Knowledge Management and Innovation - Essay Example

855). This piece of research work critically examines the knowledge sharing theoretical models developed by Nonaka and Takeuchi to elucidate how this model has been implemented in a typical industry to apply KM to the innovation of a product. This paper compares and contrasts knowledge transfer models based on relevant literatures and empirical evidences. Knowledge Management and Innovation In the contemporary business contexts where markets, products, competition, technology, laws and consumers are rapidly changing, continuous innovation and effective practice of KM to support innovation has become a major source of competitive advantage (Aramburu, Saenz and Rivera, 2006, p. 157). Nonaka and Takeuchi (2005, p. 1-5), both are widely renowned as KM gurus, argued that Japanese companies remained as enigma for most Western business experts and they gave a new explanation of what made Japanese companies highly successful. . ased on this explanation, the three major components of KM are creating the knowledge, sharing it and using the created or shared knowledge for organizational purposes.

Some literatures have considered more components such as knowledge identification, knowledge collection, knowledge organizing, knowledge dissemination, knowledge evaluation and knowledge adoption or implementation (Mehrabani and Shajari, 2012, p. 166). Forster (2005) described that knowledge management is a generic term that includes certain process by which employees’ experience, knowledge, skills etc are gathered, shared and utilized and then converted to a system of collective organizational learning so as to improve organizational performance.

Nonaka and Takeuchi perceived knowledge as a profound instrument that has effectually increased organization’s capability to implement right action from the evidences of Japanese companies. Knowledge has been categorized in to two; tacit and explicit knowledge. Tacit knowledge is one that is embedded in a person through the forms of experience, knowledge, skill, talent, wisdom etc and this can be attained from imitation and practice. Explicit knowledge is information stored in documents or database (Lee, Leong, Hew and Ooi, 2013, p. 850). Literatures in the field of KM have clearly illustrated the profound impact of knowledge management on innovation.

Most firms in contemporary business contexts find innovation as their grand strategy due to that consumers expect regular changes and advances in products (Pearce and Robinson, 2004, p. 207). Innovation is not merely an idea, but rather, it is the conversion of idea in to business functionality by establishing the idea in to reality (Endsley, 2010, p. 1). Many literatures including Boghani (2007), Lee et al