Knowledge Management Models

KNOWLEDGE
MANAGEMENT
MODELS
BY : Tilahun Deribe
December 2015

Outline
• Introduction
• The Nonaka and Takeuchi Knowledge Spiral Model
• The von Krogh and Roos Model of Organizational
Epistemology
• The Choo Sense-Making KM Model
• The Wiig Model for Building and Using Knowledge
• Boisot KM model
• Complex Adaptive System Models of KM
• Conclusion
• Recommendations

Introduction
 Knowledge management
 was defined as the process of applying a systematic
approach to the capture, structuring, management, and
dissemination of knowledge throughout an organization to
work faster, reuse best practices, and reduce costly rework
(Nonaka and Takeuchi, 1995).
 A model
 is defined as representation of a system that allows for
investigation of the properties of the system and, in some
cases, prediction of future outcomes.
 A knowledge management model
 gives us the representation of the KM for the investigation
of its properties for better understanding and systematizing
our knowledge about knowledge management.

 The first widely adopted KM model
 was the SECI model (knowledge spiral model)
 described how tacit knowledge and explicit
knowledge can be transformed in an organization.
 it has been extended, modified, and alternative
KM models have been

Major Knowledge Management Models
 The Nonaka and Takeuchi Knowledge Spiral
Model (1995)
The Von Krogh and Roos Model of
Organizational Epistemology (1995)
 The Choo Sense-Making KM Model (1998)
 The Wiig Model for Building and Using
Knowledge (1993)
 The Boisot I-Space KM Model (1998)
 Complex Adaptive System Models of KM

The Nonaka and Takeuchi
Knowledge Spiral Model
 The Nonaka and Takeuchi model of KM
 has its roots in a holistic model of knowledge
creation.
 The tacit/explicit spectrum of knowledge
 forms (the epistemological dimension) and
 the individual/group/organizational or three-
tier model of knowledge sharing and diffusion
 Forms the ontological dimension
 both needed to create knowledge and produce
innovation (Dalkir, 2011, p.64).

Two Types of Knowledge:
 explicit knowledge,
 contained in manuals and procedures, and
 tacit knowledge,
 learned only by experience, and communicated only indirectly, through
metaphor and analogy.

 The SECI model is a well known conceptual model
 describes how explicit and tacit knowledge is generated, transferred,
and recreated in organizations
 Making personal knowledge available to others in the company
 is at the core of this KM model.
 knowledge creation process takes place continuously and it occurs at all
levels of the organization
 In many cases, the creation occurs in an unexpected or unplanned way
(Dalkir, 2011, p.65).

Four Modes of Knowledge
Conversion
 Socialization (tacit to tacit),
 Externalization (tacit to explicit),
 Combination (explicit to explicit), and
 Internalization (explicit to tacit).

The von Krogh and Roos Model of
Organizational Epistemology
 the first model that clearly distinguishes between
individual knowledge and social knowledge
 the following aspects are analyzed:
 why and how the knowledge gets to the employees of
a company
 why and how the knowledge reaches the organization
 what does it mean knowledge for the
employee/organization
 What are the barriers for organizational knowledge
management (Cristea and Căpaţînă, 2009).

The von Krogh and Roos Model
cont..
 The cognitive perspective states that
 a cognitive system, no matter if it’s human or artificial, creates
representations (models) of the reality, and
 process of learning appears when this representations are somehow
manipulated (used in different inferences).
 A cognitive epistemology sees
 organizational knowledge as a system with self-organization
characteristics, where people are transparent to the information
coming from the exterior.
 The information it is not just taken from the exterior environment,
it can be generated also internally.
 The familiarity and practice are leading to learning.
 The employees form nodes of an organizations system, with
relative weak links – knowledge represents an emergent
phenomenon which comes from the social interaction of these
persons

The Choo Sense-Making KM
Model
 stresses sense making, knowledge creation and
decision making.
 “knowing organizations” are those which use information
strategically in
(a) sense making, (b) knowledge creation and (c) decision
making.
 Sense making
 long term goal is the warranty that organizations will adapt
and continue to prosper in a dynamic and complex
environment through activities of prospecting and
interpretation of relevant information enabling it to
understand changes, trends and scenarios about clients,
suppliers, competitors and other external environment
actors.
 the reduction of uncertainty and the management of
ambiguity (Neto et al, 2009).

The Choo Sense-Making KM
Model cont..
 Knowledge Creation
 is a process that allows an organization to create or
acquire, organize and process information in order to
generate new knowledge through organizational learning
 The new knowledge generated, in its turn, allows the
organization to develop new abilities and capabilities,
create new products and new services, improve the
existing ones and redesign its organizational processes.
 Decision-Making.
 The organization must choose the best option among
those that are plausible and presented and pursue it based
on the organization’s strategy.
 Decision making process in organizations is constrained
by the bounded rationality principle

The Wiig Model for Building and
Using Knowledge
 highlights the following principle:
 in order for knowledge to be useful and valuable,
it must be organized.
 Dimensions the Wiigs KM model are:
 completeness,
 connectedness,
 congruency, and
 Perspective and purpose (Dalkir, 2011, pp.76-77).

Degrees of Internalization
Level Type Description
1 Novice Extremely low consciousness (even not at all) about
knowledge and the way it can be used
2 Beginner He knows about knowledge existence and where it can
be obtained, but he doesn’t know the way it can be used
3 Competent Knows, but the possibility of using knowledge is limited
4 Expert He keeps the knowledge in mind, understands where
can be applied, works with knowledge without extern
intervention
5 Master Completely internalization of knowledge; a master has a
profound understanding about the events in his
environment
Table 1: Degrees of Internalization in Wiig Model

Four Types of Knowledge:
 based on facts, conceptual knowledge, methodological knowledge and
expectation knowledge.
 Knowledge based on facts
 is about data, causal links, measures and readings – having an observable
content, directly measurable.
 Conceptual knowledge
 implies systems, concepts and perspectives.
 Methodological knowledge
 is used by strategies, methods for decision refining and other techniques.
 Example - situations when the company is learning from previous mistakes or
has the ability to make forecasts based on events analysis
 Expectation knowledge refers to
 judgments, hypothesis and expectations of the persons that possess them.
 As examples- intuitions, suppositions and heuristics that we use while making
decisions.
 forms of knowledge, combined with the perspectives proposed by Wiig,
form a matrix which constitutes
 the core of Wiig knowledge management model

Boisot KM model
 The Boisot KM model is based on the key concept
of
 an "information good“ that differs from a physical
asset.
 Boisot distinguishes information from data by
emphasizing that
 information is what an observer will extract from data
as a function of his or her expectations or prior
knowledge.
 Boisot (1998) proposes the following two key
points:
 The more easily data can be structured and converted
into information, the more diffusible it becomes.
 The less data that has been so structured requires a
shared context for its diffusion, the more diffusible it

Boisot KM model cont…
 Boisot's model can
be visualized as
three dimensional
cube with the
following
dimensions:
 from uncodified to
codified,
 from concrete to
abstract,
 from undiffused to
diffused.

Boisot Cont ..
 He proposes a
Social Learning
Cycle (SLC) that
uses the I-Space
to model the
dynamic flow of
knowledge
through a series
of six phases.

Name Characteristics
1 Scanning Identifying threats and opportunities
for the discovery of new visions.
2 Problem
solving
process which offers structure and
coherence
3 Abstractio
n
Generalization of applying new
codified visions
4 Diffusion Sharing new visions with a certain
number of persons
5 Absorptio
n
Applying new codified visions to
different situations
6 Impact Including knowledge in real practices

Complex Adaptive System Models
of KM
 sees organization as an adaptive, complex
system.
 models contain series of functions
 based on cybernetics principles,
 using communications and control mechanisms in
order to understand, describe and predict what should
do a viable organization.
 contain lots of independent agents which are
interacting.
 There is no general authority to manage the way in
which these agents should work.
 A general model of a complex behavior will be the
result of all the interactions.

Conclusion
 Several models of KM were introduced.
 The first widely adopted KM model was the SECI
model
 KM models helps us get a deeper understanding
 A model-driven KM approach enables not only a
better description but also helps to provide a
better prescription for meeting organizational
goals.
 Each model has its strength and weakness and
 no one model fully represents all dimensions and
entire spectrum of Knowledge management.

Coverage Area/Model
TheNonakaandTakeuchi
KnowledgeSpiralModel
ThevonKroghandRoosModel
ofOrganizationalEpistemology
TheChooSense-MakingKM
Model
TheWiigModelforBuilding
andUsingKnowledge
TheBoisotI-SpaceKMModel
ComplexAdaptiveSystem
ModelsofKM
Acquisition and creation of knowledge √ √ √ √
Codification sharing of knowledge √ √
Levels of interaction of knowledge
(individual/ group/ organizational/ inter-
organizational, individual/public) √ √ √ √ √
Processes in the use of knowledge
(knowledge creation, sense making,
decision making etc.) √ √ √ √
Levels of internalization of knowledge √
Types of knowledge and conversion
(tacit/explicit,fact/concept etc) √ √ √ √
Qualities and dimensions of knowledge
√ √

Recommendations
 Organizations and knowledge management
experts
 need to use the km models for
 better understanding and
 effective implementation of km systems.
 However, as no one model is complete
 for representing the complex nature of knowledge
management,
 organizations need to use a combination of models to suit
their organizational setting and business goals for the
effective implementation of knowledge management
systems.

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