The 11 Axioms of Knowledge Management
Following up on my previous post about Fahey and Prusak’s 11 Deadliest Sins of KM, I decided to offer another view and a new idea. First, an example of the 11 Deadliest Sins being cited in a research paper. Elisabeth Davenport and Blaise Cronin used the “sins” to offer examples related to their concept of the evolution of KM. Their approach says KM1 = information management, which evolved to KM2 = processes and ontologies, which evolved to KM3 = knowledge as capability, where people are put back into KM and where we are today.
Deadly Sins of KM (After Fahey and Prusak, 1998)
1. Not developing a working definition of knowledge - KM1
2. Emphasizing knowledge stock to the detriment of knowledge flow - KM1
3. Viewing knowledge as existing predominantly outside the heads of individuals - KM1 KM2
4. Not understanding that a fundamental intermediate purpose of managing knowledge is to create shared context - KM1 KM2
5. Paying little heed to the role and importance of tacit knowledge - KM1 KM2
6. Disentangling knowledge from its uses - KM1
7. Downplaying thinking and reasoning - (none given)
8. Focusing on the past and the present and not on the future - KM1
9. Failing to recognise the importance of experimentation - KM1 KM2
10. Substituting technological contact for human interface - KM1 KM2
11. Seeking to develop direct measures of knowledge - KM1 KM2
Personally, I’d prefer to see a new approach to the original list altogether. Here’s my suggestion for “Axioms (and Corollaries) of Knowledge Management”. There happen to be 11, since I started where I did, but maybe there are more. Any thoughts?
Axioms (and Corollaries) of Knowledge Management
1. Knowledge can be defined.
Corollary: We have not yet defined knowledge.
Corollary: We have not yet defined knowledge management.
2. Knowledge management is a process dependent upon people and what they know.
Corollary: Knowledge management generates information artifacts.
Corollary: Information artifacts are used to generate new knowledge.
Corollary: Knowledge cannot be codified.
3. Knowledge cannot exist outside the heads of individuals.
Corollary: Information can.
4. Knowledge exchange requires a shared context between individuals.
Corollary: Knowledge can be exchanged or created within a shared context.
5. Tacit knowledge is the true knowledge and cannot be managed.
Corollary: To capture tacit knowledge is to make it explicit and convert it to information.
6. Applications of knowledge are not the same as knowledge.
Corollary: Using knowledge is not knowledge management.
Corollary: Knowledge is separate from its uses.
7. Thinking and reasoning are the engine of the KM process.
Corollary: Thinking and reasoning result in knowledge.
Corollary: Communicating the results of thinking and reasoning creates information artifacts.
8. Documenting the past has value when no changes are anticipated.
Corollary: The future can be influenced by today’s thinking and reasoning.
Corollary: Documenting the past is content management.
9. Experimentation is crucial to improvement.
Corollary: Experimentation will occasionally result in failure.
Corollary: Experimentation can result in big successes.
10. Human interactions cannot be replaced by technology.
Corollary: Knowledge development and exchange occurs in people’s brains.
Corollary: Technology provides a means to capture discussions and convert them to information artifacts.
Corollary: Knowledge management is not technology.
11. Knowledge cannot be measured directly.
Corollary: Knowledge has value to an organization.
Corollary: Conventional balance sheet metrics do not adequately measure knowledge.
Corollary: Information resulting from knowledge management can be measured.
