Using a knowledge management evaluation framework for improving an ERP system - a Hong Kong construction industry case study

Organisations need to rely on leadership, information support and human capital in order to ensure a knowledge advantage over their competitors. Knowledge management (KM) provides organisations with sustainable competitive advantage, because it becomes extremely difficult for an organisation to cut expenditure and increase revenue by simply reengineering its business model. Project delivery and success has been traditionally viewed and measured as management of a three-legged stool, with the legs defined as cost, schedule and quality. However, KM can be linked to success by organisations becoming more effective as well as being more efficient.

This paper uses a KM framework, the Knowledge Advantage (K-Adv), developed initially for use by construction organisations. It assesses the impact of leadership and its supporting information communication technology infrastructure on the ability of people (by effectively creating, sharing, disseminating and using knowledge) to facilitate sustainable competitive advantage.

A case study that is presented is based upon the experience of a leading construction company using an Enterprise Resources Planning (ERP) system to demonstrate the effectiveness of KM from a cost management business unit perspective. Results are evaluated using a capability maturity model (CMM) - that forms the core of the K-Adv tool - to help improve processes that meet the needs of the organisation operating in a highly dynamic business environment. The case study is part of a broader doctoral research project that uses action learning to facilitate and measure ERP improvement.

Creating buyer-supplier commitment in food supply chains at the base of the pyramid

Esta pesquisa analisa o papel dos aspectos relacionais tais como confiança, comprometimento, interdependência e uso de poder âmbito das estratégias de negócios inclusivos que envolvem pequenos agricultores nas cadeias de valor de multinacionais dos agronegócios no Brasil. Os negócios inclusivos de abastecimento direto por empresas com pequenos agricultores em países em desenvolvimento têm sido reconhecidos como uma abordagem economicamente viavél e promissora para criar impacto social e melhorar as condições de vida de produtores rurais da "base da pirâmide", ao mesmo tempo permitindo que as empresas reforçar as suas posições nos mercados locais e adquirir matérias primas de qualidade a custos mais baixos. Estudos sobre este tema focam amplamente sobre as vantagens comerciais e competitivas que as empresas derivam do abastecimento direito com pequenos fornecedores, apresentando modelos de cadeia de valor customizados e ajustados estratégias globais de negócios, no entanto ainda há pouco conhecimento teoricamente fundamentado sobre os desafios organizacionais e relacionais da relação entre o comprador multinacional e o fornecedor de baixa renda. Além disso, pouco foco tem-se prestado sobre como assimetrias entre multinacionais e produtores de baixa renda, em questão de poder, dependência e de valores pode afetar a evolução dessas relações de negócios. O objetivo do estudo foi descrever os fatores que permitem a esses parceiros assimétricos de construir relacionamentos comerciais de longo prazo e mutuamente benéficos. A metodologia da teoria fundamentada foi usada e foi particularmente adequada para examinar as relações entre comprador e fornecedor e para recolher experiências de campo em três setores principais dominados pela agricultura familiar no Brasil, ou seja laticínios, avi-suinocultura e produção hortícola. Os principais conceitos teóricos da área de Relationship Marketing foram usados para apoiar os resultados da pesquisa de campo. A principal conclusão desta pesquisa é a importância de ir além da construção de confiança na estratégia de gestão do relacionamento entre comprador e fornecedor e de criar parcerias diádicas baseadas na interdependência mútua, a fim de reduzir as assimetrias e melhorar o comprometimento entre a empresa e o pequeno agricultor.

Windows of opportunities and knowledge networks: implications for the catch-up in developing countries

This document represents a doctoral thesis held under the Brazilian School of Public and Business Administration of Getulio Vargas Foundation (EBAPE/FGV), developed through the elaboration of three articles. The research that resulted in the articles is within the scope of the project entitled “Windows of opportunities and knowledge networks: implications for catch-up in developing countries”, funded by Support Programme for Research and Academic Production of Faculty (ProPesquisa) of Brazilian School of Public and Business Administration (EBAPE) of Getulio Vargas Foundation.

Building Leadership: The Knowledge of Principals in Creating Collaborative Communities of Professional Learning

Research literature is replete with the importance of collaboration in schools, the lack of its implementation, the centrality of the role of the principal, and the existence of a gap between knowledge and practice--or a "Knowing-Doing Gap." In other words, there is a set of knowledge that principals must know in order to create a collaborative workplace environment for teachers. This study sought to describe what high school principals know about creating such a culture of collaboration. The researcher combed journal articles, studies and professional literature in order to identify what principals must know in order to create a culture of collaboration. The result was ten elements of principal knowledge: Staff involvement in important decisions, Charismatic leadership not being necessary for success, Effective elements of teacher teams, Administrator‘s modeling professional learning, The allocation of resources, Staff meetings focused on student learning, Elements of continuous improvement, and Principles of Adult Learning, Student Learning and Change. From these ten elements, the researcher developed a web-based survey intended to measure nine of those elements (Charismatic leadership was excluded). Principals of accredited high schools in the state of Nebraska were invited to participate in this survey, as high schools are well-known for the isolation that teachers experience--particularly as a result of departmentalization. The results indicate that principals have knowledge of eight of the nine measured elements. The one that they lacked an understanding of was Principles of Student Learning. Given these two findings of what principals do and do not know, the researcher recommends that professional organizations, intermediate service agencies and district-level support staff engage in systematic and systemic initiatives to increase the knowledge of principals in the element of lacking knowledge. Further, given that eight of the nine elements are understood by principals, it would be wise to examine reasons for the implementation gap (Knowing-Doing Gap) and how to overcome it.

Rituals and Knowledge Construction: Ethical Dilemmas on Creating Oppositions

What is knowledge construction for? Mesopotamian rituals were practiced in order to grasp the future and guide war strategies. Nowadays, scientific rules are developed to avoid mysticism-constructing more accurate laws to explain the reality. Both rituals and science were, and usually are, grounded in a conception that to know is to decipher the correct meaning behind the expressive relief of the world. Contemporary studies on anthropology have shown that the opposition between nature and culture is the basis of a number of problems in human sciences aiming to comprehend the intricate relation between body and violence and overcome ethical dilemmas.

Alleged coercive and discriminatory practices against retail gasoline operators by oil company suppliers : interim report of Subcommittee No. 5 on Distribution Problems to the Select Committee on Small Business, House of Representatives, Eighty-fourth Congress, first session, pursuant to H. Res. 114, a resolution creating a Select Committee to Conduct a Study and Investigation of the Problems of Small Business.

Mode of access: Internet.

Creating an authentic aural experience in the digital songlines game engine: Part of a contextualised cultural heritage knowledge toolkit

Digital Songlines is an Australasian CRC for Interaction Design (ACID) project that is developing protocols, methodologies and toolkits to facilitate the collection, education and sharing of indigenous cultural heritage knowledge. The project explores the areas of effective recording, content management and virtual reality delivery capabilities that are culturally sensitive and involve the indigenous custodians, leaders and communities in remote areas of the Australian ‘outback’. It investigates how players in a serious gaming sense can experience Indigenous virtual heritage in a high fidelity fashion with culturally appropriate interface tools. This paper describes a 3D ambient audio quilt designed and implemented specifically for the Digital Songlines software, which is built using the Torque Game Engine. The audio quilt developed provides dynamic ambient fauna and flora sound effects to represent the varying audio environment of the landscape. This provides an authentic contextualised interesting aural experience that can be different each time a location is entered. This paper reports on completed and ongoing research in this area.

Knowledge management in a New Zealand tree farming company:Ambiguity and resistance to the "technology solution"

Purpose - Managers at the company attempt to implement a knowledge management information system in an attempt to avoid loss of expertise while improving control and efficiency. The paper seeks to explore the implications of the technological solution to employees within the company. Design/methodology/approach - The paper reports qualitative research conducted in a single organization. Evidence is presented in the form of interview extracts. Findings - The case section of the paper presents the accounts of organizational participants. The accounts reveal the workers' reactions to the technology-based system and something of their strategies of resistance to the system. These accounts also provide glimpses of the identity construction engaged in by these knowledge workers. The setting for the research is in a knowledge-intensive primary industry. Research was conducted through observation and interviews. Research limitations/implications - The issues identified are explored in a single case-study setting. Future research could look at the relevance of the findings to other settings. Practical implications - The case evidence presented indicates some of the complexity of implementation of information systems in organizations. This could certainly be seen as more evidence of the uncertainty associated with organizational change and of the need for managers not to expect an easy adoption of intrusive IT solutions. Originality/value - This paper adds empirical insight to a largely conceptual literature. © Emerald Group Publishing Limited.