The Human Factor in Knowledge Management
Careful attention is needed to the processes by which values and purpose are defined and articulated so as to create an enabling environment for knowledge management to succeed. Without these processes, organizational learning and knowledge management merely become toolkits and methodologies in a vacuum (Pasteur et al., 2006). There is also a need to better understand how knowledge and learning may practically address and deal with issues of personality, culture, language, religion, and so on (Ramalingam 2005).
As Davenport and Prusak (1998) put it: “Effective knowledge management cannot take place without extensive behavioral, cultural and organizational change (…) Technology alone won’t make a person with expertise share with others. Technology alone won’t get an employee who is uninterested in seeking knowledge to hop onto a keyboard and searching or browsing.”
Knowledge management is first and foremost a people issue. Does the culture of your organization support ongoing learning and knowledge sharing? Are people motivated and rewarded for creating, sharing and using knowledge? Is there a culture of openness and mutual respect and support? Or is your organization very hierarchical where ‘knowledge is power’ and so people are reluctant to share? Are people under constant pressure to act with no time for knowledge-seeking or reflection? Do they feel inspired to innovate and learn from mistakes, or is there a strong ‘blame and shame’ culture? These questions are essential to ask and to solve. There is a need to further understand the reasons why people engage in knowledge sharing behavior. This study tries to provide some answers.
The research on ‘the human factor in knowledge processes‘ tries to shine a light on the human factors that promote or impede effective behavior of people within different knowledge processes. By taking a multi-cultural focus it wants to provide a cross-section of the world we live in. And on this site you’ll find a diverse overview of relevant psychological theories that are translated to the specific world of knowledge management in development settings. This site publishes some main outcomes of this cross-cultural study. Finally it also gives recommendations how to make the human factor flourish in your organizations.
However, we would also really like your input and experiences in unraveling this people factor in knowledge management. We look forward to sharing and discussing strategies and practice with you.
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