1. Becerra-Fernandez & Sabherwal -- Knowledge Management © 2010 M.E. Sharpe Chapter 13 The Future of Knowledge Management

2. Solving Wicked Problems Decision making process in an organization  Fathers of thought  Leibniz, Locke, Kant, Hegel, and Singer  Conventional process  Recognize problem  find solution  KM system used for specific needs and a predictable outcome

3. Solving Wicked Problems (continued-2) Implementation of an ERP system Implementation only happens once No opportunity to do it better the next time Organizations only know if it went bad on go-live day

4. Solving Wicked Problems (continued-3) Globalization As an organization expands, it stakeholders increase Stakeholders subject to more regulation, customs, and behavior  Considerations for implementing a KM system: 1.Technical perspective 2.Personal and individual perspective 3.Organizational and social perspective 4.Ethics and aesthetics perspective Web 2.0  Personal relationships define organizational boundaries and therefore have to be considered Becerra-Fernandez & Sabherwal -- Knowledge Management © 2010 M.E. Sharpe

5. Protecting Intellectual Property (IP) IP can be defined as any results of a human intellectual process that has inherent value to the individual or organization that sponsored the process It includes inventions, designs, processes, organizational structures, strategic plans, marketing plans, computer programs, algorithms, literary works, music scores, and works of art, among many other things

6. Becerra-Fernandez & Sabherwal -- Knowledge Management © 2010 M.E. Sharpe Protecting Intellectual Property (IP) (cont.-2) IP is valuable to organizations an must be protected  Knowledge leakage vs. knowledge protection  A careful balance must be struck  Knowledge is a competitive advantage  Should not be forgotten  Should not be lost to competition  However, should not be siloed  Knowledge overprotection can lead to organizational stagnation

7. Becerra-Fernandez & Sabherwal -- Knowledge Management © 2010 M.E. Sharpe IP Losses Can Happen in Many Ways Employee turnover. Physical theft of sensitive proprietary documents, either by outsiders or by insiders. Inadvertent disclosure to third parties without a nondisclosure agreement. Reverse engineering. The Web repository security is breached and unauthorized access to the proprietary documents takes place. Unauthorized parties intercept electronic mail, fax, telephone conversation or other communications for the purpose of illicitly acquiring knowledge. Attempts by insiders or outsiders to corrupt documents or databases with false data, information, or knowledge.

8. Becerra-Fernandez & Sabherwal -- Knowledge Management © 2010 M.E. Sharpe How to Protect the Organization from IP Losses Nondisclosure Agreements  Contract to use IP  Trusted third parties  Employees Patents  Government-granted monopoly to an inventor for created work or product  Good legal protection from leakage and reverse engineering Copyrights  Protect and expression of work  Good for works of art or software Trade Secrets  Nonpatented, but still protectable invention

9. Internal vs. External Knowledge Creators Democratization of knowledge Internal sources  Blogs and wikis  Across all levels and departments External sources  Crowdsourcing  Collective intelligence Becerra-Fernandez & Sabherwal -- Knowledge Management © 2010 M.E. Sharpe

10. Internal vs. External Knowledge Creators (cont.-2) Possible Barriers  Privacy concerns  Self-censorship for self-preservation  Individuals’ need for privacy  Concerns related to “knowledge as power”  Fear that externalization may reduce need for individual  Job security fears  Fear of loss of influence  Incentivization is a possible solution  Senior executives’ reluctance to make necessary changes: 1.Creation of a flatter organizational structure 2.Incorporation of diverse perspectives 3.Allow redundancy 4.Let go of their power Becerra-Fernandez & Sabherwal -- Knowledge Management © 2010 M.E. Sharpe

11. Looking at the Future The future of knowledge management, will be highlighted by three continuing trends:  (1) KM will benefit from progress in information technologies  (2) KM will continue the shift toward integrating knowledge from a variety of different perspectives  (3) KM will continue to make trade-offs in numerous important areas

12. Becerra-Fernandez & Sabherwal -- Knowledge Management © 2010 M.E. Sharpe …From Progress in Information Technologies KM will benefit from continual, and even more dynamic, progress in information technologies Improvements in cost/performance ratios of IT have caused the cost of digitizing information to approach zero, and the cost of coordinating across individuals, organizational subunits, or organizations to approach zero as well "evolutionary agents" may be dramatically different in their abilities to:  build theories and create a world of their own  assume any virtual identity they wish  possess free will  develop a moral code and a value system of their own

13. Becerra-Fernandez & Sabherwal -- Knowledge Management © 2010 M.E. Sharpe …Toward Integrating Knowledge from Different Perspectives KM will continue the shift toward bringing together, and effectively integrating, knowledge from a variety of different perspectives KM originated at the individual level, focusing on the training and learning of individuals The impact of KM is expected to continue with its use across networks of organizations and across governments, enabling collaborations across historical adversaries and integrating knowledge across highly diverse perspectives and disciplines

14. Becerra-Fernandez & Sabherwal -- Knowledge Management © 2010 M.E. Sharpe …Make Trade-offs in Numerous Important Areas Same communication technologies that support the sharing of knowledge within an organization also enable the knowledge to leak outside the organization to its competing firms It is essential to maintain a balance between using technology as substitutes for people (e.g., software agents) and using technology to enable collaboration from a wider range of people within and across organizations

15. Becerra-Fernandez & Sabherwal -- Knowledge Management © 2010 M.E. Sharpe Conclusions The future of KM is one where people and advanced technology will continue to work together, enabling knowledge integration across diverse domains, and with considerably higher payoffs The future of KM will clearly be exciting due to the new opportunities and options, but interesting challenges definitely lay ahead for knowledge managers