Knowledge Links and Gaps

1. Knowledge Links and Gaps Yale BraunsteinJune 2004

2. Agenda • Knowledge Links • Key Dimensions of a Systemic KM • Strategic Gaps • Knowledge Gaps • Knowledge Strategies I. Agenda 1. Knowledge Links 2. Key Dimensions 3. Strategic Gaps 4.. Knowledge Gaps 5. Knowl. Strategies

3. Linking Knowledge to Strategy • mapping knowledge resources against strategic opportunities and threats : • better understanding of points of advantage and weakness • balancingknowledge-basedresources and capabilities for providing products or services • identifying which knowledge-based resources and capabilities are valuable, unique and inimitable I. Agenda 1. Knowledge Links 2. Key Dimensions 3. Strategic Gaps 4.. Knowledge Gaps 5. Knowl. Strategies

4. Key Dimensions of a Systemic Knowledge Management • key dimensions can be utilized for understanding the systemic strategy-knowledge links Systemic Strategy Systemic Knowledge Goals Systemic Knowledge Measurement I. Agenda 1. Knowledge Links 2. Key Dimensions 3. Strategic Gaps 4.. Knowledge Gaps 5. Knowl. Strategies Systemic Knowledge Identification Systemic Knowledge Filtering Systemic Knowledge Aquisition Systemic Knowledge Preservation Systemic Knowledge Development Systemic Knowledge Distribution Source: Marius Leibold, Gibert J. B. Probst & Michael Gibbert

5. Strategic Gap • the gap between what a firm must do to compete and what it actually is doing • stuff of traditional strategic management • strengths and weaknesses represent what the firm can do, opportunities and threats dictate what it must do • strategy represents how the firm balances its competitive "cans" and "musts" to develop and protect its strategic niche I. Agenda 1. Knowledge Links 2. Key Dimensions 3. Strategic Gaps 4.. Knowledge Gaps 5. Knowl. Strategies Source: Marius Leibold, Gibert J. B. Probst & Michael Gibbert

6. check: • the gap between what the firm must know to execute its strategy and what it does know • the firms various categories of existing knowledge in alignment with its strategic requirements • result: a set of potential knowledge gaps • in some cases: • the organization knows more than needed to support its competitive position • knowledge is dynamic and pervasive and therefore often • the impetus for identifying strategic gaps Knowledge Gap I. Agenda 1. Knowledge Links 2. Key Dimensions 3. Strategic Gaps 4.. Knowledge Gaps 5. Knowl. Strategies Source: Marius Leibold, Gibert J. B. Probst & Michael Gibbert

7. The systematic strategy-knowledge gap What a firm and network must know What a firm and network must do I. Agenda 1. Knowledge Links 2. Key Dimensions 3. Strategic Gaps 4.. Knowledge Gaps 5. Knowl. Strategies Knowledge Gap Strategic Gap What a firm and network knows What a firm and network can do Source:Marius Leibold, Gibert J. B. Probst & Michael Gibbert

8. Knowledge Strategies • describe the approach to align the knowledge resources and capabilities to the intellectual requirements of the organizations strategy • dimensions reflecting the degree of aggressiveness: • increase the knowledge in a particular area vs. the opportunity it may have to leverage existing but underexploited (creator vs. user) • whether the primary sources of knowledge are internal or external • these characteristics help a firm to describe and evaluate its current and desired knowledge strategy I. Agenda 1. Knowledge Links 2. Key Dimensions 3. Strategic Gaps 4.. Knowledge Gaps 5. Knowl. Strategies Source: Michael H. Zack

9. operating on a lower knowledge level than required: internal knowledge gap • compare the own to the higher knowledge of the competitors: external knowledge gap • result: The organinzation is an explorer - a creator or acquirer of the knowledge required • knowledge resources and capabilities exceed significantly the requirements of a competitive position • result: The organization's requirement is to be a knowledge exploiter Exploration vs. Exploitation (1) I. Agenda 1. Knowledge Links 2. Key Dimensions 3. Strategic Gaps 4.. Knowledge Gaps 5. Knowl. Strategies Source: Michael H. Zack

10. Exploration vs. Exploitation (2) • exploitation and exploration are not mutually exclusive • typically they occur in different parts of an organization • balancing requires a well-developed internal knowledge transfer capability between functions like R&D, sales, marketing, manufacturing, customer • activities must be linked and coordinated so that they can reinforce one another I. Agenda 1. Knowledge Links 2. Key Dimensions 3. Strategic Gaps 4.. Knowledge Gaps 5. Knowl. Strategies Source: Michael H. Zack

11. Internal vs. External Knowledge • knowledge generated within the firm is especially valuable because it tends to be unique, specific, and tacitly held • difficult for competitors to imitate • Knowledge from outside can provide for fresh thinking and a context for benchmarking internal knowledge • more abstract, more costly to obtain, more widely available to competitors I. Agenda 1. Knowledge Links 2. Key Dimensions 3. Strategic Gaps 4.. Knowledge Gaps 5. Knowl. Strategies Source: Michael H. Zack

12. Aggressive vs. Conservative • conservative: exploiting internal knowledge • aggressive: unbounded innovators (knowledge-intensive industries) I. Agenda 1. Knowledge Links 2. Key Dimensions 3. Strategic Gaps 4..Knowledge Gaps 5. Knowl. Strategies unbounded aggressive external conservative internal Exploiter Explorer Innovator Source: Michael H. Zack