The Design and Implementation of Effective
Knowledge Management Systems

Ford Motor Company MBA Fellowship

By Steve Morrissey
January 10, 2005

Supervised by:
Professor Paul J.H. Schoemaker

Knowledge, innovation and firm performance in high- and low-technology regimes

Industries with greater aggregate levels of research and development (R&D) intensity are home to higher rates of firm-level innovation, according to survey data from 845 Canadian manufacturing firms. And, though innovation is more common when industry dynamism is high, innovative firms are likely to enjoy revenue growth, irrespective of the industry in which they operate. The research also shows that firm knowledge, industry dynamism and innovation interact in the way they influence firm performance. A highly skilled workforce is most beneficial to firm performance in dynamic environments, while firms in stable manufacturing industries benefit more from investments in training.

Keywords: Dynamism; Innovation; Knowledge

Knowledge Creation through Networked Strategic Communities Case Studies on New Product Development in Japanese Companies

This article provides a new point of view regarding the knowledge management of new product development, a high-tech field requiring the merging and integration of different technologies. Case studies examine the dynamism of the knowledge creation process at Fujitsu Ltd. as it merges and integrates the different elements of broadband network technology, computer and software technology, and multimedia processing technology, and these observations are analysed and compared with the NPD processes at other manufacturers. To achieve the desired product development, a strategic team at Fujitsu, consisting mainly of undisclosed cross-functional middle managers, swiftly transcended Fujitsu's business divisions to form strategic communities inside and outside the company, including customers, and then networked the communities together. The synthesizing capability of the network Leader Group enabled Fujitsu to build new business models aimed at customers and achieve a successful outcome ahead of Japanese competitors.

Based on action research with product development teams from Roche and DaimlerChrysler, and project teams from Pixelpark and Versicherungskammer Bayern, the following article proposes a model of how team leaders can improve the knowledge management within their teams. The model consists of five layers. The first layer describes the necessary communication platforms for a team. The second level, the normative layer, consists of team rules, goals, and standards. The third layer represents the core team knowledge processes. The fourth layer assembles the relevant tools. The last layer describes the necessary leadership functions to foster effective team knowledge management.

Keywords: High-performance teams, Knowledge management, Leadership, Team processes

Dynamic Knowledge Map: reusing experts' tacit knowledge in the AEC industry

Much knowledge in the Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) industry is experience-based and tacit. Nevertheless, the typical strategy for knowledge management is focused on computer-based approaches for capturing and disseminating explicit knowledge. AEC firms have been successful at collecting and storing explicit information in enterprise databases, but they are poor at knowledge retrieval and exchange. Consequently, AEC professionals find it difficult to reuse core experts' knowledge for highly knowledge-intensive AEC activities. This situation calls for a method for disseminating tacit knowledge from experts' brains to achieve higher quality AEC projects. The primary purpose of this paper is to set a theoretical foundation for clarifying the contribution of experts' tacit knowledge in the AEC industry. The secondary purpose is to describe the concept for prototype software, Dynamic Knowledge Map, that can assist in the reuse of experts' tacit knowledge. Dynamic Knowledge Map is a Web-based knowledge navigator that searches for experts and facilitates communication with those experts by using internet technology. Higher performance levels theoretically can be achieved while accelerating the knowledge transfer processes. Future research will test the suitability of Dynamic Knowledge Map for tacit knowledge utilization in AEC organizations.

Keywords: Internet; Dynamic Knowledge Map; AEC

Knowledge web-based system architecture for collaborative product development

The manufacturing competitive environment has intensified in recent years. In this environment, companies do not possess all the knowledge they need but instead rely on other organizations. This results in the need of distance product development, which in turn requires information and knowledge in the place, time and format required. In response to this need the research community has come with a solution called collaborative product development (CPD) systems. This paper introduces the partial results of the ongoing research to propose a knowledge driven CPD system architecture, which will facilitate the provision of knowledge involved in product development. This paper presents the research issues and industrial requirements for such system. Furthermore, the proposed system architecture is described in detail and its implementation is presented using a case study of an injection moulded product.

Keywords: Collaborative product development; Manufacturing model; Injection moulding process information; Knowledge web-based Engineering

Information technology support for the knowledge and social processes of innovation management

While the management of innovation is the most knowledge-intensive organizational process, its information technology support has received only fragmented attention. The majority of systems proposed are either aiming at augmenting individual creativity and productivity, or at increasing the productivity of communication among the actors involved. In this paper, building on the view of innovation as a process of consecutive problems resolution, we present an information systems framework that aims at integrating different actors' perspectives and tools across different activities, by explicitly addressing the knowledge and social dynamics of the whole process. The framework is based on a systemic problem-knowledge representation scheme and an evolutionary problem-resolution methodology that supports the innovation process in its entirety, enabling the gradual 'breeding' of innovation concept(s). After reviewing the relevant literature, we present the structure, functionality and use of Knowledge Breeder, a web-based software system that implements this methodology through a structured dialogue and a formal argumentation scheme. By means of a use case we show how this system can support the innovation process effectively.

Keywords: Innovation management; Knowledge management; Collaborative problem resolution

An analysis of interorganizational resource sharing decisions in collaborative knowledge creation

Collaborative relationships between organizations for knowledge creation have received considerable attention in recent literature. For any collaborative endeavor to succeed, adequate allocation and sharing of resources is important.
We explored the conditions of resource sharing in which organizations are motivated to collaborate for knowledge creation, as well as the conditions required for the collaboration to continue. Using the game theoretic framework, we modeled the collaboration for knowledge creation as a Stackelberg leader-follower game. Specifically, we modeled two scenarios, the first in which organizations expend current efforts only, and the second in which organizations have made relevant prior efforts. The equilibrium values of current efforts in knowledge creation, the leader organization's resource participation rate, and the total expected system gain in both of these scenarios were determined. Both within scenario and cross-scenario analyses were conducted. It is important to maintain an optimal ratio between the leader's and follower's marginal gains for the formation and continuation of the collaboration.