Effective knowledge management requires a hybrid of both people and technology
Authors
Fahy, Declan
Issue Date
2002
Degree
BA (Hons) in Human Resource Management
Publisher
Dublin Business School
Rights holder
Rights
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Abstract
Organisations are striving to compete in a dynamic market place characterised accelerated change, with technology being the catalyst of this transition. The quest for sustainable competitive advantages have led companies to look inward at their resource and capability base with the objective of maximising their assets in the light of the environmental opportunities and threats presented to them. To this end, companies have learnt that a focus on their people assets is key. For many firms, employees are already recognised as their greatest assets. It is the knowledge base of companies that is the building block for innovation, quality, and customer responsiveness. Most of this knowledge is tacit, wrapped up in 'peoples heads '. The aim of these companies is to codify such knowledge, make it explicit and diffuse across the entire organisation. Technology is seen as the enabling architecture to deploy this knowledge. This dissertation presents the hypothesis that ‘Effective Knowledge Management requires a hybrid of both People and Technology’. Both primary and secondary research was carried out. Primary research consisted of in-depth analysis of a private and public company, questioning their opinions of Knowledge Management within their respective firms. Both the literature review and primary research draws on the support of the hypothesis, emphasising that a hybrid of people and technology is required to satisfy the diffusion of knowledge and the effective management of same.