A Net-Centric Approach to Tacit Knowledge Management

July 15, 2010

Michael L. Brown, USA, michael.brown@skillsnet.com

Michael J. Kruger, USA, mjkruger@aol.com

Abstract: Capturing and managing tacit knowledge creates a collective organizational

intelligence capability that is the differential for high performance enterprises.
Traditional tacit knowledge capture methods are labor-intensive, some of which
include mentoring, interviewing and direct observation that rely on the accuracy
of those collecting the information. The researchers set out to prove traditional
approaches to capturing knowledge assets could be replaced using Web 2.0/3.0
technologies. This paper introduces an innovative approach to harvest, share and
manage tacit knowledge created as a by-product of normal cognitive and technical
work flow activities within a net-centric environment. The innovative proto-type model,
Most Important Knowledge and Expertise (MIKE), utilizes network sensor, integrated
semantic, natural language and computational analysis technologies that incorporate
the design of classifiers, corpus and taxonomies to identify tacit knowledge
embedded in explicit knowledge found in workforce transactional activity
containing both formal content (policy, training, and process guides) and unstructured
content (emails, wikis, blogs, instant messaging, and social media). Using this
combination of Web 2.0/3.0 tools and processes to harvest the tacit-to-explicit
knowledge from network transactions and then sharing it via a trusted social network
offers human resource, learning and knowledge management practitioner’s a new
solution design and enterprise tacit knowledge management capability. MIKE is a
prototype designed to promote tacit knowledge transfer and high performance using a
simple yet robust framework of Web 2.0/3.0 tools to improve expert connectiveness
and establish trust networks.

1. Introduction – Visibility to Hidden Knowledge & Process Assets

Today’s performance driven organizations are constantly seeking methods to harvest and share tacit
knowledge, which is embodied in the experiences, expertise and wisdom that individuals have
accumulated throughout their careers. Understanding where “hidden” or embedded tacit knowledge
exists and how it can be converted into explicit knowledge compartments is vital to managing the
full capability of the organization (Leonard and Insch, 2005).

Organizations invest time and energy into recruiting the right people with the right skill mix to
maintain a competitive edge and to sustain the enterprise. Employees are trained, developed and
resourced so that they can perform their best. Yet, “Because of an inability to tap organizational or
individual expertise, problems go unsolved, new ideas never get imagined, employees feel
underutilized and underappreciated. These are things that no business can afford anytime - let alone
in this tough economic climate.” (Dortit Nevo, Izak Benbasat and Yair Wand 2009)

Using an innovative approach to capture tacit knowledge the researchers initiated a project within a
team of second-level, power systems engineers and technicians who worked together to solve
complex, technical problems involving various types of power systems used within the US air
traffic control infrastructure. The researchers determined from historical workflow records that the
engineering experts had a history of continuous tacit-to-explicit knowledge transfer that fostered
novel problem solution and effective work practices that, if modelled, would enhance the
operational capacity of other enterprise business units. These engineers had a history of
documenting tacit knowledge, thereby transforming it into explicit knowledge so that it could be
shared. Given the performance profile of this group, the researchers sought to identify an approach
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to capitalize on the key features of the group’s tacit knowledge sharing success, ultimately
expanding it to the broader organization.

As a result of an internal study that forecasted a significant engineering “brain drain” faced by the
organization due to impending retirements and other attrition factors, executives who sponsored the
project were keenly aware of the organization’s need to capture and share its tacit knowledge. Thus,
they were supportive of testing innovative net-centric approaches such as using semantic web 3.0
tools to analyze social and trust networking transactions to unveil, capture and share tacit-to-explicit
knowledge. With this advocacy the researches employed a net-centric approach that leapfrogged
traditional methods and demonstrated a novel tacit-to-explicit knowledge capture methodology.
Additionally, the researchers evaluated the methodology’s usefulness for improving workforce
communications, productivity, performance and innovation.

The researchers established a prototype methodology (Figure 1) within the organization’s net-
centric environment to codify, index
and graphically publish engineering
staff workflow patterns and tacit-to-
explicit knowledge sharing. The
prototype, Most Important
Knowledge and Expertise (MIKE),
was designed to provide new
visibility into tacit-to-explicit
knowledge embedded in workflow
transactions by illustrating and
sharing who possessed the type of
knowledge or expertise others might
be seeking.

The MIKE prototype is unique in that Figure 1 MIKE Prototype Methodology

it uses network sensors and semantic
web technologies to perform content analysis rather than traditional survey or direct observation
methods. This innovative approach not only substantially increases the number of data points
relative to traditional approaches but also requires considerably less time from personnel. Semantic
web technology allows MIKE to search and interrogate knowledge, information, and workflow
patterns embedded in all digital media.

The MIKE archetype is a groundbreaking, integrated technology-based methodology for capturing

and sharing tacit-to-explicit knowledge. For decades many have attempted to capture hidden or
unstructured “know-how” by using employee surveys, direct observation, and video taping
employee behaviors to make determinations about an employee’s level of expertise or tacit
knowledge. These approaches to data collection and analysis are expensive, time consuming,
confounded by biases and difficult to sustain. MIKE bypasses these processes and issues by
extracting and semantically analyzing digital content from static documents (e.g., reports of
technical assistance) and network activity showing information exchange (e.g., emails and social
media).

2. Objectives
The organization sponsoring this project established an internal strategic goal to address the
forecasted loss of engineering talent. The goal was incorporated into the organization’s strategic
plan as, Implement a Knowledge Management Framework to Provide Continuity of Expertise. To

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respond to this “internal driver,” the researchers took into account the massive increases of e-mail,
instant messaging, macro and micro blogging, semantic-based wikis, and smart phones.
Considering the changes that these technologies have had on established work-based
communication practices (Nardi, Whittaker and Bradner 2000), the researchers developed the
objectives for the project:
1) determine ways to identify and collect hidden knowledge from email, blogs, wikis,
phone logs, and numerous other types of digital content from transactional-based
applications;
2) determine ways to identify knowledge hidden in training manuals, policy guides, field
trip reports, customer service logs, and process management protocols;
3) determine the right integrated semantic web technology and content analysis tools and
methods that could be scalable;
4) avoid duplication of current knowledge management processes and applications as well
as early stage social media programs;
5) determine if legacy knowledge management efforts could be leveraged, and;
6) determine if an expertise network could be maintained and used to improve customer
satisfaction without employee workflow interruption.

3. MIKE Content Extraction and Analysis Methodology

The researchers discovered that workflow activities within the engineering group were not static but
rather were transformational, transactional and tacit, changing constantly as a result of making
solution management decisions. This made the engineers’ dynamic and complex work environment
a natural research test bed for the above mentioned research goals. Understanding the dynamic and
transactional nature of the work, the researchers designed the project methodology to minimize
workflow disruption and to establish a clear set of technology and data analysis targets understood
and accepted by the subjects.

The tacit knowledge framework consisted of the following steps: (Figure 2)

Step 1: Secure artifacts. The researchers obtained various worker artifacts that represented
work and communication activities. The artifacts were extracted from 7,154 customer
service records spanning two years, 26 engineer field trip reports, and 2,100 emails all of
which contained artifacts in various media formats (PDF, Microsoft DOC, TXT, and JPEG).

Step 2: Convert structured to unstructured data files. The artifact resources were
converted to simple digital (data files) using tagging methods and imported to a database for
staging purposes. The conversion process translated the resources into individual assets.

Step 3: Analyze files using Latent Semantic Analysis (LSA). The files in the staging
database were then processed using LSA to identify knowledge threads.

Step 4: Filter the data through job and location context corpus. Using key words and
phrases a corpus was built and filtered for experience, expertise, and solution management.

Step 5: Data Alignment using Expertise Taxonomies: The data outputs were associated to
the various taxonomies using classifiers. The analysis and alignment of work products were
evaluated by the participating engineers for accuracy and usefulness.

Step 6: Relational Database. Data were stored in a relational data base for harvesting and
representation.

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 Step 7: Computational Layer. Use-based computational analysis was employed to
formulate and style the data for MIKE.

Figure 2 MIKE High Level Content Extraction and Analysis Process

4. Technology Description
The MIKE prototype employed IntelliKnow™ integrated semantic web and computational analysis
technologies that included the design of classifiers, corpus and taxonomies.

Core to the IntelliKnow technology is a semantic processing utility known as Clavier that extracts
latent ontological representations from text corpus. In the initial phase of the analysis process the
text corpus is parsed and converted into a common data structure which represents the corpus
structure absent syntactical or semantic form. Grammatical analysis or natural language processing
techniques are used later in the process. This data structure is then indexed across a multi-
dimensional index consisting of other corpus or representational formats including dictionaries,
ontologies and taxonomies.

As part of any analysis, each structural representation is then loaded into the system at the time of
analysis. Latent ontological representations are then extracted for a specific context using a set of
fuzzy logic algorithms. The algorithms use a spreading activation extraction technique and return a
representational semantic graph consisting of a set of nested sub-graph relationships. During the
contextual extraction and graph formation, the system uses a series of Classifier agents to
strengthen the underlying graph mode. The Classifier architecture was built on an evolutionary
computation architecture so no attempt was made to establish any hierarchy or domain specific
Classifier architecture. The data outputs are then sent to the representation layer. The
demonstration of MIKE’s technology and interdisciplinary content analysis environment using a
series of semantic and computational analyses satisfied the “going in” project design objective to
minimize disruptions to normal work flow. Future development activity should focus on improving
classifier design and semantic alignment to structured taxonomies.

5. Net-Centric Knowledge Management Environment

The capacity to manage tacit knowledge transfer and convert it into useful products and services is
fast becoming the critical executive skill in the contemporary organization (Stypulkoski 2009) and
understanding the transactional nature of knowledge creation and exchange is essential for
knowledge management. The researchers proposed to develop a knowledge management
environment that would advance the science while increasing the organization’s productivity. To
achieve this goal the researchers focused on bringing new operational capability to the Nonaka &
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Takeuchi Framework. Nonaka (1994) characterizes two types of knowledge, explicit and tacit,
which have critical implications for knowledge harvesting and sharing. Explicit knowledge is
captured in words, rules, or norms, and is more easily organized and shared via a variety of means.
According to Nonaka, tacit and explicit knowledge are not separate but mutually complementary
entities. They interact with each other in the creative activities of human beings. Nonaka calls the
interaction of these two forms of knowledge the knowledge conversion process. It is the
transactional nature of the conversion process that MIKE focused on during the project. Capturing
network transactional social behaviour and associated digital content to establish implicit and
explicit knowledge patterns and sources was central to achieving the project goals.

Nonaka maintains that knowledge is transformed through four processes: socialization,

externalization, combination and internalization (Figure 3). The Nonaka model includes a spiral to
indicate that the transformation is continuous in nature. The MIKE methodology incorporates two
of Nonaka’s learning processes. By using email as a source of knowledge information for latent
semantic analysis, MIKE elucidates tacit knowledge that has been created as a by-product of email
exchanges in which team members ask each other questions about problems and provide answers.
This is aligned with the process of Externalization, which is the transformation of tacit knowledge
to explicit knowledge as could occur in team members responding asynchronously to questions via
email exchange. MIKE also includes other types of documentation in the decomposition, analysis
and realignment steps used to populate team member pages in the MIKE social network application
for access and sharing by other members. This technique is consistent with Internalization, which is
the transformation of explicit knowledge to tacit knowledge via access to a structured set of
documents that enable team members to convert explicit knowledge into their own tacit knowledge.

Figure 3 MIKE’s Adaptation of Nonaka Framework

MIKE employs an “Explicit-Tacit to Explicit-Tacit” iterative process. The process begins with tacit
knowledge artifacts being automatically identified, tagged and stored in team members’ expertise
pages as explicit knowledge within the technical social network application, MIKE. Each
member’s pages contains stored knowledge that can be accessed by other members of the technical
social network to solve emerging technical problems - this is an Explicit-Tacit iteration. When new
problems are solved and their solutions are documented, the new explicit knowledge derived and
codified from that tacit knowledge is added iteratively to team member’s pages in MIKE, leading to
the next Explicit-Tacit iteration.

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6. Results
The project validated the IntelliKnow semantic web production environment and its usefulness for
discovering hidden tacit knowledge as evidenced by feedback from the engineers and technicians
who participated in the effort. The tacit knowledge rich artifacts captured for engineers in their
operational environment and documented as explicit knowledge was reviewed and validated as
accurate and useful with particular utility in solving incoming customer service issues. The
engineers decided early in the project evaluation phase that allowing customers to interface with
MIKE to review solutions or identify the engineer with the right expertise would produce a better
experience for the customer while optimizing engineer problem solution efforts. The engineers also
suggested MIKE could be used as a mechanism to locate the organization’s engineering expertise
by product, system, and solution. One issue raised by the engineers was concern over
management’s visibility into individual performance. The researchers realize that this concern will
have to be addressed by the organization as part of its change management strategy as it evolves in
an era of greater transparency presented by emerging technologies and tacit knowledge
management innovations. As indicated in Figure 4 below, as determined via Social Network
Analysis (SNA), employees #1, #9 and #2 had the broadest reach in the organization (node degree)
and made numerous contributions by sharing tacit knowledge and expertise to solve problems. It
was confirmed during field validation interviews that these employees were in fact considered to be
good and reliable resources for on-demand expertise. Documenting this dynamic allowed the
broader organization to understand the performance implications of identifying the knowledge
contributions and locations of valuable expertise.

The project results

demonstrated that it is
possible to capture hidden
knowledge and expertise in
network events and digital
media using the IntelliKnow
semantic web technology and
computational analysis
environment.

Figure 4 Engineer Expertise Reach

7. Business Benefits
MIKE offers significant benefit to organizations experiencing multi-generational challenges, an
aging workforce, the introduction of new business processes, virtualization of work and elevated
personal learning requirements. It is a non-intrusive “back room” methodology that incorporates
network event metrics and digital content analysis to provide trusted performance improvement
metrics. Even within the narrow scope of the project the researchers determined the range of tacit
knowledge, transfer, and expertise identified was 78% to 91% accurate and useful toward
improving daily performance. The researchers concluded that the use of an integrated technology-
based methodology requires less effort than traditional practices to collect knowledge and yielded
more practical results.

The below example of transactional behaviour and content analysis indicates how MIKE is an
effective mechanism to increase the transfer of tacit knowledge and expertise. The transactional and

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content analysis in this example was then pre-populated into the MIKE interface for other engineers
to review and use to solve similar problems.

Example: Technical Assistance to Solve a Problem at a Radar Site

Engineer #1, along with, Engineer #2 called Engineer #5 to say that equipment at a radar site
was making a humming or crackling sound in the direction of the radar amplitron. The
problem started after the multipoint ground system was enhanced, and after a period of low
humidity and snowy weather. The staff at the site disconnected the multipoint connection
but the problems did not go away. In consultation with Engineer #1 and others, Engineer #5
reported that the site might have had an improperly grounded line or a single point ground
connected to the multipoint ground system. Engineers #1 & #5 used this information to
successfully diagnose the problem and design a solution.

The project also illustrated a capability to share engineering know-how across the organization for
many different solutions. Prior to the pilot project this knowledge was stored in many locations and
not shared. Using various data sources, semantic analysis was used to determine the number of
times a particular engineer was requested to share tacit knowledge (inbound) and when a particular
expert mentioned another engineer that contributed to the solution (outbound). The accumulation
and preparation of the inbound and outbound transactions allowed the researchers to prepare Figure
5 revealing the top experts that contributed to a solution or gained support from another engineer to
solve a problem.

Figure 5.0 Blue: Requested Expertise, Red: Sought Expertise

8. Conclusions
This research project demonstrates the sheer power and tactical advantage that an organization can
derive from identifying and transferring tacit knowledge of its workforce with continuous insight
into the innermost work processes of the enterprise. These processes are literally the invisible
portions of an individual’s and group’s workflow that manifest themselves in micro-spurts of
contributions to the organizational goals. They are the results of the unseen cognitive energy
applied to work activities to deal with work related issues. This untapped body of individual and
organizational expertise represents thinking shared within trusted networks of individual experts
typically not available to the rest of the organization. The researchers envision a future MIKE
system that is self-training and self-adjusting which will pre-populate engineers’ and other
disciplines’ tacit knowledge and expertise taxonomies for use and reuse in a shared expertise
enterprise environment. The researchers recommend additional applied research be undertaken to

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continue to study the benefits of, and approaches to, harvesting and sharing tacit knowledge and the
contributions these efforts can make to improving workforce and organizational performance.

Additional research concerning privacy issues and enterprise utility of the net-centric tacit
knowledge content must be conducted. Operational issues such as data quality control, data
obsolescence, use policy, and the data storage/streaming to various applications requires serious
investigation.

Finally, the researchers believe tacit knowledge management and transfer will bring a new
capability to organizations to facilitate innovation and creative exchange. MIKE is a proven start, a
formidable step to achieving this capability.

References
[1] Leonard and Insch, 2005. Tacit Knowing: A Field Study, Journal of Applied Business and Economics
[2] Nardi, Whittaker S., and Bradner E. 2000. "Interaction and Outeraction: Instant Messaging in Action, " submitted
to Computer Supported Cooperative Work
[3] Nonaka I. 1994. A dynamic theory of organizational knowledge creation. Organizational Science 5(1): 14-37
[4] Tom Stypulkoski, 2009; Human Resource Executive, Cultivating Knowledge Transfer
[5]. Dortit Nevo, Izak Benbasat and Yair Wand, October 2009, Wall Street Journal:

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