6. List the major phases involved i

6. List the major phases involved in initiating organizational change and
review how the organizational culture would have to evolve so that KM
goals can be attained.
7. Discuss to what extent organizational culture can be managed.



INTRODUCTION

A number of common myths persist in the field of KM, including the “build
it and they will come” myth. Unfortunately, people rarely take the time to learn
new tools; technology does not always give them what they want or need, and
they often are not in a position to even know what they need. A second myth
is that “technology will replace face-to-face.” However, valuable tacit knowl-
edge sharing and the important role of informal networks and peer-to-peer
learning cannot and should not be ignored. The third common KM myth is
that “the first thing to do is change the organizational culture to one of learn-
ing.” Although a number of successful KM initiatives grew in organizations
that already had a solid learning culture, in others it is very difficult, and it
takes a very long time to launch (and subsequently maintain) cultural change.
If you begin with this challenge, you will end up waiting a long time for KM
to succeed. Most organizations can be envisaged to sit on a KM readiness gra-
dient: some are already “there,” whereas others have to move up to a cultural
state that will more readily accommodate or enable KM to succeed. Regard-
less of position, one thing is certain: the organization’s cultural environment
will play a crucial role in determining what happens to knowledge manage-
ment within that organization (see Figure 7-1).
What is organizational culture? The literature on organizational culture
borrows heavily from anthropology and sociology. Originally an anthropo-
logical term, culture refers to the underlying values, beliefs, and codes of prac-
tice that make a community what it is. The customs of society, the self-image
of its members, the things that make it different from other societies, are its
culture. Culture is powerfully subjective and reflects the meanings and under-
standings that we typically attribute to situations, and the solutions that we
apply to common problems. The idea of a common culture suggests possible
problems about whether organizations have cultures. Organizations are only
one constituent element of society. People enter them from the surrounding
community and bring their culture with them. It is still possible for organiza-
tions to have cultures of their own, for they possess the paradoxical quality of
being both part of and apart from society. They are embedded in the wider
societal context, but they are also communities of their own with distinct rules
and values.
Culture has long been on the agenda of management theorists. Culture
change must mean changing the corporate ethos, and the images and values
that inform action. This new way of understanding organizational life must be
brought into the management process. Culture possesses a number of central
aspects: one such aspect is an evaluative element that involves social expecta-
tions and standards—the values and beliefs that people hold central and that