Chapter1: What do “information” & “knowledge” really mean? Flashcards
1
Q
Data - Definition, Examples
A
- Data are raw facts and figures that on their own have no meaning
- Directly observable or verifiable (Dalkir, 2011)
- These can be any alphanumeric characters i.e. text, numbers, symbols
- Note the “are” bit above? What does this mean?
- Examples:
- Yes, Yes, No, Yes, No, Yes, No, Yes
- 42, 63, 96, 74, 56, 86
- 111192, 111234
- None of the above data sets have any meaning until they are given a CONTEXT and PROCESSED into a useable form
2
Q
Data into Information
A
- To achieve its aims the organisation will need to process data into information
- Data needs to be turned into meaningful information and presented in its most useful format
- Data must be processed in a context in order to give it meaning
3
Q
Information - Definition
A
- Data that has been processed within a context to give it meaning
OR
- Data that has been processed into a form that gives it meaning
Some approaches:
- Content that represents analysed data (Dalkir, 2011)
- DIN 44 300: information = knowledge of facts and processes
- Information = purpose-oriented knowledge
- Information is the action-determining knowledge of past, present and future:
- status and/or events in the reality as well as of action or decision-influencing
- opinions and opinions of relevant persons or groups
4
Q
Data vs. Information
A
- Data: 131015
- Information:
- 13.10.15 - The date of your first IMKM lecture.
- 13.101,5 € - The costs for your new car.
5
Q
Different Views on Information
A
Information:
- Pragmatic Dimension (human Information as producer or user)
- Semantic Dimension (meaning message)
- Sigmatic Dimension (reality)
- Syntactic Dimension (structure data)
6
Q
Knowledge - Definition
A
- Knowledge is the understanding of rules needed to interpret information
- Knowledge is the appropriate collection of information, such that it’s intent is to be useful
- Characteristics of knowledge:
- Using knowledge does not consume it
- Transferring knowledge does not result in losing it
- Knowledge is abundant, but the ability to use it is scarce
- Much of an organization‘s valuable knowledge walks out of the door at the end of the day.
7
Q
Knowledge types
A
-
Explicit knowledge
- Objective, rational, technical
- Policies, goals, strategies, papers, reports
- Codified
- Leaky knowledge
-
Tacit knowledge
- Subjective, cognitive, experiential learning
- Highly personalized
- Difficult to formalize
- Sticky knowledge
8
Q
Summary: Data, Information, Knowledge, Widsom
A
- Data are just symbols
- Information is data that are processed to be useful; provides answers to “who”, “what”, “where”, and “when” questions
- Knowledge is application of data and information; answers “how” questions
- Wisdom is an evaluated understanding
9
Q
“Classic” Factors of Production
A
- Land or natural resource — naturally-occurring goods (water, air, soil, etc.)
- Labor — human effort used in production
- The capital stock — human-made goods which are used in the production of other goods (machinery, tools, buildings, etc.)
However :
- result is affected by combination of resources
- difference between competitors because of information differences
- competition as a discovery process for new knowledge and adaptive / copying learning
- business ideas as result of linking information (e.g. information on resources and information about customer wishes)
- organizations differentiate themselves on the basis of what they know!
10
Q
Information as a Model
A
„about what, for whom, for what purpose“
11
Q
Character-Data-Information-Knowledge
A
- Knowledge (Mechanism of currency market) <– network
- Information (Exchange rate 1€ = 1,25$) <– context
- Data (0.87) <– syntax
- Characer (“0”, “8”, “7”, “,”) <– charcter set
12
Q
Is there a need to differentiate between KM & IM?
A
Understanding Knowledge Management requires an understanding of knowledge and the knowing process and how that differs from information and Information Management.
13
Q
What is Knowledge Management? KM
A
- Pack rat approach „save it, it may prove useful in the future”
- A good definition of KM incorporates both the using and storing of knowledge!
- „KM is predominantly seen as information management by another name“ (Davenport & Cronin, 2000, 1)
- „KM is understanding the organization‘s information flows and implementing learning practices which make explicit the key aspects of its knowledge base (Broadbent, 1997, 8-9)
- „KM is a collaborative and integrated approach to the creation, capture, organization, access, and use of an enterprise‘s intellectual assets (Brooking, 1999, 154)
- „KM is the capability to create, enhance, and share intellectual capital across the organization” (Lank, 1997)
14
Q
What is Information (Resource) Management (IM)?
A
- Information is a resource
- How to manage this resource effectively and efficiently in order to achieve the business‘ objectives
- IT and IS are tools that help us in generating, storing, managing, analyzing the resource „Information“
15
Q
Definition and tasks of IM
A
- “IM is part of business management. The function of IM is to ensure optimal use of the resource information with regard to business objectives.” (Krcmar, 2015, 1)
- “IM helps managers assess and exploit their information assets for business development. It draws on the techniques of Information Science (libraries) and Information Systems (IT related). It is an important foundation for knowledge management, in that it deals systematically with explicit knowledge.“ (Dalkir, 2011, 467)
