Question

Compare and Contrast tacit knowledge and explicit knowledge. (and use real-life examples)
  
Explain why organizational culture must sometimes change before knowledge management is introduced. (and use real-life examples)

Answer 1

1. Compare and Contrast tacit knowledge and explicit knowledge.

Tacit vs Explicit Knowledge

Tacit and explicit are two different types of knowledge. Knowing the differences between these two different types of knowledge is a step in the direction of knowledge management. This is because of the fact that you deal with knowledge gained from a document in a different manner than the knowledge that you gain by practical experience. There are differences between tacit and explicit knowledge that will be outlined in this article.

Explicit Knowledge

Explicit knowledge is a knowledge that is obtained with the help of written documents that have been codified. This type of knowledge can be easily stored and transmitted from one place to another and from one person to another. This knowledge is easy to retrieve from media and the encyclopedias present interesting examples of this type of knowledge. The challenge with explicit knowledge lies in storing and updating so that it is available to everyone whenever they need it.

Tacit Knowledge

Tacit knowledge is the opposite of formal or codified knowledge. One cannot easily transfer it to another person by writing it down or by means of words. The ability to make use of a difficult computer language or the ability to expertly use complex machinery is a knowledge that is not written or codified. It is through contact and interaction that tacit knowledge can be passed to other people. If you know how to ride a bike or swim, you cannot tell in words another person how to do these activities. It is only through physical coaching that you can make another person learn how to ride a bicycle or to swim.

What is the difference between Tacit and Explicit Knowledge?

• Tacit knowledge is carried in mind, and it is difficult to be transferred to others through spoken words or by writing.

• Explicit knowledge is a knowledge that is formal and codified or written to be easily stored and transferred to other people.

• In explicit knowledge, there is a mechanism for transfer while there is no such mechanism in tacit knowledge.

• Ability to swim or to ride a bicycle is an example of tacit knowledge that cannot be taught or transferred through written words or by speaking.

• Documents, journals, procedures etc. are examples of explicit knowledge.

2. Explain why organizational culture must sometimes change before knowledge management is introduced.

I like that the question uses "impact the culture" rather than "change the culture." although I would probably choose "influence."

Cultures evolve over time, and won't likely be changed by any specific technology, tool or person. Without being too philosophical, a company's culture simply "is what it is", the sum total of its purpose or mission combined with the behaviors, attitudes, beliefs, and norms of the people that work there.

It's easy to set a mission or purpose, just say who you are and where you're going. It's also fairly easy to change behaviors via rules, processes, incentives etc.

When it comes to things like attitudes and beliefs however, you can only influence and inspire not control or force change. For some ideas at the heart of social business like "share what you know" vs. the old school truism that "knowledge is power" to take root, it requires some people to accept changes at the belief system level. Heck - even the term "social business" is an oxymoron in some cultures. ("We come to work to work, not be social!") So you're up against core beliefs from the get go. At a large organization trying to impact this can take a very, very long time unless the ideas you're trying to spread are already part of the dominant cultural norms held by the majority of the people.

Having seen huge initiatives rolled out - like Six Sigma at GE, and working in an appropriately conservative culture (Insurance companies manage risk!), I believe this may explain why the rate of adoption is different at some companies than others - because the cultures were different to begin with! Of course we can kid ourselves that we're "driving change" by doing things that are really "encouraging or requiring behaviors". Easy to do if the underlying culture (meaning attitudes and opinions) already exist, because people will see the benefits and jump right on. It is very hard to do if those attitudes don't already exist. People will comply at a minimum level, kick and scream along the way and later jump ship.

For lasting change, you want believers. Start by being the change, while focusing on common ground (like "productivity" rather than "social") and make it safe for people to watch and learn. Attitudes and opinions will then progress and evolve much faster on their own.