Posted by Reilly Atkinson on October 20, 1999 at 15:08:24:

In Reply to: Communication & knowledge sharing posted by Denham on October 19, 1999 at 17:10:05:

Denham & Shelly-- Cynical person that I am, I'm very inclined to think that the label "knowledge sharing" comes to us from some academic trying to get tenure by means of the old trick of using jargon and tons of verbiage to make something profound out of the commonplace. Another possibility is that it is "Adspeak", a testimony to the banality of language and concept that is so prevalent in the marketing world. As a metaphor, the name makes some sense. If you want technical, how in the world are you ever going to define it?

As far as I know, mutual sharing and sharing are different concepts. When, for example, I lectured on physics, I was sharing my knowledge; communicating some of what I knew. To a substantial degree, the communication and knowledge flow was one-way, from me to them.

Re Shelly's project: my advice is based on having supervised numerous theses and doctoral dissertations. First keep things as simple, non-controversial, and practical as possible. To that end I would suggest that you focus on the efficacy of the software -- finesse anything but a very general discussion of knowledge sharing, keep it metaphorical rather than technical. Focus on measuring what the software, by its own terms, is supposed to do, and how work patterns have changed - for better or worse. Use both structured and depth interviews, in temporal sequence if possible. Establishing a timeline for change measurement greatly adds to the richness of this type of research.

Regards
Reilly

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