Knowledge Management and Supporting Computer Tools

Knowledge Management and Supporting Computer Tools Elvira Fernandes de Araújo OLIVEIRA Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia do Rio Grande do Norte Mossoró, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil Patricia Whebber Souza de OLIVEIRA Universidade Potiguar Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil ABSTRACT This study investigates knowledge management policies and practices regarding supporting computer tools at the Federal Institute for Education, Science and Technology (IFRN), Mossoro campus, state of Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil. It is a quantitative study case, with the questionnaire as its data-collecting technique. It presents results on the use of technological and knowledge management supporting tools. The questionnaire was applied to 91 servants at the institution, aiming at investigating the use of nine technological tools for supporting knowledge management: collaborative tools, portals and intranets; workflow systems; content management systems; electronic recordkeeping tools; customer relationship management tools; enterprise resource planning tools; balanced scorecard and key performance indicator tools; decision support systems; and datamining. It is concluded that tools for supporting knowledge management at IFRN Mossoro is satisfactory in some cases, but also limited on the dissemination in the entire organization, with use restricted to certain groups. Keywords: Knowledge management, Computer tools, Knowledge management support. 1 INTRODUCTION Nowadays, discussions on Knowledge Management convey that organizations need to manage, effectively, the knowledge created in their internal and external environments, providing appropriate means and basis so that information can be collected, treated and made available and, thus, be converted into knowledge useful to their productive and business processes. Knowledge management encompasses a set of factors which become responsible by the transfer and sharing of information and knowledge capable of socializing strategies for its management in organizations. Knowledge is a very important resource to the organizational life. Aiming at a better understanding of the role of knowledge in organizational life, Nonaka and Takeuchi (1997) [5] discuss the creation of organizational knowledge, which must be regarded as a process in which organizations, based on their environment, expand the knowledge created by individuals and socialize it at a group level through dialogue, discussion, experience sharing, meaning construction or practice community. The researchers Nonaka and Takeuchi (1997, 2008) [5,6]; Terra (2005) [9]; Davenport and Prusak (2003) [4]; Sveiby (1998) [8]; Brito (2005) [2]; and Rossatto (2003) [7], who share and discuss knowledge management, are unanimous about the value of intellectual capital, considering it more valuable than the organization active materials and they assert that it is a factor which conditions organization to regard the existence of knowledge as an essential resource to efficiently act in the market in which it is inserted. Knowledge management, because of its dynamic performance which involves the entire organization for its processes to be effective, has showed in its implementation policies the need for innovation, learning, and intangible assets. These assets, in turn, add value, competitiveness, and improve quality of products and services, either in public or private places. Healthy organizations generate and use knowledge. As they interact with their environments, they absorb information, transform them into knowledge and act based on a combination of this knowledge and their experiences, values and procedures. In the absence of knowledge, organizations could not organize or remain operating (Davenport and Prusak, 1998, p. 63) [4]. Thus, knowledge management can be described as the set of techniques, methods and tools used by the organization aiming the acquisition, identification, explicitly storage, dissemination and use of strategic knowledge in order to generate results for the organization. The development of policies on knowledge management in organizations requires the establishment of strategies and action plans related to knowledge, innovation, technological infrastructure systems, as well as a participatory process involving the entire organization and directed to people. Thus, one can articulate the actions and key priorities for the implementation of policies, considering these organizations goals and performance in society. Practices on knowledge management are addressed in the survey conducted by Batista (2006) [1] through the Institute of Applied Economic Researches (Instituto de Pesquisas Econômicas Aplicadas), linked to the Brazilian Government, in which they are presented under three

aspects: practices related to human resources management, practices related to facilitating processes of knowledge management, and practices related to technological and functional support to knowledge management. Knowledge management practice permeate all organizational activities and they are present in all organizational environments, which allows a change and interaction process among all members. According to Terra (2007) [10], organizational actions on knowledge management, whether using or not information technology and communication tools, must work to focus the organizational goals for a clear and specific identification of existing knowledge bases, which must be systematically and strategically generated. Thus, the organization must focus its development projects through its human, financial, and technological resources. In this new context of changes, ideas and technological advances, discussions on knowledge management are presented in a creative and innovative, aiming to represent a guiding element of a new scene for the society. Thus, to make knowledge an essential factor for the organizational development in the public sphere is a challenge which must be linked to the use of new technologies, organizational changes, and the new management practice in order to improve services, development and the quality of life of citizens. In this context the present study aims to collect information on the use of knowledge management supporting computer tools at the Federal Institute for Education, Science and Technology (Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia IFRN Mossoro), a technical and technological teaching institution in Mossoro, state of Rio Grande do Norte, Northeast Brazil. Based on the prior study conducted in other institutions Batista (2006) [1], the objective was to identify the use of tools among the servants and monitor the impact of such tools in the development of knowledge management in the institution. Hereafter, this study is organized as follows: description of methodology applied to the survey, the presentation of the survey results, discussion and analysis of results, and conclusions. The reference used in the study is at the end. 2 RESEARCH STUDY The research is characterized as a quantitative study of case, and its data-collecting technique was a questionnaire applied to institutional servants divided into two groups, teachers and technical-administrative servants, including managers. The enquiry was composed of thirty questions related to the objective of the research, being divided into three groups, and only results connected to the use of tools for supporting knowledge management will be presented. The questions were created as assertions using a Likert scale with a range from 1 to 5 scores, so that higher scores refer to a greater and more effective use of the tool, and the lower ones indicate little or no use. The intermediate value indicates a neutral position regarding the use of tools for supporting knowledge management by the surveyed servant. In the research, the usage of nine technological tools for supporting knowledge management were investigated: (1) collaborative tools, portals and intranets; (2) workflow systems; (3) content management systems; (4) Electronic Recordkeeping; (5) Customer Relationship Management (CRM); (6) Entreprise Resource Planning (ERP); (7) balanced scorecard tools (BSC) and key performance indicator (KPI); (8) Decision Support Systems; and (9) data mining. The data of questionnaires were analyzed by using descriptive statistics. The managers were gathered in other stage of this study in order to jointly identify what implementation stage of the referred tools in IFRN Mossoro in relation to the results obtained and the scope in relation to the dissemination in the academic community. 3 ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION OF RESULTS The results are presented in two steps: firstly there are the results obtained with the questionnaires applied to the servants (teachers and administrative ones), and then there are the results of the survey applied to institutional managers. Survey applied to the servants Altogether 70 questionnaires were collected, which represents 82% of all servants in the institution. It is showed in Table 1 as follows: Table 1 Survey Participants Category Total Managers 04 Administrative Servants 43 Teachers 27 Source: formulated by the author Collaborative Tools, portals e intranets: Among the surveyed servants, 63% of teachers and 53% of administrative servants involve these practices in their daily activities at the institution, which is considered satisfactory if compared to other studied practices. They are among the most commonly used practices. Graph 1 Collaborative Tools (Results)

Workflow Systems: are more largely used by part of the administrative servants (58%) than by teachers (48%). Altogether 54% said they often use workflow tools. Graph 2 Workflow Systems (Results) this practice presents low participation of servants at IFRN Mossoro, both by teachers and by administrative servants. Among teachers, it is noted that 40% do not use CRM tools, while 22% often use them. Among administrative servants, it is noted that 49% do not use them, while 28% often use them. Graph 5 CRM Tools (Results) It is also highlighted a high percentage of teachers (37%) and administrative servants (21%) who do not use these tools. Content Management Systems: many servants are involved in this practice, 63% of teachers and 60% of administrative servants use CMS very often, a total of 61% when all practices are assessed together. Graph 3 Content Management Systems (Results) Enterprise Resource Planning ERP: it is noted that ERP systems are not significantly used at the institution. The frequent use of ERP tools is higher among teachers, but, however, it is considered low once 52% said they do not use these systems, while only 30% often use them. Among administrative servants, 23% often use ERP systems, while 51% said they do not use them. Graph 6 ERP Systems (Results) Enterprise Content Management (ECM): the use of ECM tools by the servants represent less than 50%, and administrative servants (42%) use them more than teachers (37%), a total of 40% when all practices are assessed together. Graph 4 Enterprise Content Management (Results) Considering all surveyed servants, it is noted that 26% often use ERP systems, while 51% do not use them. Balanced ScoreCard (BSC) and Key Performance Indicators (KPI): a low use of BSC and KPI tools is noted among both surveyed categories. It is noted that 74% of teachers and 77% of administrative servants do not use these tools, while only 4% of teachers and 9% of administrative servants often use them. Considering all surveyed servants, it is noted that 7% of them use BSC and KPI tools, while 76% do not use them. Graph 7 BSC and KPI (Results) It is important to note that there is a high percentage of teachers (52%) who do not use ECM tools, while there is a lower percentage for administrative servants (37%). Customer Relationship Management CRM: CRM tools are not satisfactory used at the institution. However, the categories consider them important. It is noted that

Decision Support Systems DSS: it is noted that 59% of teachers said they do not use DSS systems, while 19% often use them. In relation to administrative servants, it is noted that 70% do not use these systems, while 21% often use them. Graph 10 Datawarehouse (Results) Graph 8 Decision Support Systems (DSS) (Results) Altogether 66% of the surveyed servants said they do not use these Decision Support Systems, while 20% often use them. Datamining and datawarehouse: these tools are not satisfactory used by the servants at IFRN Mossoro, despite the large amount of servants who do not use them. Among the surveyed teachers, 22% often use Datamining tools, while 59% do not use them. And among administrative servants, 33% that use these tools and 47% do not use them. Thus, it is noted that the administrative servants use Datamining tools more than teachers. Graph 9 Datamining (Results) Regarding Datawarehouse tools, it is noted a greater use. A percentage of 37% of teachers often use them, while 59% do not use them. Among the surveyed administrative servants, there is a lower use; 30% of them use these tools, while 47% do not use them. Survey applied to the managers The survey applied to managers at IFRN Mossoro consisted of performing one meeting in which the researcher presented the tools and guided the managers to fill the form, which aimed at collect the group s opinion about the implementation stage of the referred tools and the scope of such practices at the institution. In the first stage, the group was asked to indicate which implementation stage of each of the listed tools, assigning scores with the following meanings: [4] implementation with significant results; [3] implemented; [2] in implementation process; [1] planned for the future; [0] there are no plans for implementation. The answers are presented in Table 2. Table 2 Practice implementation stage Implementation stage Practice [1] [4] [3] [2] [0] ECM Portals/intranets/extranets Workflow Systems Data warehouse Data mining KPI DSS Content management Balanced scorecard ERP CRM conducted in March and April 2010 The analysis of answers provided by the managers at IFRN Mossoro shows that seven of the eleven knowledge management practices in the technology category are implemented and produce significant results at the institution. Two of the practices are in the implementation or planning stage (answers [1] + [2]). At last, two of the technology practices were reported as having no plans for implementation. Regarding the scope of practices at the institution, it was attempted to verify the dissemination on the managers concerning. Likewise, scores were assigned with the following meanings: [3] widely disseminated within the institution; [2] within a board or department; [1] restricted adoption; [0] not applicable. The answers are presented below in Table 3.

Table 3 Scope of practice Practice Scope [3] [2] [1] [0] Portals/intranets/extranets ECM Workflow Systems Data warehouse Data mining Content management DSS BSC KPI ERP CRM conducted in March and April 2010 In the institutional managers point of view, seven of the eleven surveyed technology tools are widely disseminated at IFRN Mossoro, while two of them (datamining and datawarehouse) have restricted adoption. Electronic Recordkeeping and Content Management tools were not implemented. 4 CONCLUSIONS The conclusions presented hereafter were obtained from two points of analysis: the analysis of the use of tools by the servants from the results obtained with the questionnaires, and the comparison of results obtained from the servants with those scores assigned by the managers at the hereinabove meeting. Among the surveyed tools, the workflow systems, content management and collaborative ones, including portals and intranets are much more used than the other tools. This is due to the fact that they are more focused on the institutional daily activity. In an intermediate level of use, it was noted that Electronic recordkeeping, datamining and datawarehouse tools, as well as CRM and ERP systems are hesitantly used, with low return in terms of benefits for the institution. Regarding BSC, KPI and DSS tools, it was noted that they have low use at the institution, either by teacher or by administrative servants. In this respect, it is concluded that the use of tools for supporting knowledge management is, in some cases, satisfactory at the studied institution, but it is too limited in relation to the dissemination at the entire organization. The use of tools is restricted to certain groups, and, thus, the institution must work to disseminate their use and the effective benefits of knowledge management practices within the organization. Regarding the second part of the analysis, the comparison between the answers provided by the servants in the applied questionnaires and the answers provided by the managers showed opposition. The answers provided by the servants on the use of collaborative tools, portals and intranets were compatible to the managers point of view. The managers said these tools are widely disseminated and have important results, what was confirmed by the servants, who said over 60% of teachers and 50% of administrative servants use them. Also, both categories had compatible answers regarding workflow systems. The managers said they are widely disseminated and have significant results, with 50% of teachers and 60% of administrative servants who effectively use them. Managers and servants answers are also considered compatible regarding datamining and datawarehouse tools. The managers said these tools have restricted adoption, and the servants said there is a hesitant use, with their effective use by 30% of servants. However, it is noted that their (managers and servants ) answers were different regarding six practices/tools. The managers said there are no plans for the implementation of Content management and Electronic recordkeeping systems. Instead, they said there is no dissemination of them. Contrarily, servants said they effectively use Electronic recordkeeping systems (63% of teachers and 60% of administrative servants). Including, it was the higher percentage of all. The Content management systems, however, was considered of intermediate use (37% of teachers and 42% of administrative servants) by the servants. Also, it was noted that there was not compatibility between managers and servants answers in relation to the use of CRM, ERP and DSS tools. They were told to be widely disseminated and with satisfactory results by the managers, while servants said they have low use. Among all verified incompatibilities, the most conflicting one is regarding BSC and KPI tools. The managers said these tools are widely disseminated and have satisfactory results, while servants said there is a very low use, with low effective use (4% of teachers and 9% of administrative servants) and high percentage of servants who do not use these tools (74% of teachers and 77% of administrative servants). One last conclusion to be presented as a result of data analysis is that the results obtained from the servants (both categories) answers are compatible, with a low difference between the percentages. This reinforces the perception of all servants over the results indicated by the managers as the answers were incompatible. 5 ACNOWLEDGEMENTS The authors would like to thank the director of IFRN Clovis Costa Araujo and the teachers and administrative servants for the participation. We are grateful to Anibal de Souza Mascarenhas Filho for the language review. 6 REFERENCES [1] F. B. Batista, O desafio da gestão do conhecimento nas áreas de administração e planejamento das Instituições Federais de Ensino Superior (Ifes). Brasília, DF: IPEA, 2006. (Texto para discussão, 1181). Disponível em: <http://www.ipea.gov.br/pub/td/2006/td_1181.pdf>. Acesso em: 25 set. 2009.

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