Product Description

The definitive overview of knowledge management, now available in paperback

This influential book establishes the enduring vocabulary and concepts in the burgeoning field of knowledge management. It serves as the hands-on resource of choice for companies that recognize knowledge as the only sustainable source of competitive advantage going forward.

Drawing from their work with more than 30 knowledge-rich firms, Davenport and Prusak--experienced consultants with a track record of success--examine how all types of companies can effectively understand, analyze, measure, and manage their intellectual assets, turning corporate wisdom into market value. They categorize knowledge work into four sequential activities--accessing, generating, embedding, and transferring--and look at the key skills, techniques, and processes of each. While they present a practical approach to cataloging and storing knowledge so that employees can easily leverage it throughout the firm, the authors caution readers on the limits of communications and information technology in managing intellectual capital.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #143370 in Books
• Published on: 2000-06-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 240 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
When new-car developers at Ford Motor Company wanted to learn why the original Taurus design team was so successful, no-one could tell them. No-one remembered or had recorded what made that effort so special; the knowledge gained in the Taurus project was lost forever. Indeed, the most valuable asset in any company is probably also its most elusive and difficult to manage: knowledge. Authors Thomas H Davenport and Laurence Prusak assert that learning how to identify, manage and foster knowledge is vital for companies who hope to compete in today's fast-moving global economy.

Working Knowledge examines how knowledge can be nurtured in organisations. Building trust throughout a company is the key to creating a knowledge-orientated corporate culture, a positive environment in which employees are encouraged to make decisions that are efficient, productive and innovative. The book includes numerous examples of successful knowledge projects at companies such as British Petroleum, 3M, Mobil Oil and Hewlett-Packard. Concise and clearly written, Working Knowledge is an excellent resource for managers who want to better harness the experience and wisdom within their organisations. --Jake Bond

About the Author
Thomas H. Davenport is a Professor of Information Management at Boston University and Director, Institute for Strategic Change at Andersen Consulting. He is the author of the worldwide bestseller, Process Innovation (HBS Press, 1993) and Mission Critical (HBS Press, 2000). Laurence Prusak is a managing principal of the IBM Consulting Group in Boston and the worldwide competency leader in knowledge management for IBM. He formerly was a researcher/consultant at Ernst & Young and Mercer Management Consulting.

Customer Reviews

First Great Book of Best Practices for Knowledge Management
Although knowledge management is an irresistible concept, your progress in this area is anything but assurred. Knowledge management is a hot topic, but it is usually pushed by people who want to sell you something. As a result, you can end up with a lot of technology that will not help you to manage your knowledge. As insurance against getting started in the wrong direction, I suggest you read Working Knowledge as a first step.

Davenport and Prusak have examined 39 organizations that are well above average users of their knowledge. The case histories will give you a practical sense of what works that would take you years of false steps to duplicate in your organization.

Then, even more helpfully, the authors outline the key lessons of these top performers for you to follow. I especially recommend chapter 9 on The Pragmatics of Knowledge Management.

Any new initiative will run into problems and fall back. A great book to read next is The Dance of Change, which focuses squarely on that issue.

Any book has to narrow its focus to be successful. That focus creates a vulnerability. In this book, the vulnerability is not looking far enough ahead for more effective ways to do knowledge management that no one is yet doing. For example, the potential to share knowledge among top best practice organizations is enormous. More attention is needed here.

But do buy, read, and apply the lessons of this book. It's a great place to start!

The best practical overview of KM I have found
This is a must-read for anyone interested in knowledge management, especially if they need to understand how knowledge is operating in their organization and how to improve "knowledge efficiency". It avoids all the jargon, contains a lot of appropriate references and mini case studies. It is really easy to read and understand while at the same time giving the topic in its true status.

KEY LESSONS OF MAKING KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT WORK
If you are like most people, you are a victim of "stalled" thinking about how to make knowledge transfer work better in your organization. As the authors point out, many people believe things that will not work in practice, such as "build it and they will come" from a technology resource sharing perspective that all one needs to do is have the resource available. Unlike the theory about knowledge management, Davenport and Prusak have investigated many organizations to learn what does and does not work. Unlike some books that are no more than a few case histories strung together, the authors concisely use examples to examplify the key points of what they have learned. In their parlance, this book is full of "knowledge" rather than just "information" or "data." They are also astute observers, and notice things that many might miss. A key example of their astuteness is the observation that those who are expected to share must be given some meaningful incentive to do so. In these days of downsizing, rightsizing, etc., those with knowledge often see that knowledge as a security blanket for an economic livelihood. You have to provide some incentive to share that matches or exceeds the incentive to hoard knowledge. You need to read and understand the lessons of this book if you want to get further along in using the knowledge that is available (both in and outside of your company) to achieve greater results. A terrific book on the related subject of how to create new knowledge and use that knowledge to then create much greater results is "The 2,000 Percent Solution."