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documents, organizational routines, processes, practices, and norms (Davenport &
Prusak, 1997; Huber, 1991), more recent research have adopted the network model
perspective and started focusing on managing knowledge resident in individuals
by deploying new types of information technologies and creating richer and more
effective communication channels.
The network model attempts to capture the information that is resident in indi-
viduals by facilitating interactions among these individuals. Rather than extracting
information from these individuals and storing it as in the case of repository model,
the network model facilitates communication channels among individuals, so that
knowledge can be developed and transferred.
The network model also emphasizes the emerging
sociological perspective
of
knowledge management (Sawhney & Prandelli, 2000). Social relationships are
increasingly becoming the foundation for knowledge creation. Also, the relation-
ships between the different types of knowledge reflect the social relationships that
exist among the entities that create and store such knowledge. Thus, from the
sociological perspective, the interactions between individuals and groups assume
importance in the context of knowledge management.
Recent studies in knowledge management have focused on such social processes
and ties that underline knowledge and value creation in organizations. For exam-
ple, the concept of “ba” introduced by Nonaka and Konno (1998) reflects the need
to create environments that nurture and promote social relationships that in turn
would fuel the knowledge creation process. Information technology has a criti-
cal role to play in establishing and maintaining such knowledge creation social
environments.
8.5.2 The Dynamic Theory of Knowledge Creation
The other major perspective of knowledge management was offered by Nonaka
in 1994. He posited a dynamic theory of organizational knowledge creation,
which describes four patterns of interactions in the knowledge creation process:
socialization, combination, internalization, and externalization.
The fundamental thesis behind this model is that knowledge is created by individ-
uals and that knowledge creation occurs through a continuous exchange of two types
of knowledge - tacit knowledge and explicit knowledge. Polanyi (1962) described
tacit knowledge as knowledge that is highly personalized, hard to formalize and
communicate. This type of knowledge resides within the individual and is deeply
rooted in action and involvement in that particular context. On the other hand,
explicit knowledge is codified knowledge and can be formalized and communicated
in a systematic language. This type of knowledge is easily accessible and available
and can be expressed in words or numbers.
Nonaka's conceptualization drew on the four possible modes of conversion pos-
sible between these two types of knowledge. First is the tacit to tacit conversion:
the process of creating knowledge through this mode is called “socialization” as
this requires people with tacit knowledge to interact with one another and also be
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