Knowledge Management Initiatives at the Reserve Bank

In the context of the case study above, explain what you understand by the following terms:
Knowledge worker, collaborative culture and KM initiatives

Identify four office activities. Provide a specific example of how technology supports each
activity

Describe briefly three main lessons learnt in the KM initiatives of the reserve bank

Identify the three items an organization’s knowledge base may include

With reference to the SECI model of Nonaka and takeuchi (1995), explain how knowledge is
captured, disseminated, internalized and socialized
Nonaka and Konno (1998) take a wider approach to learning than either Levitt and March or
Argyris and Schön. The SECI model of Nonaka and Konno constitutes four stages of learning –
as opposed to the more limited single stage of translation of Levitt and March. The four stages
proposed by Nonaka and Konno (1998) are Socialisation, Externalisation, Combination, and
Internalisation. All stages of the SECI model are based on the Japanese concept of ‘Ba’ (meaning
‘place’). Socialization is concerned with experiencing circumstances, ideas or values. In essence
the knowledge experienced can be described as tacit. ‘Physical proximity’ (Nonaka and Konno,
1998) is essential to this experience. This Socialisation occurs in the ‘Originating Ba’ (Nonaka
and Konno, 1998). In order to disseminate tacit knowledge, originating through Socialisation, a
form of Externalisation needs to take place. Externalisation is concerned with making tacit
knowledge explicit. According to Nonaka and Konno Externalisation is supported by two
factors, namely: articulation of tacit knowledge and the translation of tacit knowledge. The
platform in which this happens is called the ‘Interacting Ba’ (Nonaka and Konno, 1998).
Combination refers to capturing, disseminating, and editing explicit knowledge. Knowledge that
has surfaced through Externalisation can now be captured and presented to other group members
in a formal manner. At this stage the new tacit knowledge often held by an individual of a group
is now made available to the group through the process of Externalisation and combination in the
‘Cyber Ba’ (Nonaka and Konno, 1998). The final stage through which knowledge runs is called
the Internalisation stage. At this stage the new knowledge will be internalised by the group
members. New working patterns are entrenched in organisational behaviour through repetitive
application. The platform of this Internalisation is called the ‘Exercising Ba’ (Nonaka and
Konno, 1998), through which group members exercise new explicit knowledge and subsequently
internalise this knowledge. At this stage the new knowledge is made tacit again. Experiences of
the new knowledge are then communicated with other team members through face-to-face
interaction (Socialisation), adding new features to knowledge and thus the spiral continues. The
explicit and tacit form of knowledge, the environments of the conversions, and the role of the
carriers of knowledge are emphasised in this model.

Four modes of knowledge conversion[edit]

SECI model of knowledge dimensions

Four modes of knowledge conversion were identified (Figure 1):

1. Tacit to Tacit (Socialization) – This dimension explains Social interaction as tacit to tacit
knowledge transfer, sharing tacit knowledge face-to-face or through experiences. For
example, meetings and brainstorm can support this kind of interaction. Since tacit
knowledge is difficult to formalize and often time and space specific, tacit knowledge can be
acquired only through shared experience, such as spending time together or living in the
same environment. Socialization typically occurs in a traditional apprenticeship, where
apprentices learn the tacit knowledge needed in their craft through hands-on experience,
rather than from written manuals or textbooks
2. Tacit to Explicit (Externalization) – Between tacit and explicit knowledge by Externalization
(publishing, articulating knowledge), developing factors, which embed the combined tacit
knowledge which enable its communication. For example, concepts, images, and written
documents can support this kind of interaction. When tacit knowledge is made explicit,
knowledge is crystallized, thus allowing it to be shared by others, and it becomes the basis
of new knowledge. Concept creation in new product development is an example of this
conversion process
3. Explicit to Explicit (Combination) – Explicit to explicit by Combination (organizing,
integrating knowledge), combining different types of explicit knowledge, for example building
prototypes. The creative use of computerized communication networks and large-scale
databases can support this mode of knowledge conversion. Explicit knowledge is collected
from inside or outside the organisation and then combined, edited or processed to form new
knowledge. The new explicit knowledge is then disseminated among the members of the
organization
4. Explicit to Tacit (Internalization) – Explicit to tacit by Internalization (knowledge receiving
and application by an individual), enclosed by learning by doing; on the other hand, explicit
knowledge becomes part of an individual's knowledge and will be assets for an organization.
Internalization is also a process of continuous individual and collective reflection and the
ability to see connections and recognize patterns and the capacity to make sense between
fields, ideas, and concepts.