Knowledge management (knowledge management, in English) is the process of capturing, organizing, disseminating, practical application and protecting knowledge considered important by a company.

This knowledge includes:

• The intellectual capital of its human resources, that is, the information that each employee has individually, from their training and experience
• All the knowledge contained in the processes, products, services, systems and documents of this company, that is, all the experience accumulated by this organization since its creation
• The strategic information held by this organization, for example, about the external environment in which it operates

The objective of knowledge management as a management tool or organizational philosophy, is to encourage the acquisition of new knowledge (for example, through benchmarking). performance and innovation.

The philosophy of knowledge management assumes that much of the knowledge that the company needs it already has, but it will only be able to take advantage of it if there is dissemination.

The exchange between employees and departments is one of the main tools of knowledge management in companies, leading to the expansion of the corporation’s intellectual capital, the emergence of new ideas and the achievement of better performances.

Knowledge transfer

Knowledge management works so much so that its employees have access to the collective knowledge of the corporation and, above all, in reverse. Discovering what each one knows individually and encouraging their sharing with others. The ultimate goal is organizational learning, that is, the expansion of collective knowledge to respond to the company’s challenges.

The implementation of knowledge management depends on good internal communication. As well as the creation of an organizational environment favorable to new ideas, their exchange for their learning. It is necessary that each employee understands the importance of generation, sharing, socialization and the transfer of knowledge so that the result of this philosophy reaches its objectives.

One of the main challenges of knowledge management is to fight the resistance of those employees who feel they can be harmed if they share what they know. An example is experienced employees or managers who resist teaching subordinates or novices. For fear of losing their strategic importance to the corporation and, consequently, their jobs.

Examples of ways of disseminating knowledge in companies are:

Socialization

It is the sharing of tacit knowledge, that is, the employee’s experience. This type of knowledge is usually not formalized and is measured through action. It is shared among employees through observation, imitation and practice.

Outsourcing or articulation

It is the conversion of tacit knowledge into explicit knowledge, that is, the work of transforming experience into knowledge that can be formally communicated and shared with the group.

Standardization or synthesis

It is the organization of explicit knowledge, that is, formal or technical knowledge, so that it is more easily applied in everyday life. An example is the creation of manuals and work guides.

Internalization

It is the practical application of formal and technical knowledge. It occurs when employees use the knowledge they learned in a class or other activity promoted by the company, for example, to improve their performance and end up increasing their tacit knowledge and improving the performance of their functions.