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In terms of the DOE process, tacit and explicit knowledge are used at a number
of levels. Specifically, tacit knowledge is developed at a social level and at the indi-
vidual level. External explicit knowledge and internal explicit knowledge are also
required for knowledge creation. Thus, this leads to tacit knowledge being created
at the individual level and explicit knowledge being created at the organization level
(i.e., internally within the organization).
3.4.1 Guidelines for DOE
Due to the lack of a universally accepted process for conducting DOE it was decided
to adopt the guidelines identified by Montgomery (2001b). Figure 3.1 outlines
the types of knowledge required to conduct a DOE, and furthermore explains the
knowledge created as a result.
Explicit
Tacit
Reports
Training courses
Books
Meetings
Brainstorming
External
Social
Internal documents
Email
Knowledge artifacts
Individual
Internal
Conduct Experiments
Fig. 3.1 Four types of knowledge use and output in DOE
We will now examine the types of knowledge in terms of the DOE model
(Montgomery, 2001):
1. Problem identification: This step entails all concerned stakeholders identifying
issues with the current product or process. A team approach is recommended for
this step using brainstorming and meetings. Thus social tacit knowledge is used
for this step. For social tacit knowledge to evolve individuals must also have
tacit knowledge to contribute. Social tacit knowledge requires discussions and
interactions which results in individuals developing their own understanding of
the problem (i.e., the generation of individual tacit knowledge either during the
brainstorming sessions or shortly thereafter).
2. Choice of factors: This involves selecting the factors which may have the greatest
influence on the problem associated with the product or process. These factors
will be measured in the experiments. It is usually conducted simultaneously with
Steps 1 and 3. As it is conducted within meetings or brainstorming sessions, this
step requires individual tacit knowledge to create social tacit knowledge from
which individual tacit knowledge is reabsorbed.
3. Selection of response variable: This includes identifying suitable mea-
sures/responses to determine if the problem has been addressed. Again this
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