Knowledge Management & Discovery
ICT-Enabled Knowledge Management
Dr. Hayat El Asri
School of Business Administration
[email protected] Spring 2025
Introduction
• There is no doubt that ICT has played a crucial role in KM and will continue to
revolutionize KM processes in the future.
• During every stage of the whole KM lifecycle (from knowledge building,
knowledge holding and knowledge mobilization to knowledge utilization), ICT
has been an integral part of KM systems, not only to manage explicit
knowledge but also to facilitate tacit knowledge creation and sharing.
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Introduction
• One of the success stories of ICT is in helping to build knowledge management
systems (KMS).
• KMS refers to information systems that focus on managing organizational
knowledge and improving the creation, storage, mobilization and utilization of
knowledge.
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Knowledge Management Systems
An effective KMS is mainly comprised of:
1. ICT Infrastructures: The physical technology (hardware, software, networks) that
supports knowledge management, including intranets, LANs, and cloud services.
2. Collaborative Technologies: Tools such as discussion forums, document repositories,
and workflows that enable sharing and collaboration across teams.
3. Knowledge Repositories: Centralized systems for storing, organizing, and retrieving
both explicit and tacit knowledge (e.g., databases, knowledge bases, and content
management systems).
4. Search and Retrieval Systems: Advanced search functionalities and AI tools that help
users quickly access relevant knowledge and information within large systems.
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ICT-KM Approaches
The approaches of ICT to KM have been classified into six categories:
• Repository-based approach: Using ICT to assist with the storage and retrieval of knowledge.
• Process and domain-based approach: Creating knowledge bases to facilitate KM processes in
different domains.
• Collaboration tools: Facilitating communication and knowledge sharing through tools that
support collaboration.
• Crowd-based approach: Using ICT technology to tap into the wisdom of crowds, including
partners, customers, suppliers, and stakeholders.
• Network-based approach: Enabling knowledge sharing in online communities across
hierarchical and geographic boundaries.
• Sensor-based approach: Leveraging IoT and big data analytics to enhance KM with real-time
data.
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Internet of Things
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Internet of Things
• IoT refers to an emerging paradigm consisting of a continuum of uniquely
addressable objects communicating with each other to form a worldwide dynamic
network.
• This interconnected network uses disruptive digital technologies, influencing daily
business operations as well as long-term strategies.
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Internet of Things
• Leverage IoT to better manage knowledge and improve the flow of information within an
organization.
• Use IoT to facilitate the crossing of knowledge boundaries, enabling more effective sharing across
departments and geographical locations.
• Leverage collective knowledge through IoT to improve innovation and responsiveness in a
competitive environment.
• Utilize IoT-driven knowledge flow to help organizations adapt to changes and achieve long-term
business sustainability.
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Impact of IoT on KM
IoT allows for greater connectivity among individuals, groups, organization units,
organizations and communities, and thus presents opportunities to leverage knowledge
via mobilization within and crossing boundaries.
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Impact of IoT on KM
Five key business benefits of using IoT have been observed:
1. Refine, Integrate, Optimize, and Automate Business Processes: IoT can
streamline and improve business operations across an organization by
automating tasks and integrating systems.
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Impact of IoT on KM
2. Promote Innovation and New Product Development: IoT enables businesses
to innovate, develop new products, shift to service-based models, and tap into
new markets, generating recurring revenue streams.
3. Enhance Customer Relationship Management: IoT creates more customer
touchpoints, allowing businesses to strengthen relationships and improve
customer satisfaction.
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Impact of IoT on KM
4. Promote Safety and Security: IoT enhances safety by monitoring critical systems (e.g., fire
alarms, escape routes) to protect staff and customers.
5. Enable Asset Management: IoT helps manage assets by providing real-time monitoring,
tracking their status, and ensuring timely maintenance to prevent issues.
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Impact of IoT on KM
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Impact of IoT on KM
IoT provides a technological network platform that can facilitate all stages of KM
processes, including:
• allowing the creation of new knowledge facilitated by the data and information
collected from a wide range of sources, whether via physical sensors and devices
or virtual entities;
• allowing the storage of knowledge using the cloud and other systems;
• allowing knowledge mobilization among all stakeholders and the wider
environment, within an organization or crossing boundaries that are connected
through any paths/networks;
• allowing the utilization of knowledge through any services enabled by IoT.
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IoT and KMS
In the IoT era, a new generation of KMS should offer additional capabilities:
• create personalized experience and tackle multiple sources;
• move and reposition data and information from different sources and channels;
• optimize data, information and knowledge for different uses;
• provide real-time on-demand data, information and knowledge for both rational
and emergent decision making;
• collect instructional data and machine data; and
• enable the KMS to be seamless and interoperable, and to have realistic
• connectivity that reduces costs, improves quality and drives greater productivity.
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IoT and KMS
It should be pointed out that the relationship between IoT and KM is not one-
directional but bi-directional.
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IoT and KMS
For example, to make the right decisions in terms of the 'things' and the 'network (internet)', it is
essential to know what data to focus on and how to allocate analytical resources. To find out the
answers to these questions, there are bigger issues regarding businesses to address first, as IoT
technology will be worth investing in and will be able to gain support only if IoT strategy is aligned
with business objectives. Therefore, it is important to ask relevant business questions.
• What are the core business processes that IoT aims to support?
• What key decisions in the processes will benefit from analytical insights?
• What data, information and knowledge really matter to the business?
• What are the knowledge leverage points of business performance?
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Big Data Analytics
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Introduction
IoT and Big Data Relationship: IoT generates a massive amount of data from connected devices,
which can be analyzed to create valuable information and knowledge.
Data Analysis and Aggregation: The value of collected data comes through large-scale analysis and
aggregation, revealing new knowledge and insights.
IoT and Knowledge Generation: IoT collects vast amounts of data from sensors and devices, which
need to be classified, mined, and organized to generate knowledge and business intelligence.
BDA in Knowledge Management: Big Data Analytics plays a key role in extracting valuable
knowledge from large datasets, which can be used to support better business decisions and
enhance performance.
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Introduction
Dynamic Capability: Organizations need to sense and adapt to trends, learning and creating new
knowledge to maintain a competitive advantage.
Real-time Decision Making: Business leaders seek faster, real-time decisions, especially during
disruptions like natural disasters or unexpected competitors.
Big Data in KM: Big data enables consideration of multiple factors, such as competitor knowledge,
market trends, and emergencies.
Value of Big Data & BDA: Big data and analytics provide valuable insights that offer a competitive
edge and support better decision-making.
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Big Data
The term 'big data' was first introduced by Doug Laney, an analyst from META (now Gartner). Despite
the significant interest from both academics and practitioners, its precise definition is still evolving. It
was predicted that the term would have a relatively short lifespan, and other experts agreed that
there was no universally accepted definition of big data.
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Volume
• Volume refers to the large amount of data (too much), that is, their enormous
size (measured in terabytes and exabytes).
• With never-ending technological innovation, the quantity of data created every
day grows exponentially.
• Today, in every second on the internet the amount of data generated is more
than the capability of the entire internet of 20 years ago
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Variety
• Variety means that data exist in various forms (structured, semi-structured and
unstructured), mostly not structured in a usable way.
• It also means the complexity of data content, that is, data can be generated through
various means, emanating not only from the usual business and government sources
but also from sensors and social media connected to IoT.
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Velocity
• Velocity is about the huge pace (moving too fast) at which big data are generated and
flow, which could be well beyond the analytical capacities of most traditional database
software tools.
• Today, data are obtainable in real time or nearly real time. This makes it possible for
organizations to be much more agile and faster in making decisions.
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Veracity
• Veracity refers to the fact that data may contain noise or be incomplete and out of
date, which could affect the quality and usefulness of the data captured.
• The data collected must have quality, and the original source must have a certain level
of trust.
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Value
• Value is a source of competitive advantage, which highlights the meaning and
importance of big data, and how to extract the hidden value from large data sets.
• Value is often linked to an organization's ability to make better decisions.
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Big Data Analytics
• BDA helps in understanding large datasets, extracting useful information, and generating new knowledge.
• Managers use big data insights to better understand their businesses and transform knowledge into efficient
decisions.
• BDA manages and analyzes the five Vs (volume, variety, velocity, veracity, value) to generate actionable
insights for sustained value and competitive advantages.
• BDA is widely used for service personalization, improved customer service, predictive analytics, and other
business functions, with great potential for application across organizations.
• Nearly 50% of supply chain professionals use or plan to use BDA for better decision-making and
performance optimization.
• Organizations view time as a critical resource, and BDA helps improve time-to-decision by mitigating risks
through predictive analytics.
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Big Data Analytics Challenges
• The challenges in BDA include not just the volume of data, but also its variety and velocity. Focusing
solely on volume may lead to underutilizing the data’s value.
• Generating value from big data involves several steps: data acquisition, information extraction and
cleaning, data integration, modeling and analysis, and interpretation and deployment.
• A common issue in BDA is the absence of a clear vision regarding the key questions that need to be
answered by the data, leading to data collection without proper analysis.
• It is crucial for organizations to align big data activities with their business objectives to ensure
meaningful analysis and outcomes.
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BDA and KM
The critical role that KM plays in BDA comes from two main threads: management of the content of
new knowledge generated from BDA and management of contextual knowledge for the whole BDA
transformation process.
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New Knowledge Management
• The primary output of Big Data Analytics (BDA) is new knowledge, which must be managed effectively
(stored, transferred, mobilized, and used) to benefit business decisions and performance.
• Human knowledge plays a crucial role in determining how the new knowledge generated from BDA will be
stored, mobilized, and utilized.
• A continuous research focus is on how to integrate and combine new knowledge from BDA with
organizational knowledge for more effective use.
• All aspects of BDA, including inputs, transformation processes, resources, procedures, and quality control,
require contextual knowledge to be successful.
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Contextual Knowledge Management
Contextual knowledge refers to how knowledge is situated in organizational contexts.
Contextual knowledge is usually tacit or implicit, including the implicit knowledge contained in
organizational processes and activities, embedded within an organization's outputs such as
products and services, and the tacit knowledge of employees and stakeholders throughout the
supply chain, including the intended markets. Specifically:
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Thank you!
