**3. Agents and processes in knowledge creation and management**

The development of KCM strategies implies theoretical and practical mastery of processes of mediating, creating and disseminating individual and collective knowledge and the participation of different agents with a clear delimitation of responsibilities which ensures the proper functioning of these processes and thus the success of the KCM strategy.

#### **3.1 Processes for knowledge creation and management**

The delimitation and understanding of the **processes involved** in KCM within organisations necessitates a previous outline of the purpose of this knowledge creation and management. Based on epistemological and ontological dimensions and on the interaction between tacit and explicit knowledge, Nonaka & Takeuchi (1999) have outlined four processes, now classics in the field (see Figure 1):

 **Socialisation:** A process in which knowledge is created by sharing one's experience and culture with other people (organisational culture).

The usefulness of CoPs in KCM processes, either online or offline (Table 2), depends not only on the knowledge they can share but also on other basic factors such as a shared identity and values. If these elements are present, the knowledge processes are facilitated and communication of the tacit knowledge becomes simplified, since their existence prompts the social conditions and trust needed to create and manage knowledge

Online communities Offline communities

Depends on the design of the community, the group dynamics and the degree of comfort at

Complicated and expensive. However, occasional gatherings (e.g., yearly) can be highly

productive and generate synergies

documentation and archives (such as transcriptions of recordings).

Analyses of social networks

speaking in public.

and trust.

(interviews).

Very high. Low; special steps are need for

Depends on the group dynamics, but it is relatively easy (users should only type

in their comments).

effective, affordable

Data mining, creation of clusters, analyses of social networks (interviews + digital real time analyses).

Table 2. Online vs. offline communities of practice (Rao, 2005, p. 42)

**3.1 Processes for knowledge creation and management** 

culture with other people (organisational culture).

classics in the field (see Figure 1):

**3. Agents and processes in knowledge creation and management** 

the proper functioning of these processes and thus the success of the KCM strategy.

The development of KCM strategies implies theoretical and practical mastery of processes of mediating, creating and disseminating individual and collective knowledge and the participation of different agents with a clear delimitation of responsibilities which ensures

The delimitation and understanding of the **processes involved** in KCM within organisations necessitates a previous outline of the purpose of this knowledge creation and management. Based on epistemological and ontological dimensions and on the interaction between tacit and explicit knowledge, Nonaka & Takeuchi (1999) have outlined four processes, now

**Socialisation:** A process in which knowledge is created by sharing one's experience and

networking.

Extremely useful. In fact, this is often the only solution for

Complicated. Easy.

(Hislop, 2005).

Usefulness for geographically disperse organisations

Reusability of the discussions and archives

Generation of trust and ties

Tools to analyse knowledgerelated behaviours

Ease of participation


Fig. 1. Spiral of the creation of organisational knowledge (Nonaka & Takeuchi, 1999, p. 81)

Compared to what we could call the "first generation of knowledge management" spearheaded by Nonaka & Takeuchi's "knowledge specialist" (1999), which assumes that valuable knowledge already exists within the organisation, through the Knowledge Management Consortium International (www.kmci.org) Firestone & McElroy (2003) are advocating the second generation of KCM, which is much more inclusive in terms of people, processes and social initiatives. It believes that knowledge does not exist a priori; rather it is something we produce as part of social systems and that we make through individual and shared processes.

As we can see, the main processes involved in KCM can be grouped as follows (Rodríguez-Gómez, 2009):


In addition to the basic and typical processes of KCM, developing an intervention of this kind in any organisation must necessarily take into account the generic aspects of project management, such as the project's appropriateness and pertinence to the characteristics,

Agents and Processes in Knowledge Creation

loss of knowledge.

"core team" (see Table 3).

Hawamdeh, 2003, p. 181).

resources available.

Technical Coordinator

Technology Coordinator

Network Knowledge Manager

organisational learning.

and Management in Educational Organisations 341

 **Chief Knowledge Officer (CKO**): This is a well-known figure in KCM, similar to the "learning director", "director of intellectual capital", "director of human resources" and similar positions. Thurow (2004) asserts that in light of the characteristics of our society, all organisations should have a CKO on their managerial teams. Some of the responsibilities and/or functions of the CKO include (Dalkir, 2005; Davenport & Prusak, 2001): defending knowledge and its learning; formulating the knowledge management strategy; designing, implementing and supervising the knowledge infrastructure; administering relations with outside suppliers of information and knowledge; providing critical information in the process of creating and using knowledge in the entire company; designing and implementing a company's knowledge codification methods; measuring and administering the value of knowledge; managing the knowledge management operations; managing the knowledge management professionals in the organisation; spearheading the development of a knowledge strategy; positively influencing organisational change; developing a knowledge culture; maximising the return on KCM investment; improving the innovation and commercialisation of ideas; and preventing the

 **Chief Learning Officer (**CLO): The CLO is in charge of spearheading the professional development in the organisation, focusing on the organisational culture, the kind of knowledge and lessons and the technology used. Ultimately, this person must foster

Some of these categories of KCM professionals are part of what De Tena (2004) calls the

"While the knowledge worker is any member of the organisation involved in a knowledgeintensive job, the knowledge professional is one who serves as a bridge between the knowledge workers and the decision-makers. These people have the competences needed to deal with the organisational knowledge and promote KM within the organisation" (Al-

According to the majority of authors (CEN, 2004; Dalkir, 2005; Gallego & Ongallo, 2004; Gorelick, Milton & April, 2004; Milton, 2005), the basic KCM team would include four people who would focus on KCM more or less exclusively and intensely according to the

Encourager This person remains close to the workers, getting the most from each

Moderator His or her job is the content: linking it, directing it, validating it.

position is the most similar to a CKO.

of them.

interaction".

Table 3. Functions of the "core team" (De Tena, 2004, p. 169)

He or she suggests the conceptual approach to the system by

analysing the processes, the context and individuals' capacities. This

This person's place is near the technology, creating the "motorways of

His or her job is to extract outside knowledge to feed the system.

demands and needs of the organisation and its environment; the involvement of personnel in the design and development of the process; and the communication to and awarenessraising of the members of the organisation, including many other factors.
