Capturing Tacit Knowledge

CAPTURING TACIT
KNOWLEDGE
KM-05: Capturing Tacit Knowledge
This Week’s Topics

 The Knowledge Capture Process
 How To Identify Experts
 Single vs. Multiple Experts (Pros and
Cons)
 Interview As Knowledge Capture Tool
 Sources of Errors and Problems in
Interview
4-2
What Is Knowledge Capture ?

 A process by which the
expert’s thoughts and
experiences are captured
 A knowledge developer
collaborates with an expert
to convert expertise into a
coded program
 In simple terms, we want

to “know” how experts
know what they know
4-3
Three important steps

 Use an appropriate tool or
technique to elicit
information from the expert
 Interpret the information

and infer the expert’s
knowledge and reasoning
process
 Use the interpretation to

build rules that represent
expert’s solutions
4-4
Improving the Knowledge

Capture Process
 Focus on how experts
approach a problem
 Look beyond the facts
or the heuristics
 Re-evaluate how well
the problem domain is
understood
 How accurate the
problem is modeled
4-5
Using a Single Expert

Advantages:
 Ideal when building a
simple KM system
 A problem in a
restricted domain
 Easier to coordinate
meetings
 Conflicts are easier to
resolve
 Shares more
confidentiality than
does multiple experts
4-6
Using a Single Expert (cont’d)

Disadvantages:
 Sometimes expert’s knowledge
is not easy to capture
 Single expert provides only a
single line of reasoning
 Expert knowledge is sometimes
dispersed
 Single expert more likely to
change scheduled meetings than
experts in a team
4-7
Using Multiple Experts

Advantages:
 Complex problem domains
benefit from expertise of
more than one expert
 Working with multiple experts
stimulates interaction
 Allow alternative ways of
representing knowledge
 Formal meetings often a
better environment for
generating thoughtful
contributions 4-8
Using Multiple Experts (cont’d)

Disadvantages:
 Scheduling difficulties
 Disagreements often occur
among experts
 Confidentiality issues
 Requires more than one
knowledge developer
 Overlapping mental processes
can lead to “process loss”
4-9
Developing a Relationship
With Experts
 Create the right
impression
 Understanding the
expert’s style
 Prepare well for the
session
 Decide where to hold
the session
4-10
Approaching Multiple Experts

Individual
 An extension of single
expert approach
Primary and secondary
 Start with the senior
expert first, on down to
others in the hierarchy
Small groups
 Each expert tested
against expertise of
others in the group
4-11
Analogies and Uncertainties in

Information
 Experts use analogies to
explain events
 Expert’s knowledge is the

ability to take uncertain
information and use a
plausible line of reasoning to
clarify the fuzzy details
4-12
Analogies and Uncertainties in

Information (cont’d)
 Reliable knowledge capture
requires understanding and
interpreting expert’s verbal
description of information,
heuristics, etc.
 For example, words like
possible, likely, and definite
show relationships between
words and belief
4-13
The Interview As a Tool

 Commonly used in
the early stages of
tacit knowledge
capture
 The voluntary nature

of the interview is
important
4-14
The Interview As a Tool (cont’d)

 Interviewing as a tool
requires training and
preparation
 Convenient tool for

evaluating the validity
of information
acquired
4-15
Types of Interviews
 Structured: Questions and responses are
definitive. Used when specific information is
sought
 Semi-structured: Predefined questions are
asked but allow expert some freedom in
expressing the answers
 Unstructured: Neither the questions nor their
responses specified in advance. Used when
exploring an issue
4-16
Variations of Structured
Questions
 Multiple-choice questions offer specific
choices, faster tabulation, and less bias by
the way answers are ordered
 Dichotomous (yes/no) questions are a special

type of multiple-choice question
 Ranking scale questions ask expert to

arrange items in a list in order of their
important or preference
4-17
Guide to a Successful
Interview
 Set the stage and establish
rapport
 Properly phrase the
questions
 Question construction is
important
 Listen closely and avoid
arguments
 Evaluate session outcomes
4-18
Things to Avoid
 Taping a session without
advance permission from
the expert
 Converting the interview
into an interrogation
 Interrupting the expert
 Asking questions that put
the domain expert on the
defensive
4-19
Things to Avoid (Cont’d)

 Losing control of the
session
 Pretending to understand
an explanation when you
actually don’t
 Promising something that
cannot be delivered
 Bring items not on the
agenda
4-20
Sources of Error that Reduce

Information Reliability
 Expert’s perceptual slant
 Expert’s failure to
remember just what
happened
 Expert’s fear of the
unknown
 Communication problems
4-21
Errors Made by the

Knowledge Developer
 Ageeffect
 Race effect
 Gender effect
4-22
Problems Encountered During

the Interview
 Response bias
 Inconsistency
 Communication
difficulties
 Hostile attitude
 Standardized questions
 Lengthy questions
 Long interview 4-23
Nonaka’s Model of Knowledge

Creation and Transformation
TACIT TO TACIT TACIT TO EXPLICIT
(SOCIALIZATION) (EXTERNALIZATION)
e.g., Individual and/or Team e.g., Documenting a Team

Discussions Meeting
EXPLICIT TO TACIT EXPLICIT TO EXPLICIT

(INTERNALIZATION) (COMBINATION)
e.g., Learn from a report e.g., Create a Website from

and Deduce new ideas some form of explicit
knowledge; Email a Report
4-24
KNOWLEDGE
INFRASTRUCTURE
 Content core: Identify
Content
knowledge centres People
 People core: Evaluate Technology
employee profiles
 Technical core: The totality of
technology (S/W and H/W)
required to operate the
knowledge environment
3-25
.....
Layer User1 User2 … Usern
1 User Interface
(Web browser software installed on each user’s PC)
Authorized access control

2 (e.g., security, passwords, firewalls, authentication)
Collaborative intelligence and filtering

3 (intelligent agents, network mining, customization, personalization)
Knowledge-enabling applications
4 (customized applications, skills directories, videoconferencing, decision support systems,
group decision support systems tools)
Transport
5 (e-mail, Internet/Web site, TCP/IP protocol to manage traffic flow)
Middleware
6 (specialized software for network management, security, etc.)
The Physical Layer

(repositories, cables)
7
Databases Legacy applications Groupware Data warehousing

(e.g., payroll) (document exchange, (data cleansing,
collaboration) data mining)
4-26
Build vs. Buying

Option Cost Time Factor Customization
In-house Usually high Much shorter than High, depending
development development by on quality of
user staff
Development Usually low Depends on skills High to the user

by end users set, system priority, specifications
and so forth
Outsourcing Medium to high Shorter than High

in-house
Off-the-shelf Low to medium Nil Usually up to

Solution 80% usable
3-27
Styles of expert’s expressions

 Procedure type
 methodical approach to the solution
 Storyteller
 focuses on the content of the domain at the
expense of the solution
 Godfather
 compulsion to take over the session
 Salesperson
 spends most of the time explaining his or
her solution is the best
4-28
Preparing for the session

 Should become familiar with the
project terminology
 review existing materials
 Learn the expert’s language
4-29
Deciding where to hold the

sessions
 Beneficial in recording the expert’s
knowledge in the environment where
he or she works
 An important guideline is to make

sure the meeting place is quiet and
free from interruptions
4-30
The Wheels Analogy for the

Refraction of Light
4-31

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CAPTURING TACIT

This Week’s Topics

What Is Knowledge Capture ?

 In simple terms, we want

Three important steps

 Interpret the information

 Use the interpretation to

Improving the Knowledge

Using a Single Expert

Using a Single Expert (cont’d)

Using Multiple Experts

Using Multiple Experts (cont’d)

Approaching Multiple Experts

Analogies and Uncertainties in

 Expert’s knowledge is the

Analogies and Uncertainties in

The Interview As a Tool

 The voluntary nature

The Interview As a Tool (cont’d)

 Convenient tool for

 Dichotomous (yes/no) questions are a special

 Ranking scale questions ask expert to

Things to Avoid (Cont’d)

Sources of Error that Reduce

Errors Made by the

Problems Encountered During

Nonaka’s Model of Knowledge

e.g., Individual and/or Team e.g., Documenting a Team

EXPLICIT TO TACIT EXPLICIT TO EXPLICIT

e.g., Learn from a report e.g., Create a Website from

 People core: Evaluate Technology

Layer User1 User2 … Usern

Authorized access control

Collaborative intelligence and filtering

The Physical Layer

Databases Legacy applications Groupware Data warehousing

Build vs. Buying

Development Usually low Depends on skills High to the user

Outsourcing Medium to high Shorter than High

Off-the-shelf Low to medium Nil Usually up to

Styles of expert’s expressions

Preparing for the session

 review existing materials

 Learn the expert’s language

Deciding where to hold the

 An important guideline is to make

The Wheels Analogy for the

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