Knowledge in organizations – Lectures
Lecture 1
What’s happening? Automation/industrial society -> to
digitalization -> to datafication (surveillance capitalism)
Look at slide for picture
-> Data is the new resource for organizations!!
3 problems with concept of knowledge
1. It is ontologically / epistemologically incoherent
2. Vague; knowledge is everything and everything is
knowledge
3. Not neutral, not even always functional
Knowledge management; the more emphasize on management, the less it is about
knowledge. Vice versa; the more emphasise on knowledge, the
less management matters
4 discourses on knowledge management ->>>
2 dimensions; epistemology and social order
How knowledge is defined is a matter of epistemology
1. Epistemology; philosophy addressing the nature of
knowledge. How do we define what is true? What is regarded as valid knowledge and
why?
Dualism; what is knowledge? (objective, frozen in time, either/or;
subjective/objective,
Duality; when is knowledge? (both/and/as well as, no clear cut distinction, one
does not exist without the other, both objective and subjective at the same time,
object is continuously shaped by context, takes time into account; can change
over time)
2. Social order -> continuum bounded by;
o Sociology of regulation – society tends towards ideal state of integration,
equilibrium and order CONSESNSUS
Trust, common interest, science/knowledge is neutral
o Sociology of radical change – forces of coercion, conflict and change are
continuously challenging the established social order (truce is only temporary)
DISSENSUS
Suspicion, conflict of interest, science/knowledge is political
Radical change sees power as one of the main forces
what is pushing society forward, regulation not!!
See assumptions of the 4 approaches in the right ->>
Lecture 2 Neo functional discourse
Discourse; way of thinking of structuring the world,
and can see it in how people talk about it
1
,Neo functionalism; people take things for granted
Epistemological dimension
Objectivist;
-Neo functionalists ask what is knowledge? Which suggests that knowledge is perceived
as an object
-Epistemology of possession; you either have knowledge or you don’t
Dualism;
-The world is assumed to be completely and objectively knowable
-The world is constructed in terms of binaries or mutually exclusive opposites
(either/or, true/false)
-As a consequence; neo-functionalists favour classification, contingency theory
-Paradoxes or contradictions are an indication that
models, taxonomies and contingency models need
further refinement
Assumptions objectivism->>>>
Neo functionalist perspective; social order dimension
Social order dimension -> what is the nature of social
order as it is perceived in sociological and
organizational research?
Consensus vs dissensus ->>>
Consensus; trust, common interest
-Hegemonic order as natural state
-Science/knowledge is neutral
Neo functionalist perspective on KM:
Knowledge is neutral; it is
unnecessary to study knowledge as
related to power or power
differences within or between
organizations or people.
Knowledge contributes to progression, perfection, omniscience; it contributes to
the organization’s success.
Knowledge as an important asset for organizations.
Knowledge needs to be managed to realize its competitive advantage.
Managing knowledge includes the codification of knowledge.
Aim to achieve an optimal allocation of resources and to improve organizational
efficiency, effectiveness and competitiveness.
Focus on codification of all organizational knowledge and the optimization of
knowledge processes.
Problem;
1. Tacit knowledge can’t be valued as tacit knowledge because as such it is
unmanageable, however
2
, 2. When attempting to manage it, the advantages of tacit knowledge for a firm’s
competitive advantage are lost
Neo functionalists get in the way of capturing the more implicit knowledge and
experience, and part of what they are trying to capture is illusive
Tesla’s case; objectivism (patent), consensus (common interest, knowledge is neutral)
Contemporary importance of knowledge management
Knowledge society
<-> knowledge work, knowledge workers , firms
Knowledge society, post industrial society; a society where the service sector is dominant
and knowledge based goods have replaced industrial, manufactured goods as the main
wealth generators
Characteristics of post-industrial society;
-Service based economy
-Knowledge and information intensity of economic and social life
-Growing importance of theoretical knowledge in work
Knowledge society; society which is characterized by high levels of information and
knowledge intensity and in which the key wealth generators are
information/knowledge intensive industries
Knowledge intensive firms and organizations
No consensus on how to define a KIO
Companies where most work can be said to be of an intellectual nature and
where well-qualified employees form the major part of the workforce
3 dimensions to KIFS
-Knowledge intensity of the work (extent to which complex knowledge is needed for
creation of outputs)
-Capital intensity of the work (extent to which non human assets, e.g. patents and
factories are needed for creation of outputs) (low for KIF)
-Extent to which the workforce is professionalized (specialized knowledge +
institutionally regulated + code of ethics)
Knowledge workers – two perspectives
1. Professional knowledge work perspective (mainstream)
A knowledge worker is someone whose work is primarily intellectual, creative
and non-routine, and which involves both the utilization and creation of
abstract / theoretical knowledge (e.g. consultants, lawyers, It, accountant etc)
(work is intellectual and complex! Work where you need your brain) So makes a
distinction between knowledge workers and non knowledge workers
2. All work is knowledge work perspective
A knowledge worker is anyone whose work involves the use of a reasonable
amount of tacit and contextual and or abstract/conceptual knowledge (e.g. flute
makers, care workers, construction workers, copier engineers etc.)
3
, Knowledge based theory of the firm (objectivist perspective)
Core assumptions;
Knowledge as strategic resource, which can create a lasting competitive
advantage, especially knowledge which is difficult to replicate and copy
Knowledge as a valuable, rare, inimitable and non substitutable organizational
asset
Grant: knowledge is needed for the production of goods and services and this
knowledge resides in the individuals
The firm provides an effective mechanism for creating, acquiring storing and
integrating knowledge between individuals
No conflict of interest between workers, managers and owners.
Knowledge society -> knowledge as a strategic resource, which needs to be managed to
achieve competitive advantage
Alvesson & Karreman; Critique of knowledge management concept
Argument;
-Concept of knowledge is inconsistent, vague, broad, two faced and unreliable
-Concept of management; either treated as self-evident and unproblematic OR it is black-
boxed and not explicated
-Because of 1 and 2 the management of knowledge is not really possible. The concept is
oxymoronic or misleading
How can knowledge be managed according to the neo-functionalist discourse?
Knowledge sharing; conduit (transmitter/receiver) model
Sender -> knowledge (transmitter) -> receiver
KM; management function regarding knowledge
Knowledge management strategy = approach to the management of organisational
knowledge, it should;
1. Decide which knowledge is strategically relevant and set goals for KM to realize a
knowledge based competitive advantage (knowledge strategy)
Strategic KM (Denford & Chan) (strategic control)
2. Design organizational conditions to generate knowledge defined under 1
Tactical KM (infrastructural / design KM Ashby)
3. Select and implement the tools and measures developed under 2 in specific
situations
Operational KM (operational knowledge management, regulation)
1. Strategic knowledge; the process through which the organization arrives at its
knowledge strategy or the function in the organization that decides on the knowledge
strategy
2. Knowledge strategy; competitive strategy built around a firm’s intellectual
resources and capabilities
3. Km strategy / KM approach; the infrastructure and the approaches tools the
organizations develops and uses to manage knowledge
Factors influencing knowledge management approach
1) General business strategy
4
Lecture 1
What’s happening? Automation/industrial society -> to
digitalization -> to datafication (surveillance capitalism)
Look at slide for picture
-> Data is the new resource for organizations!!
3 problems with concept of knowledge
1. It is ontologically / epistemologically incoherent
2. Vague; knowledge is everything and everything is
knowledge
3. Not neutral, not even always functional
Knowledge management; the more emphasize on management, the less it is about
knowledge. Vice versa; the more emphasise on knowledge, the
less management matters
4 discourses on knowledge management ->>>
2 dimensions; epistemology and social order
How knowledge is defined is a matter of epistemology
1. Epistemology; philosophy addressing the nature of
knowledge. How do we define what is true? What is regarded as valid knowledge and
why?
Dualism; what is knowledge? (objective, frozen in time, either/or;
subjective/objective,
Duality; when is knowledge? (both/and/as well as, no clear cut distinction, one
does not exist without the other, both objective and subjective at the same time,
object is continuously shaped by context, takes time into account; can change
over time)
2. Social order -> continuum bounded by;
o Sociology of regulation – society tends towards ideal state of integration,
equilibrium and order CONSESNSUS
Trust, common interest, science/knowledge is neutral
o Sociology of radical change – forces of coercion, conflict and change are
continuously challenging the established social order (truce is only temporary)
DISSENSUS
Suspicion, conflict of interest, science/knowledge is political
Radical change sees power as one of the main forces
what is pushing society forward, regulation not!!
See assumptions of the 4 approaches in the right ->>
Lecture 2 Neo functional discourse
Discourse; way of thinking of structuring the world,
and can see it in how people talk about it
1
,Neo functionalism; people take things for granted
Epistemological dimension
Objectivist;
-Neo functionalists ask what is knowledge? Which suggests that knowledge is perceived
as an object
-Epistemology of possession; you either have knowledge or you don’t
Dualism;
-The world is assumed to be completely and objectively knowable
-The world is constructed in terms of binaries or mutually exclusive opposites
(either/or, true/false)
-As a consequence; neo-functionalists favour classification, contingency theory
-Paradoxes or contradictions are an indication that
models, taxonomies and contingency models need
further refinement
Assumptions objectivism->>>>
Neo functionalist perspective; social order dimension
Social order dimension -> what is the nature of social
order as it is perceived in sociological and
organizational research?
Consensus vs dissensus ->>>
Consensus; trust, common interest
-Hegemonic order as natural state
-Science/knowledge is neutral
Neo functionalist perspective on KM:
Knowledge is neutral; it is
unnecessary to study knowledge as
related to power or power
differences within or between
organizations or people.
Knowledge contributes to progression, perfection, omniscience; it contributes to
the organization’s success.
Knowledge as an important asset for organizations.
Knowledge needs to be managed to realize its competitive advantage.
Managing knowledge includes the codification of knowledge.
Aim to achieve an optimal allocation of resources and to improve organizational
efficiency, effectiveness and competitiveness.
Focus on codification of all organizational knowledge and the optimization of
knowledge processes.
Problem;
1. Tacit knowledge can’t be valued as tacit knowledge because as such it is
unmanageable, however
2
, 2. When attempting to manage it, the advantages of tacit knowledge for a firm’s
competitive advantage are lost
Neo functionalists get in the way of capturing the more implicit knowledge and
experience, and part of what they are trying to capture is illusive
Tesla’s case; objectivism (patent), consensus (common interest, knowledge is neutral)
Contemporary importance of knowledge management
Knowledge society
<-> knowledge work, knowledge workers , firms
Knowledge society, post industrial society; a society where the service sector is dominant
and knowledge based goods have replaced industrial, manufactured goods as the main
wealth generators
Characteristics of post-industrial society;
-Service based economy
-Knowledge and information intensity of economic and social life
-Growing importance of theoretical knowledge in work
Knowledge society; society which is characterized by high levels of information and
knowledge intensity and in which the key wealth generators are
information/knowledge intensive industries
Knowledge intensive firms and organizations
No consensus on how to define a KIO
Companies where most work can be said to be of an intellectual nature and
where well-qualified employees form the major part of the workforce
3 dimensions to KIFS
-Knowledge intensity of the work (extent to which complex knowledge is needed for
creation of outputs)
-Capital intensity of the work (extent to which non human assets, e.g. patents and
factories are needed for creation of outputs) (low for KIF)
-Extent to which the workforce is professionalized (specialized knowledge +
institutionally regulated + code of ethics)
Knowledge workers – two perspectives
1. Professional knowledge work perspective (mainstream)
A knowledge worker is someone whose work is primarily intellectual, creative
and non-routine, and which involves both the utilization and creation of
abstract / theoretical knowledge (e.g. consultants, lawyers, It, accountant etc)
(work is intellectual and complex! Work where you need your brain) So makes a
distinction between knowledge workers and non knowledge workers
2. All work is knowledge work perspective
A knowledge worker is anyone whose work involves the use of a reasonable
amount of tacit and contextual and or abstract/conceptual knowledge (e.g. flute
makers, care workers, construction workers, copier engineers etc.)
3
, Knowledge based theory of the firm (objectivist perspective)
Core assumptions;
Knowledge as strategic resource, which can create a lasting competitive
advantage, especially knowledge which is difficult to replicate and copy
Knowledge as a valuable, rare, inimitable and non substitutable organizational
asset
Grant: knowledge is needed for the production of goods and services and this
knowledge resides in the individuals
The firm provides an effective mechanism for creating, acquiring storing and
integrating knowledge between individuals
No conflict of interest between workers, managers and owners.
Knowledge society -> knowledge as a strategic resource, which needs to be managed to
achieve competitive advantage
Alvesson & Karreman; Critique of knowledge management concept
Argument;
-Concept of knowledge is inconsistent, vague, broad, two faced and unreliable
-Concept of management; either treated as self-evident and unproblematic OR it is black-
boxed and not explicated
-Because of 1 and 2 the management of knowledge is not really possible. The concept is
oxymoronic or misleading
How can knowledge be managed according to the neo-functionalist discourse?
Knowledge sharing; conduit (transmitter/receiver) model
Sender -> knowledge (transmitter) -> receiver
KM; management function regarding knowledge
Knowledge management strategy = approach to the management of organisational
knowledge, it should;
1. Decide which knowledge is strategically relevant and set goals for KM to realize a
knowledge based competitive advantage (knowledge strategy)
Strategic KM (Denford & Chan) (strategic control)
2. Design organizational conditions to generate knowledge defined under 1
Tactical KM (infrastructural / design KM Ashby)
3. Select and implement the tools and measures developed under 2 in specific
situations
Operational KM (operational knowledge management, regulation)
1. Strategic knowledge; the process through which the organization arrives at its
knowledge strategy or the function in the organization that decides on the knowledge
strategy
2. Knowledge strategy; competitive strategy built around a firm’s intellectual
resources and capabilities
3. Km strategy / KM approach; the infrastructure and the approaches tools the
organizations develops and uses to manage knowledge
Factors influencing knowledge management approach
1) General business strategy
4
