Knowledge Networking: Creating the Collaborative Enterprise

Chapter 2

Knowledge: thestrategicimperative

Every few years a new management philosophy captures the attention of strategists and business leaders. In the 1990s, such movements have included those of total quality management and, more recently, business process re-engineering. The last few years have seen knowledge take centre stage. Many consultants, organizations and suppliers have jumped on to the knowledge management bandwagon, relabelling their wares to match. Does all the hype mean that it is merely a passing fad or is it something more fundamental?

This chapter unravels the fad from the fundamentals. The origins of the current interest are traced to several well-established roots, including information management and the learning organization. ...