Knowledge Typology Knowledge Management

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2.2.2 Knowledge Typology

Polanyi 1967 first introduced the distinction of knowledge as explicit and tacit. According to his definition, tacit knowledge is highly personal and context specific; therefore, it is hard to formalize and communicate. It is stored in humans’ minds, and is difficult to see, share, copy, and manage. On the other hand, explicit knowledge can readily be codified in words and numbers, easily shared in manuals, and is easy to distribute Payne and Sheehan, 2004. Furthermore, it can be stored as written documents or procedures and made available to others. Some examples of explicit knowledge are textbooks, specifications and design codes. Many other researchers such as Nonaka Takeuchi 1999, Von Krong 2000 and Alter 2002 also mentioned that there are two types of Knowledge. Nonaka and Takeuchi cited in Beckman 1999 differentiate these two typologies of knowledge in terms of experience–rational and practice–theory aspects. Tacit knowledge is knowledge of experience and it is related to practical aspects, while explicit knowledge is knowledge of rationality and it is related to theoretical aspects Table 2.1. Table 2.1. Differences between tacit and explicit knowledge Source: Nonaka and Takauchi, 1999 Theoretical Practical Rationality Explicit Knowledge Experience Tacit Knowledge 26 Von Krogh et al. 2000 noted that tacit knowledge is tied to the senses, skills in bodily movement, individual perception, physical experiences, rules of thumb, and intuition. Alter 2002 stated that explicit knowledge is defined as knowledge that is precisely and formally articulated and is often codified in databases of corporate procedures and best practices, whereas tacit knowledge is understood and applied unconsciously. There are different notions about tacit and explicit knowledge, which have been stated below. Some of them have argued that the diffusion of tacit knowledge is more difficult than sharing explicit knowledge e.g., Nonaka Konno, 1998; Leonard Sensiper, 1998. An organization’s core competency is more than the explicit knowledge of “know what;” it requires the more tacit “know-how” to put “know what” into practice Brown Duguid, 1998. Brockmann and Anthony 1998 noted that the efficiency of making decisions, serving customers, or producing products, and the accuracy of task performance are improved by the use of tacit knowledge. Haldin-Herrgard 2000 has discovered four major reasons that make it difficult to share tacit knowledge: 1 perception and language; 2 available time; 3 value difference; and 4 distance. By this, he emphasized that difficulties involved in sharing tacit knowledge occurs when expressing or documenting the knowledge appears obvious and natural to one. He asserted that the most common way of transferring tacit knowledge to clarify what exactly a person wants is through face-to- face interaction. This kind of interaction allows the people involved to have some conversation at the same time about probable questions. 27 Hence, it is apparent that tacit knowledge is a valuable asset for organizations. However, articulating and sharing tacit knowledge is difficult due to the fact that it is located in people’s mind. On the other hand, explicit knowledge is not facing these kinds of problems. Therefore, converting knowledge from tacit to explicit one can attenuate the mentioned problems.

2.2.3 Knowledge Management Process