Knowledge management

Knowledge management (KM) is an activities or a set of activities within the organisation

According to OECD (2002:6) definition emphasis that Knowledge Management involves any
activity related to capture, use and sharing of organisation knowledge. According to Turner
organisation consists of three steps: variation selection and retention. New ideas are
created within the function, the best ideas are utilised and then the knowledge is stored in a
function in which it can easily be reused.
Similarly Chakravorty state that knowledge management has to include three processes so
that an organisation can have an advantage over the other.
These processes are
Accumulate knowledge
Protect Knowledge
Leverage knowledge
Knowledge is to be accumulated when new knowledge is created, and this knowledge
should be used as a competitive advantage and should be protected from the competitor

Cross Culture affect on Knowledge Management

As we have discussed above about what Knowledge Management is and contrasting feature
of East and western culture by giving the example of India and comparing it with the
western countries, so now here we will discuss about how in different country (East and
West) the approach towards knowledge management is different. Here the comparison will
be made between US and Japan

U.S
In US individuality is given first priority and individualism is more emphasised and is highly
rewarded. Here group and social concern is given very less priority and in US knowledge is a
strategic source of information which is used as a tool to gain advantage over its competitor
and they prefer using the already existing data and they rely heavily on those data for
further development of new idea and an individual is judged by how well he uses that
information and how much profit he makes from it and in US KM is implemented by the use
of technologies and social factors are totally ignored.

Japan
Japanese approach towards knowledge management is totally different if compared with
US. In Japan personal experience is more appreciated as compared to US who prefer to use
the explicit knowledge, with this approach Japanese looks forward for a knowledge creation
which further leads to innovation, as compared to US in Japan transformation of Knowledge
happens through up and downs moving from individual to group moving here and there in
an organisation and creating a network in the organisation and in Japan groupism is the
dominant force in Japan and is highly appreciated.

Approach to Knowledge Management

Objective
Focus
Means
Mentality
Strategy

US

Japan

Advantage in the near future

Explicit, encoded language
Technologies market
Individualism
Knowledge Re-use

Long term advantage

Tacit , Subjective knowledge
Socialisation
Groupism
Knowledge creation

Reference:
Cross-cultural Diversity in the Knowledge Management Concepts of 20-21st Centuries within the
Framework of International Dialogue for Creation of a New Model of Knowledge Management