Applying Knowledge Management

Applying Knowledge

Management

Techniques for Building Corporate Memories

Applying

Knowledge

Management

Techniques for Building Corporate Memories

Ian Watson

University of Auckland

Senior Editor Denise E. M. Penrose

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Production Editor Howard Severson

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Cover Design Yvo Riezebos

Cover Image The Image Bank

Text Design Mark Ong

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Composition Top Graphics

Copyeditor Judith Brown

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Indexer Bill Meyers

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Library of Congress Control Number: 2002108512

ISBN: 1-55860-760-9

This book is printed on acid-free paper.

For KB

Part I Corporate Memory.................................. 1

Knowledge Management and

Organizational Memory .................................. 3

Introduction .......................................................... 3

A Definition of Knowledge Management .............. 4

Why Manage Knowledge? ................................... 5

What Is Knowledge? ............................................ 7

What Knowledge Should I Be Managing?............ 10

Toward a Knowledge Framework ........................ 11

Knowledge Management Activities ...................... 13

A Methodology for Knowledge Management ....... 15

Vignette: Managing Knowledge at Microsoft........ 18

Conclusion ........................................................... 20

Understanding Case- Based Reasoning ........ 23

Introduction .......................................................... 23

What Is CBR? ...................................................... 24

Case-Based Reasoners Remember .................... 25

The CBR-Cycle .................................................... 25

Cases ................................................................... 27

Case Storage and Indexing.................................. 29

Key Assumptions ................................................. 30

The World is a Regular Place.......................... 31

Situations Repeat ............................................ 31

Similar Problems Have Similar Solutions ........ 31

Conceptualizing CBR........................................... 32

CBR Processes.................................................... 34

Retrieval .......................................................... 34

Reuse .............................................................. 41

Revision........................................................... 41

Review............................................................. 42

Retain .............................................................. 43

Refine .............................................................. 43

Conclusion ........................................................... 44

Part II Case Studies .......................................... 47

Managing Product Quality .............................. 49

Introduction .......................................................... 49

The Problem......................................................... 50

Software Support............................................. 51

Application Upgrades ...................................... 52

Knowledge Management and the

Integration of CBR........................................... 53

The Knowledge Management Solution ................ 55

Expected Benefits ........................................... 55

The Team ........................................................ 56

Implementation Plan........................................ 57

Hardware and Software................................... 61

System Architecture ........................................ 65

Case Representation....................................... 70

Case Acquisition.............................................. 79

Case Retrieval ................................................. 81

Case Retention................................................ 82

Interface Design .............................................. 83

Testing............................................................. 83

Rollout ............................................................. 83

Conclusion ........................................................... 84

Developing Expertise ..................................... 87

Introduction .......................................................... 87

The Problem......................................................... 88

The Existing Process....................................... 88

Background to Color Matching ........................ 90

The Knowledge Management Solution ................ 91

Expected Benefits ........................................... 91

The Team ........................................................ 91

Implementation Plan........................................ 92

Hardware and Software................................... 93

System Architecture ........................................ 94

Case Representation....................................... 96

Case Acquisition.............................................. 96

Case Retrieval ................................................. 99

Case Adaptation.............................................. 106

Alternative Method of Color Matching ............. 107

Case Retention................................................ 110

Interface Design .............................................. 110

Testing............................................................. 113

Rollout ............................................................. 114

System Demonstration......................................... 114

Enter Color Match Request Input .................... 115

Perform Color Match Case-Base Research .... 116

Experimentally Validate Adapted Case ........... 117

Determine Whether Match Is Acceptable........ 117

Maintenance......................................................... 117

Benefits7 .............................................................. 118

Conclusion ........................................................... 120

Improving Process Design ............................. 121

Introduction .......................................................... 121

The Problem......................................................... 122

The Knowledge Management Solution ................ 124

Expected Benefits ........................................... 124

The Team ........................................................ 124

Implementation Plan........................................ 125

System Architecture ........................................ 126

Case Representation....................................... 129

Case Acquisition.............................................. 131

Case Retrieval ................................................. 131

Case Adaptation and Retention ...................... 132

Interface Design, Testing, and Rollout ............ 133

System Demonstration......................................... 134

Benefits ................................................................ 136

Conclusion ........................................................... 137

Benchmarking Best Practice .......................... 139

Introduction .......................................................... 139

The Problem......................................................... 140

The Knowledge Management Solution ................ 143

Expected Benefits ........................................... 145

The Team ........................................................ 147

Implementation Plan........................................ 147

Hardware and Software................................... 149

Case Acquisition.............................................. 150

Case Representation....................................... 151

Case Retrieval ................................................. 152

Case Adaptation.............................................. 153

Case Retention and Maintenance ................... 155

Interface Design .............................................. 155

Testing............................................................. 156

Rollout and Benefits ........................................ 157

System Demonstration......................................... 158

Conclusion ........................................................... 159

Information Retrieval ...................................... 163

Introduction .......................................................... 163

The Problem......................................................... 164

The Knowledge Management Solution ................ 168

Expected Benefits ........................................... 168

The Team ........................................................ 169

System Architecture ........................................ 169

Case Representation....................................... 170

Case Acquisition.............................................. 170

Case Retrieval ................................................. 171

Case Adaptation.............................................. 173

System Demonstration......................................... 173

Benefits ................................................................ 176

Conclusion ........................................................... 177

Distributed Sales Support............................... 179

Introduction .......................................................... 179

The Problem......................................................... 180

The Knowledge Management Solution ................ 181

Expected Benefits ........................................... 182

The Team ........................................................ 183

Implementation Plan........................................ 183

Hardware and Software................................... 184

System Architecture ........................................ 184

Case Representation....................................... 185

Case Acquisition.............................................. 186

Case Retrieval ................................................. 187

Case Retention................................................ 188

Interface Design .............................................. 189

Testing............................................................. 189

Rollout ............................................................. 189

System Demonstration......................................... 8.4

Benefits ................................................................ 192

Maintenance......................................................... 193

Functionally Redundant Cases ....................... 194

Functionally Obsolete Cases........................... 198

Conclusion ........................................................... 199

Personalizing Information Services ................ 201

Introduction .......................................................... 201

The Problem......................................................... 202

The Knowledge Management Solution ................ 205

Content-Based Filtering................................... 206

Collaborative Filtering...................................... 207

Implementation Plan........................................ 208

System Demonstration......................................... 210

Benefits ................................................................ 212

Conclusion ........................................................... 213

Part III Conclusion ............................................ 215

Lessons Learned ............................................ 217

Introduction .......................................................... 217

Prior Experience with CBR................................... 218

Prior Solutions...................................................... 218

CBR Software and Development Methodology.... 220

Existing Process Analogous to CBR .................... 222

Acquisition and Processing of Cases ................... 223

Number of Cases and Case Bases...................... 225

Case Representation ........................................... 227

Case Retrieval Technique.................................... 228

Case Revision...................................................... 228

Case Review ........................................................ 230

Organizational Change ........................................ 231

Conclusion ........................................................... 232

Appendix: Resources ..................................... 235

Case Study Author Contact Details...................... 235

Case-Based Reasoning Software Vendors.......... 237

Case-Based Reasoning Consultants and

Value Added Resellers......................................... 238

Index............................................................... 241