Posted by Yogesh Malhotra on July 07, 1997 at 19:07:54:

In Reply to: knowledge management & Human Resources Management posted by R.P. on July 07, 1997 at 08:21:44:

While HRM aims for the most effective deployment of the organization's
portfolio of human skills and expertise toward the achievement of the
organization's goals, KM aims for the most effective deployment of the
knowledge assets - including human skills and expertise, information
technology and much more [discussed on this site] - toward the development
and sustenance of organizational knowledge creation competencies.

Hence, there are definite overlaps between the two 'areas' depending upon
the specific contexts that you are attempting to address. For instance,
while the traditional notion of HRM is more related to compensation,
training and performance issues, the current notion of HRM includes notions
such as the development and sustenance of organizational intellectual
capital and organizational learning competencies.

Similarly, various 'flavors' of KM also overlap with issues that have
traditionally been the domain of HRM such as compensation, training and
performance issues.

Current practices of many leading organizations aiming to hire specific
'skill portfolios' in the form of human assets, coupled with training
and retention of such [intangible] assets, may be considered under KM as
well as HRM. On the same note, some organizations have reoriented their
HRM units into what are now labelled Organizational Learning units under
the Chief Learning Officers (CLOs).

One may tend to make a simplistic distinction between HRM and KM based on
the inclusion of information technology in KM and excluding it from HRM.
However, let's beware that information systems are achieving a relatively
more importantly role in the HRM facets of many organizations.

One pragmatic distinction may be made in terms of the conceptual lens one
is using to understand the notion of 'organizational effectiveness.' If
the focus of the lens is on the knowledge capital, intellectual property
and intangible assets from a learning/knowledge perspective, it is KM. If
the focus is on the development of human resources for facilitating
organizational effectiveness, of which KM is one aspect, then it is HRM.
However, one caveat needs to be observed, this is still a simplistic
distinction...

Any thoughts?

[The same holds for issues such as BPR, Outsourcing - unless one can
isolate the 'human resource' component from them... it may be theoretically
possible, however it may result in a very restricted definition
... something in line with what Paul Strassmann states in his book 'The
Squandered Computer':

"Computers are only catalysts. Identically trained people in different
organizations can come to opposite conclusions from an examination of
data obtained by identical means. What matters is not what people see on
their computer screens, but what informed actions they take with what
they learn."
"Unless robots end up running completely automated businesses, the
relationship between computerization and profitability will remain a
random scatter diagram for many years to come."]

• WWW Virtual Library on Knowledge Management

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Follow Ups:

• Re: knowledge management & Human Resources Management Sarah John 10:13:35 12/12/98 (0)
• Re: knowledge management & Human Resources Management Mazuki Jusoh 03:50:50 1/11/98 (9)
  • Re: knowledge management & Human Resources Management Andrew L Good 20:09:27 1/12/98 (8)
    • Re: the role of Human Resources Management mark 23:02:29 6/29/98 (7)
      • Re: the role of Human Resources Management Nilesh Patel 19:20:55 8/10/98 (2)
        • Re: the role of Human Resource Mangement satnam singh 20:49:26 12/15/98 (0)
        • Re: the role of Human Resources Management Sara Lewis 18:16:26 10/27/98 (0)
      • Re: the role of Human Resources Management Syed Saif Naqvi 03:43:41 7/30/98 (3)
        • Re: the role of Human Resources Management Quentin Limbourg 05:26:50 12/19/98 (0)
        • Re: the role of Human Resources Management Nilesh Patel 19:19:43 8/10/98 (1)
          • Re: the role of Human Resources Management Dr. Atef El-Maghraby 10:18:11 8/27/98 (0)
• Re: knowledge management & Human Resources Management saurabh 09:09:53 10/24/97 (2)
  • Re: knowledge management & Human Resources Management Ray Temple 11:12:36 10/30/98 (0)
  • Re: knowledge management & Human Resources Management Henrik Andersson 04:30:01 11/17/97 (0)
• HRM John 05:26:23 10/22/97 (4)
  • Re: HRM katia 08:43:58 11/19/98 (0)
  • Re: HRM Hocine Chachi 11:35:32 2/04/98 (1)
    • Re: HRM B. Mosios 07:51:22 6/18/98 (0)
  • Re: HRM PAQ Services 12:13:48 1/28/98 (0)

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