Implementation of an IT system: Knowledge management perspectives

Résumé du document

Managing information and knowledge have become the core activity for a number of companies. As Florida (2002) describes in books, the rise of the creative class, companies are now learning organization that need to innovate and create knowledge. Due to globalization companies have to handle more and more information coming from several and different sources all around the world. Moreover the internationalization of markets has made people to work with colleagues in different sites, sometimes thousand of kilometers away. Managing all this transformation is a real challenge for today's companies and the Information Technologies (IT) are often seen as a holly key, to connect people, gather, and store and spread information.

In this paper I will try to understand the different stakes when a company implements a new IT system. Settling a new system is seen as an important moment in companies' life and requires a lot of investment from all the members of the organization. The IT system will handle a more or less important part of the information, but also the interaction between workers.

Extraits

[...] Gather and transform data Thanks to IT system is now possible to gather and handle a more important mass of data. Software and programs can easily collect data and transform them in valuable information which were not available before. So manager can make their decision with a better visibility and understanding of their environment. For example, in 2004, I had made internship in a French textile company restructuring his whole activity. Due to the international competition in textile, they switch from production to distribution. [...]

[...] Because the communication is 100% electronic and follow international standards, the shared culture and tacit knowledge between the two organizations can be very low. That is why the data have to be basic with an easy sense reading. Zoonky Lee and Jinyoul Lee (2000) describe the installation of an Enterprise Resource Panning (ERP) in the University of Nebraska. ERP are built on best practices process and the majority of organization settling it do not customized it mainly because of time and cost reasons (only does). [...]

[...] Hislop Donald (2005), Knowledge management in organization a critical introduction, Oxford University Press McDermott Richard (1999), Why Information Technology Inspired But Cannot Deliver Knowledge Management, California management review vol41. No summer 1999 Roberts Joanne (2000), From Know-how to Show-how ? Questioning the Role of Information and Communication Technologies in Knowledge Transfer, Technology Analysis & Strategic Management, Vol No Walsham Geoff (2001), Knowledge Management: The Benefits and Limitations of Computer Systems, European Management Journal Vol No pp. [...]

[...] It has to be connected with user's tacit knowledge and allow him to develop it. It is useless to develop big warehouse with all kind of knowledge, the most important is to deliver the right information to the right person at the right moment. Shared knowledge Geoff Walsham (2001) argues that the firms have to provide the right tool to allow different communities of practices and workgroup among it to share, exchange and create knowledge. By having a place to share and exchange knowledge, the work group can develop new knowledge or access quickly to information. [...]

[...] Then we will explore the effect of building a knowledge repository. Finally we will see how IT system can be considered as a panoptical tool. Power will be seen here as (scare) resource whose allows people to shape the behaviour of others”, Hislop (2005 p. 94). A new deal for processes and power Geoff Walsham (2001) argues that money is one solution to encourage people to share their knowledge. First the system has to been seen fair and coherent by the members of the organization. [...]