Siemens Sharent Initiative

Chapter 1

Introduction

Today's market dynamics are extremely demanding and have a very fast changing nature. The players in the marketplace have to keep their pace with this pace and utilizing knowledge to their work areas are vital for continuity and resilience. Many companies around the globe are employing numerous ways to facilitate knowledge management systems in order to retain, distribute knowledge within the firm's base to keep up the pace with market and minimize the hindrance against innovation.

ShareNet is a system developed by Siemens ICN unit which is using ICT infrastructure to offer a number of knowledge management initiatives for the use of Siemens employees. The first is the knowledge library which is the most important element that is offering a database of experiences gained by the project teams all over the globe. Another distinct element is the urgent request platforms where employees can easily exchange relevant information regarding a particular situation. The final one is the news bulletins, discussion groups focussed on particular topics exchanging rich knowledge.[3]

This dissertation will try to classify ShareNet from the perspectives of Earl and Alvesson & Karreman's frameworks

Chapter 2

Classification of ShareNet by Michael Earl's Framework

Michael Earl, in his framework of knowledge management approach has identified seven specific schools of knowledge management under three broad approaches. These approaches are, Technocratic, Economic and Behavioural. Under Technocratic there are the schools of Systems, Cartographic and Engineering; under Economic there is the school of Commercial and under the Behavioural there are the schools of Organizational, Spatial and Strategic.[1] The details of each knowledge management school will not be discussed here; our aim is to try and classify Siemens ShareNet initiative from the point of Earl's typologies.

The three elements of ShareNet can be also classified under three schools of knowledge management identified by Earl. The first one is the School of Systems which is overlapping with the knowledge library of ShareNet which consists of a database of experiences gained by the project teams being codified and recorded into the databases. Earl defines the Systems School's main concern as codification of knowledge into databases with this knowledge then being available for use as an organizational resource, enabling ShareNet to be classified by it.[6]

The second element is the urgent request platforms and forums enabling the users to seek and exchange specific information on requests. This is overlapping with Earl's Cartographic school where he defines that the IT systems are providing an infrastructure for establishing inter-personal connections between people for anyone seeking information for a particular expert knowledge can use them.[6]

The last element which is the discussion groups, news bulletins etc. sharing "rich" knowledge. This can be classified with Earl's Organisational School knowledge management initiative. This school is concerned with facilitating the creation of inter-personal networks or communities of people whom have common interests and can benefit from sharing their knowledge. ShareNet is giving the employees of Siemens the exact thing that Earl described above, therefore can be classified as his Organisational School knowledge management typology.

Chapter 3

Classification of ShareNet by Alvesson & Karreman's Framework

Alvesson & Karreman (2001) used the framework of four management philosphies