Co-written with Levi Odelia, Pinchi Sharon, Pichman Karen, Written and edited by Knowledge Management students at Bar-Ilan University, Within the course "The Role of the Knowledge Manager" 2008
Yigal Hamish compared knowledge to a taxi. (Hamish, 2004)* "What is knowledge? A taxi. A knowledge worker in an organization needing knowledge is like a passenger who goes down to the street from his office and raises a finger wanting a taxi to stop immediately. He doesn't care where the taxi came from, where it's going, the driver's name, etc. That's nice, but not the main thing. The main thing is to get where you need to go. The same applies to knowledge. Knowledge is knowledge for action. Not for storage, not for display, not for pride. For action."
If knowledge is a taxi, then who is the operator? Who is the knowledge manager of the taxi driver? What is the role of the knowledge manager, and how can it be illustrated for employees and managers unfamiliar with this new profession?
The role of the knowledge manager is complex. This complexity makes it difficult for the knowledge manager to explain to their colleagues in the organization, or their managers, "what they do all day".
According to Boyd (Boyd S. 1998), the role of the knowledge manager is to encourage the creation of shared knowledge and to effectively manage knowledge repositories and their transfer methods to leverage the organizational learning system and continue the knowledge creation, sharing, and preservation cycle. From this definition, one can understand how complex the role of the knowledge manager is. Even more complex is trying to explain to others concisely and understandably the essence of the role.
This is where the metaphor comes to our aid. A metaphor can be briefly defined as a linguistic figure used to illuminate one concept through the characteristics of another.**
Within the course "The Role of the Knowledge Manager" delivered this year by Dr. Ron Dvir from Bar-Ilan University, we were asked to think of a metaphor that would define the role of the knowledge manager.
First, we turned to professional literature, which offered several metaphors:
Knowledge Manager as a "Confidant" – The knowledge manager must lead "brainstorming" as part of promoting the organization as an innovative entity, and therefore must allow employees to express their opinions, no matter how strange, detached from reality, and so on. The sense of security created among employees is crucial for continued "brainstorming" sessions and, as a result, generating innovative ideas that will advance the organization. The trust created by the knowledge manager eases the internal struggle each employee faces between the desire to share knowledge for the organization's benefit, the perception that "knowledge is power, " competitiveness between managers and employees, and the desire for personal promotion and reward (Boyd S. 1998).
Knowledge Manager as a "Multidisciplinary Coach" – Regardless of where the knowledge manager is organizationally positioned, whether in one of the management units, in an information, planning, evaluation, or research unit, or a human resources or training unit – they must work closely with the human resources system, especially with the training and development department (Boyd S. 1998). This allows the knowledge manager to ensure proper use of new technologies, that training contributes to their use, provide immediate feedback and appreciation to employees for their efforts in learning and working with new software, and also reduce anxiety about the new, thereby paving the way for future implementation of new platforms as a routine work method in the organization, and countering the fear of failure (Boyd S. 1998).
Knowledge Manager as a "Technologist" – The knowledge manager must be aware of the usability of technological tools in four knowledge management domains: information retrieval – such as email, Boolean searches in multiple tools and databases, document management, etc.; applications – tools specializing in personal information dissemination to a group, tags, notes, ideas, responses, insights, and more; organizational knowledge management website – including details of knowledge management projects in the organization, employee services, potential services for external customers, organizational gold pages, mapping internal and external experts, and providing tools for knowledge assessment and software management (Boyd S. 1998).
Knowledge Manager as an "Accountant" – The knowledge manager must understand the world of budgets and accounting. Measuring intellectual capital, which the knowledge manager deals with, is still lacking in structure and systematization. Brand values, copyrights, intellectual property – all of these are critical to an organization's business success, regardless of size. However, few companies have formalized the intellectual capital measurement process. The knowledge manager can persuade or encourage human resources or management to carry out these processes for the organization's benefit (Boyd S. 1998).
To this, we added our own ideas.
Tzvia thought of the knowledge manager as a "Renaissance Person" – "Knowledge managers as 'Renaissance people' have infinite curiosity, ability to acquire and somewhat master various skills, courage to initiate and implement innovative ideas, and are close to the rulers (once kings and dukes, in today's organizations: CEOs and senior levels in the organization)".
Karen raised the metaphor of the knowledge manager as a fashion designer – "All fabrics and sizes exist in the company, and the fashion designer sees the surrounding situation, where the company is heading and its future direction. They collect all their knowledge from the inventory and create the appropriate outfit for each person. The designer 'tailors' the right outfit for each individual (employee, manager) and creates a cohesive company where everyone has a unique and important role".
They must know their clients well, understanding their desires, aspirations, and measurements. They must give each garment its unique character while creating a distinctive collection. They need to understand the "field" around them and identify or create new trends. Above all, they must be creative and know how to maneuver within the fabric.
I (Odelia) thought of the knowledge manager as a magician
What is expected of a knowledge manager?
They are expected to be strategists and visionaries, looking far into the future while also being present, understanding the current moment, and providing solutions for both current and future problems. They are expected to understand the organizational culture and integrate into it, as well as political nuances and forecast trends.
From the service recipients' perspective – Everything!! An answer to every question, a response to every need in every field under the sun. They are seen as organizational memory, organizational historians, "signposts" that direct every need, writers, formulators of all organizational procedures, and sometimes even competitors or parallel organizations. They are expected to know how to edit, summarize, sort, organize material, retrieve information, etc.
And how can one accomplish even a little of all these expectations?
To juggle - The knowledge manager is a juggler, a magician holding several balls in the air while looking far and near, maintaining internal and organizational balance.
And we'll end with Dr. Ron Dvir's metaphor – The knowledge manager as a chef! The chef coordinates the kitchen team's work; Deals with connecting different ingredients into an excellent dish; The meal (= knowledge management strategy and organizational plan) consists of several courses, which are projects or initiatives; And the ingredients: Half a kilo of culture, A pinch of strategic vision, 20 units of technology, 3-4 processes, ... and in knowledge management, as in cooking, the balance between ingredients is essential.
The metaphors help us understand that the knowledge manager's role is complex. Job requirements are adapted to the organization where the knowledge manager works. The knowledge manager must master several skills to drive the knowledge management process in their organization.
**From the "Metaphor" entry in Wikipedia
댓글