Situated Learning and the Situated Knowledge Web: Exploring the Ground Beneath Knowledge Management.

Author List: Nidumolu, Sarma R.; Subramani, Mani; Aldrich, Alan;
Journal of Management Information Systems, 2001, Volume 18, Issue 1, Page 115-150.
Knowledge is now recognized as an important basis for competitive advantage and many firms are beginning to establish initiatives to leverage and manage organizational knowledge. These include efforts to codify knowledge in repositories as well as efforts to link individuals using information technologies to overcome geographic and temporal barriers to accessing knowledge and expertise. We suggest that Knowledge Management (KM) efforts, to be successful, need to be sensitive to features of the context of generation, location, and application of knowledge. To this end, we highlight the situated organizational learning perspective that views knowledge as embedded in individuals, in connections between individuals, and in artifacts as a useful lens to examine phenomena related to the establishment of KM initiatives. In an ethnographic case study of an effort to change knowledge-work processes in a market research firm, we apply the situated knowledge perspective to highlight the factors responsible for the limited success of the initiative in the firm. This study suggests that a consideration of the situated knowledge web and the alignment of the initiatives with the features of the knowledge web are central to success in knowledge management efforts in firms.
Keywords: ethnographic methods; knowledge management; organizational change; qualitative research; situated knowledge web; situated learning
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#185 0.200 change organizational implementation case study changes management organizations technology organization analysis successful success equilibrium radical efforts initiatives managing resistance individuals
#245 0.153 knowledge sharing contribution practice electronic expertise individuals repositories management technical repository knowledge-sharing shared contributors novelty features peripheral share benefit seekers
#95 0.100 learning mental conceptual new learn situated development working assumptions improve ess existing investigates capture advanced proposes types context building acquisition
#168 0.100 firms firm financial services firm's size examine new based result level including results industry important account does suggests characterize limited
#21 0.079 research information systems science field discipline researchers principles practice core methods area reference relevance conclude set focus propose perspective inquiry
#53 0.073 knowledge application management domain processes kms systems study different use domains role comprehension effective types draw scope furthermore level levels
#291 0.058 local global link complex view links particularly need thought number supports efforts difficult previously linked achieving simple poor individual rise