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CHAPTER TWO
SUMMARY OF FINDINGS FROM LITERATURE SURVEY
In the literature survey for this synthesis study, the focus was · HR and organizational development in KM
primarily on selected recent references that explore specific · Trans-disciplinary nature of KM
KM practices. Authors vary in their points of view on KM, · Characteristics of successful KM programs
depending in part on chronology and in part on their own pro- · Specific KM practices
fessional expertise. Earlier writings focused more on tech- · Measuring KM effectiveness.
nology, more recent writings on HR aspects. The most recent
writings emphasize combinations of approaches using tech- Appendix L contains annotated resources of various types,
nology, human resources, organizational development, and including websites, academic institutions, and other resources.
physical and digital document and content-rich repositories
(people issues, process issues, and technology).
LITERATURE SURVEY SUMMARY:
KNOWLEDGE AS AN ASSET
Chapter two summarizes the findings from the literature
survey and puts them into context in light of the findings In a sense, the two references to Peter Drucker's writings in
from the responses given by the STAs to the questionnaire. this literature survey can be considered a set of bookends.
Note that the literature survey findings regarding leave- There may have been others, but Peter Drucker laid out the
taking have been included with the questionnaire results in overall concept of knowledge as a valuable asset that needed
chapter three. management attention in 1969. Thirty years later, he re-
affirmed that, in his view, "the most important area for devel-
All references are annotated in the appendices and com- oping new concepts, methods, and practices will be in the
plete citation data are given in the References. Appendix J management of society's knowledge resources" (Drucker
is an annotated literature survey of relevant standards and 1997, p. 24). During the ensuing 30 plus years, KM has come
guidance documents issued by internationally recognized
of age as a business process.
standards-developing organizations. These types of docu-
ments are useful because they emerge from a broad consen-
Leonard-Barton (1995) also saw knowledge as an asset,
sus process and therefore offer a distilled view with input
but her special emphasis was on how cultural climate affects
from many quarters. All of the documents referenced in
an organization's ability to take full advantage of knowledge
Appendix J are "international," in that they were not issued
as an asset. She moved beyond document management and
by U.S. standards-developing organizations. To our knowl-
information technology (IT) as sole key drivers, to include
edge, the U.S. standards-developing community, as coordi-
nated by the American National Standards Institute, has not the "human resource" or what might be called the people-
published standards or recommended guidelines on KM, centric dimension. In her view, that dimension is needed to
although the Malcolm Baldrige Award does include "mea- maximize our knowledge assets.
surement, analysis, and knowledge management" as one of
its seven criteria. This award is given by the President of the Leonard-Barton's view of the importance of knowledge as
United States to businesses--manufacturing and service, central to an organization's success was reinforced by business
small and large--and to education and health care organiza- writers Nonaka and Takeuchi (1995) who claimed that KM is
tions that apply and are judged to be outstanding in seven not something done simply at the personal level by profession-
areas: leadership; strategic planning; customer and market ally trained, conscientious employees, but is an organization-
focus; measurement, analysis, and KM; HR focus; process wide responsibility, at all levels. Their view was that knowl-
management; and results. However, there are excellent ref- edge creation was the most important factor behind the
erences from the International Standards Organization (ISO), competitive success of Japanese firms. Indeed, the concept of
CEN, Australia, Great Britain, and Denmark. managing knowledge as an asset, comparable to financial,
physical, or human assets, is gaining in importance worldwide.
Appendix K contains an annotated literature survey from
a variety of sources organized around these topics: ISO 9004 Quality Management Systems--Guidelines for
Performance Improvements (2000) sets the stage for a wide-
· Knowledge as an asset scale implementation of KM, because it specifically requires
· KM as a business process (for those organizations seeking certification) that both tacit
