knowledge with Higher Consciousness (KHC).

In Human System Biology-based Knowledge Management (HSBKM) system, KLC resemblance to KM Tools covering IT/ICT, Web 1.0 and 2.0 including Social Media platforms. KMC resemblance to KM Process Framework covering Human (Tacit) Mind and Semantic Web. And KHC respectively to KM Standards (Culture and Value Management) covering Codified (Explicit) Knowledge and Organizational Culture (Learning Organization) (to get more insight visit http://delicious.com/mobeeknowledge/humansystembiology and/or http://www.scribd.com/doc/29259487/KNOWLEDGE-R-US-not-KNOWLEDGE-R-OURS )

The same with human being as complex adaptive system in nature, KM as the organization consciousness behaving as representative of Knowledge always acting as subject never as object as in Data and Information. The habitat of Knowledge always exist inside human body never outside as in Data and Information.

Therefore as within human body – human mind – as well as human spiritual existence, Knowledge Organization possessing also may variables of attributes such as voluntary, involuntary, autonomy, centralized, decentralized, consciousness, emotion, sensational, hierarchical integrated organ systems and other aspects that all are intermingled with high complexity

Comment by Tom Zeppenfeldt on May 27, 2010 at 11:19pm: Traducción en español (especialmente para la gente del Sharefair Cali ) : http://bit.ly/a7Zg1L