Knowledge management: re-thinking information management and facing the challenge of managing tacit knowledge

Abstract: Knowledge management has generated much interest in recent years and has become the latest management buzz in town. Many people start wondering whether knowledge management is here to stay or it is just another consultancy fad. To put things in perspective, it is important to look at the sequence of events that led to the rise of knowledge management. The arrival of the information society and the move toward the knowledge-based economy highlighted the importance of tacit knowledge and the need to manage knowledge resources including skills and competencies. Knowledge management as a concept with people taking the centre stage has prompted us to rethink information management and shift focus from trying to develop intelligent systems to that of developing tools for intelligent people. It is this realization in my opinion that makes knowledge management attractive to many organisations. While the focus in information management is mostly on explicit knowledge, knowledge management brings a new dimension, the need to manage tacit knowledge by focusing on people and enhance their capability by improving communication, information transfer and collaboration.

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