What knowledge management is all about ?
I love this cartoon! It shows the non-sens of "knowledge management" and makes fun of all the buzz around this new management tool: how to look smart by using "bullshit" terms in your company ? Use buzz words!
Let's think how to define Knowledge Management ? It is one of the most tricky thing to do when you are interested in that area.
As I get more mature on that subject, I would define it as "the study of the organizational conditions that make it possible to do something useful with knowledge to accomplish objectives through the structuring of people, technology, and knowledge content".
This is my definition of KM. I think we should talk about "conditions" instead of a clear process with steps including indentification, capitalisation, transfer and creation. Why ? Because in companies, these steps are not crystal clear!
What is clear (or seems to be clear) is that a lot of companies implementing KM initiatives are modifying the conditions under what people are sharing what they know. As Teece has underlined, KM is a multifaceted matrix of techniques. That is why defining KM is so difficult. I propose some definitions I have captured during my PhD Seminar in Copenhagen Business School.
