K now ledge Management: Understanding the Process of Some Elements (SECI M odel)

H aving u n d ersto o d the above definitions of know ledge m anagem ent, the next question relates to how know ledge m anagem ent im plem entation takes place. W ith this regard, the literature on the know ledge m anagem ent process is considered fragm ented, even th o u g h there is a large am o u n t of literature on know ledge. Therefore, as m entioned a little earlier on, m ore consistent analysis of the SECI M odel by N onaka an d K onno (1998) as show n in Figure 2.4.2 is the m ost ap p ro p riate w ay to explain the elem ents of socialisation, externalisation, com bination an d internalisation of know ledge m anagem ent. H ow ever, others m ay use term s like acquiring, selecting, using, externalising, internalising (Joshi and H olsapple, 1999); or

coordinating, protecting, acquiring reasoned applications (Gold, 2001); or identification, acquisition, developm ent, d istribution an d know ledge retention (Probst et al., 2000) and acquisition, dom ination, know ledge transfer, know ledge creation and know ledge application (Yahya an d Goh, 2002).

This section will p ro v id e a detailed discussion of how know ledge m anagem ent is practiced in the com pany. This u n d erstan d in g will th en be linked to the cu rren t stu d y on exploring how exactly M ultim edia Super C o rrid o r status com panies m anage their know ledge by ap p ly in g the SECI M odel of N onaka an d K onno (1998), w hich w as built on the earlier w orks by N onaka (1994) an d N onaka and Takeuchi (1995). This m odel involves socialisation, externalisation, com bination an d internalisation.

Figure 2.4.2

Spiral Evolution of Knowledge Conversion

___________________Tacit Knowledge Tacit Knowledge ► SOCIALISATION EXTERNALISATION

COMBINATION INTERNALISATION

Explicit Knowledge Explicit Knowledge

i: in d ivid u a l ^ g: group c: com panies

2.4.2.1 Socialisation

A great deal of tacit know ledge m ay be created d u rin g w orkers' socialisation. In fact, it m ay h ap p en w ith o u t being noticed. This tacit know ledge will fu rth er lead to w ard s know ledge creation activities, continuous innovation an d finally com petitive ad v an tag e (M eng Li an d Fei Gao, 2003). This is w h y N onaka an d colleagues em phasised the need to tap this know ledge w hile w orkers are socialising am o n g them selves w ithin a n d outside the com pany. K erm ally (2002) provides exam ples like b rainstorm ing, inform al m eetings, discussions, dialogues, observation, on- the-job training, custom er interaction, coaching, m en to rin g an d learning g ro u p s th at can serve the p u rp o se of socialisation. From the "ba" (i.e. space) concept by N onaka an d K onno (1998), the earlier exam ples by Kerm ally (2002: p. 46) are also k n o w n as "originating ba" . In this view , feelings, em otions, experiences an d m ental m odels are involved d u rin g face-to-face interaction, w hich later develops into a sense of em pathy, trust, com m itm ent an d sy m p ath y to others. This is acknow ledged by Bennet (2001: p. 191) w h o stated that:

"Socialising in a cafeteria is, they allege, an effective and important knowledge transfer device: some conversation will focus on weather and other mundane matters, but mostly it will focus on work (especially current projects). Such informal exchanges enable people to ask each other 'who knows that' without feeling embarrassed, to test the reliability of information, to find out what other people think, to swap stories and to draw comparisons and jointly assess consequences."

In the light of the resource-based theory, it has been p roved that know ledge in this case is vital, in ord er for the know ledge w orkers to express an d leverage it to others. Also, in agreem ent w ith h u m an capital theory, education an d training will su p p o rt socialisation activities by encouraging learning enthusiasm am ong know ledge w orkers. H ow ever, there is still d o u b t as to w h eth er know ledge w orkers really w a n t to share their tacit know ledge or not. M eng Li and Fei Goa (2003: p. 8) critically poin ted o u t that:

"Following the nature of the logic, it may not be promising for an organisation to organise activities for sharing the tacit knowledge possessed by each individual; on the other hand, for implicitness, it would be very effective to arrange organisational activities through suitable incentive schemes to make the implicitness within a certain group explicit for the purpose of reusing the knowledge by larger groups of people within or across the organisation."

Therefore, the above q u o tatio n introduces the fu rth er assu m p tio n th at there could be a role for m otivational theory in u n d e rstan d in g how w e can encourage know ledge w orkers to participate in social activities an d to develop the ability to select an d identify the m ost suitable a n d /o r a p p ro p riate know ledge for the cu rren t needs of the com pany an d the self. Perhaps it could be suggested th at it is the role of h u m an resource m anagem ent to look fu rth er into this gap, as discussed fu rth er in C hapter 3.

2A.2.2 E xternalisation

This is the stage w here the conversion of tacit know ledge into explicit know ledge takes place. This is norm ally done by questioning and reconstructing the available know ledge w ith the p u rp o se of creating new know ledge (N onaka, 1994). The process of converting know ledge is arg u ed to be classified as "u sin g " the know ledge of the com pany by first generating an d th en externalising it for the com pany an d others alike (N onaka an d Konno, 1998).

M eetings, b u ild in g hypotheses an d m odels, com m unicating by cartoons, after-reaction review s, w orkshops, m aster classes, assignm ents an d best practice exchange are the suggested platform s for realising this basic process (Kermally, 2002). All these exam ples are linked to the "interacting

ba" (N onaka a n d Konno, 1998) w ith the p u rp o se of transform ing the earlier

tacit know ledge into an explicit form th ro u g h interactions. This then builds the u n d e rstan d in g th at if the socialisation activities are com m only conducted in inform al settings, externalisation is m ore form al.

In relation to organisational learning, it has been considered th at "d o u b le­ loop organisational learning" is an active process at this stage (M arra, 2004). In this regard, know ledge w orkers are encouraged to participate form ally in any of the above activities and to involve them selves in continuous learning. Sim ilar to the socialisation activities an d the h u m an capital theory, again h u m an resource m an ag em en t sh o u ld play an im p o rtan t role in p ro v id in g a conducive en v iro n m en t in w hich socialisation an d externalisation can take place.

2A.2.3 Com bination

C om bination of know ledge involves the integration of all the existent know ledge, i.e. m aking explicit know ledge m ore explicit. K now ledge w orkers norm ally do this d u rin g phone conversations, e-m ail exchange, m eetings, conferences an d th ro u g h any w ritten docum ents. In a "cyber ba" (N onaka an d K onno, 1998), the com bination process will indeed utilise inform ation technology th ro u g h groupw are, databases an d sim ilar devices. F urther exam ples, as p ro p o sed by Bennet (2001), include the "com pany yellow pages" a n d /o r a "com pany encyclopaedia". These th en store the explicit kn ow ledge in a m ore system atic way.

This is consistent w ith the know ledge-based theory of the com pany in w hich technology devices can becom e enabling tools for the effective transfer an d utilisation of know ledge (D avenport, 1996). For instance, the use of the above inform ation will ensure the sm oothness of the com pany's in tro d u ctio n to the new policy, p ro d u cin g new products, im plem enting new corporate objectives an d finally com piling the related inform ation for sales an d m ark etin g purposes. In this regard, the know ledge-based theory of the com pany is responsible for su p p o rtin g the need for a suitable technology system in o rd er to sm ooth these com bination activities.