**2.1 Tacit and explicit knowledge**

290 New Research on Knowledge Management Models and Methods

Others argue their own points of view about knowledge and point out that it also occupies itself of creating an environment and a culture in which knowledge can evolve (Davenport & Prusak 1998; Wenger, 1998; Wenger & Snyder, 2000). For example, already in 1996

The emphasis of encoding in the KM literature probably reflects the predominance of the vision of information systems: many articles have been focused on the development and implementation of the KM databases, of tools –for example, decision supporting tools- and techniques despite the recognition, now very wide, that most spectacular improvements in

The lack of a rigorous definition and the aggressive promotion of technologists, has lead many people to point out that knowledge management is a fashion-like subject. Although the subject clearly exhibits the features of a fashion issue (Davenport & Grover, 2001), and even can be analyzed from the fashion perspective (Raub & Ruling, 2001), the consultancy firm TFPL (1999) considers that is probable that concepts and values of the knowledge management practice are deeply-rooted in the basic managing processes of the

*Knowledge management models.* Because of the divergence of points of view, opinions and ideas having the general motto of the knowledge management, it is necessary to identify a set of structures that allow that subjects make sense, a challenge that have been assumed by different researchers. An example, frequently cited, is that of Earl (2001), who proposes

**TECHNOCRATICS ECONOMICS BEHAVIOURAL** 

**based Commercial Company-**

Technology Maps Processes Incomes Networks Space Mentality Bases Directories Flows Goods Agreements Interchang Abilities Coding Conectivity Capacity Marketing Collaboration Interconexión Inventiveness

These schools identify the types of strategies that use the companies for knowledge management, and Earl categorizes them in three large types: Technocratic, Economical and Behavioral. The approach of Technocratic ones is to manage the knowledge through the information or management of the technologies that support and condition the employees in their daily tasks; the Economical ones explicitly have the goal of produce incomes by exploiting knowledge like an asset; the approach of the Behavioral ones is to manage the knowledge from a behavior-based perspective, in which they manage and encourage to directors and managers for creating, sharing and proactively using the knowledge resources

While these schools provide a useful classification of specific approaches, mainly in the issues related to how is used technology within a knowledge management initiative, it is considered that they do not achieve the emphasis of the epistemological base of the strategies of knowledge management, particularly because they do not efficiently classify the social aspects. Earl's social interaction model only is fully applied in the spatial school, which is centered in using the space the exchange of knowledge, like a chat in which is discussed about how to cool the water, o when builds are designed for knowledge exchange (Schultze & Boland, 2000; Ward & Holtham, 2000). However, many authors think that

**Related Spatial Strategical** 

the KM capacity in the next ten year will be in the human and managing issues.

seven strategic schools for knowledge management, as can be seen in Table 1.

Davenport et al. criticize the technologies approaches for KM:

companies.

(Earl, 2001).

**Systems Cartographic Engineering-**

Table 1. Schools of Knowledge Management by Earl (2001)

The following is an "official" definition of its differentiation:

On the one hand tacit knowledge is personal, context-specific and for this reason it is difficult to formalize and to communicate. The explicit knowledge is "codified", on the other hand, has to do with knowledge that can be transmitted in a formal and systematic language…Therefore, scientific objectivity is not the only source of knowledge. Much of our knowledge is the result of our determined effort to relate ourselves with the world… (Nonaka & Takeuchi, 1995, pp. 59-60).

The explicit knowledge requires being not subjective and can lie on databases, written reports, among others. In addition to this tacit knowledge subdivides itself in two categories not fully different:

Tacit knowledge includes cognitive and technical elements… mental models, cognitive elements, like schemes, paradigms, perspectives, beliefs and points of view, which help individuals to perceive and define its world. Opposite to that, knowledge technical elements include concrete know-how, jobs and abilities. This is important because cognitive elements of tacit knowledge are referred to single pictures of reality and to visions for the future; this is "what it is" and "what should be" (Nonaka & Takeuchi, 1995, p. 60).

It is important take notice that technical skills are mainly body-related skills.
