The Australian Library Journal
volume 50 issue 4

Educating for a knowledge management future: Perceptions of library and information professionals

Manuscript received September 2001

This is a refereed article

The investigation of educational and training requirements in knowledge management for library and information professionals, as part of this research study, was prompted by three emerging trends. Firstly, the substantive claims put forward by the knowledge management literature seem to indicate that the practical application of the concept of knowledge management is a powerful force in organisations which contributes to organisational performance, competitive advantage and positioning, economic success in the market place, and economic sustainability (Stewart 1997).

There is a pervasive and emotive rhetoric by knowledge management experts that signals the positive outcomes of effective knowledge management practices, and the deleterious consequences of ignoring it. Prusak (1997), for instance, asserts that 'the firm that leaves knowledge to its own devices puts itself in severe jeopardy', and in order to avoid that fate, he states the importance of 'working to build better environments for knowledge to be created and better methods of measuring and managing its outputs' (1997, x). Nonaka & Takeuchi (1995) also link knowledge management to organisational success. They claim that companies are successful because of their skills and expertise at 'organizational knowledge creation', that is, 'the capability of a company as a whole to create new knowledge, disseminate it throughout the organization, and embody it in products, services, and systems' (1995, viii).

In a similar vein, Wiig (1993) asserts that the 'factors that lead to superior performance - organizational creativity, operational effectiveness, and quality of products and services - are all improved when better knowledge is made available and used competently where and when needed' (1993, xv-xvi). Choo (1998) links decision making and intelligent action with knowledge management. He argues that the 'knowing organization' is one 'in which sense making, knowledge creating and decision making are linked as a continuum of nested information activities that integrate an organization with the information and knowledge to act intelligently' (1998, xii). Dawson claims that 'together, knowledge and relationships are the only true sources of sustainable competitive advantage. ... Becoming more effective at both sharing knowledge with clients and developing enduring profitable client relationships establishes a bedrock foundation for achieving sustainable competitive advantage in times of dramatic, ongoing change' (2000, xv). Allee (1997) is a little more blunt, claiming that 'whoever controls knowledge will best enjoy the most economic gain and therefore the most power', and posits that the 'new knowledge equation is knowledge = power - so share it and it will multiply' (1997, 9, 10).

These claims are not insignificant, and while they have helped to generate considerable scepticism that knowledge management, like many management mantras before it, is a passing fad, they have also given rise to an emerging discussion focusing on the roles that might be involved in the management of knowledge in the organisation, and how professional education and training might prepare workers for these roles. Formal educational providers, in the wake of knowledge management consultants attracting substantial fees for professional development in the arena, have responded with the provision of formal professional education programs in the university sector, these mainly being situated in schools of business and management, information technology, and more recently, in schools of library and information science. A number of continuing professional development and training programs have also emerged, providing broad introductions to knowledge management practices, its technologies, and case studies of its implementations in a range of corporate environments.

Librarians and information professionals have also responded to the knowledge management movement. As shown in Part 1 (Southon & Todd, 2001) this response is varied. For some, knowledge management is seen as the saviour of a beleaguered image of librarians as a means of moving beyond the narrow confines of their traditional roles and improving their image. For others, knowledge management is seen as offering a substantial enhancement of the role of the information professional and an opportunity to rejuvenate the profession. And for others, knowledge management is seen as a key strategic organisational process, based on an understanding of the value of the collective knowing integrated into the organisational infrastructure.

In the published literature, there is a sense that knowledge management is not the same as information management, and while there are understandings and skills that appear to overlap, the implication is that the formal education and training programs for knowledge management need to be responsive to this. For example, Broadbent, in defining knowledge management as 'working with the intangible knowings of people' (Broadbent, 1997: 6, 7), argues that it is 'not about managing or organising books or journals, searching the internet for clients or arranging for circulation of materials' (Broadbent, 1997: 8). Rather, it is thinking about information in its broadest sense - that which has potential to inform the organisation, and this goes beyond the tangible information resources and services traditionally provided. Similarly, DiMattia & Oder, in focusing on knowledge management as 'capturing the internal knowledge generated by a firm ... and sharing it' (1997:3), claim that knowledge management is not a new name for what librarians have been doing for years; that it is not a vogue way of describing information resource management as traditionally undertaken by librarians. This variation in perception suggests the need to develop a strong, shared understanding of the nature of knowledge management, its underpinning assumptions and values, and its multi-faceted relationship to existing information work.

Thirdly, there is an increasing number of job opportunities focusing on knowledge management. Job titles such as chief knowledge officer, knowledge manager, knowledge and training co-ordinator, knowledge analyst, knowledge operations manager and director of knowledge systems are emerging, as evident by the work of Abell and Oxbrow (2001:102,3) and appearing in the employment columns of major newspapers. These positions in the main focus on information and knowledge use in the corporate sector, and tend to specify responsibilities associated with information management, as well as an understanding of human dimensions of how people generate and use knowledge, and how this might be effectively managed. These opportunities, in some respect, have increased confusion in the profession, with expressions that it is a renaming of information management or a broader extension of information management, and as well a call to develop the skills and understandings necessary to undertake these roles. It is against this backdrop that this paper focuses on the perceptions of understandings and skills required by library and information professionals to engage effectively in knowledge management initiatives, and to be recognised and acknowledged as key players in the emerging knowledge management practices.

Research aims
As reported in Part 1, this research was conducted between September 1999 and February 2000 and sought to identify a range of perceptions associated with the concept of knowledge management held by library and information professionals in Australia. It specifically aimed to:

1. establish levels of awareness of the term 'knowledge management';
2. identify the perceptions of knowledge management, and its relation to information management;
3. identify the perception of the institutional understanding of and responses to knowledge management;
4. identify key skills and understandings that are considered to be required in undertaking knowledge management; and
5. identify key elements in the information profession's response to the challenge of knowledge management, and in particular the type of support that might be required in order for the profession to realise its perceived role and potential within the knowledge management arena.

This paper focuses on documenting findings in relation to (d) and (e), which focus on what is perceived to be underpinning understandings and skills, and the educational, training and continuing professional development needs for knowledge management.

Participants
A full description of participants, data collection and data analysis is provided in Part 1 (Southon & Todd, 2001). In brief, the sample consisted of 56 non-randomly selected library and information professionals primarily employed as library managers, managers of specialised information services within libraries, records and information managers, and information consultants. The average reported professional experience in the library and information sector was 16.5 years. The majority of participants had formal undergraduate or graduate qualifications in librarianship, information studies or records management. Data were collected through two means: a mailed questionnaire and focus groups. The questionnaire consisted of a number of quantitative (or Likert scale) questions, as well as several open-ended questions designed to tap into a range of perceptions about both information and knowledge management, both as a concept and as a practice. There were two focus groups which sought to elaborate on the preliminary analysis of the questionnaire data. These discussions were audio recorded and transcribed, and were analysed and coded using the Nud*ist software package to establish the conceptual categorisations that emerged. The quantitative data were tabulated, and a range of descriptive statistical measures applied.

General results
As reported in Part 1, this study revealed considerable interest in knowledge management, although this would be expected given the level of self-selection of the sample. Perceptions and interpretations of knowledge management varied greatly, however, reflecting the considerable confusion that currently exists on the topic. Some adopted a broad concept, placing emphasis on human, intellectual and cultural aspects of knowledge. Most, however, appeared to move little beyond information management. That is, they were dealing essentially with information as objects of some type - collecting, categorising, storing, and making it available. Knowledge management was seen to involve a more sophisticated approach in processing information and targeting it to specific user needs or aligning to corporate strategy. It appeared that for most, their thinking about information management was quite narrow and instrumental, and the concept of knowledge management enabled them to think more broadly, although still limited to the traditional scope of information management:

'Knowledge management (KM) would be a development from information management. A critical distinction could be that KM involves a higher interaction between clients and knowledge manager. Knowledge management would probably imply a greater awareness on behalf of the knowledge manager of the subject matter.'

'More than information management in that it is knowledge which connotes a more in depth management such as more manipulation of the information so that it may be repackaged as such.'

It was concluded that while knowledge management represents a major opportunity for information professionals to make themselves more relevant to their organisations, it did necessitate a substantial expansion in thinking, and a broadening of their skills. It will also require a flexible approach to developing these potentials, to determine the appropriate approach to each circumstance.

Findings: Understanding and skills for library and information professionals
Participants were asked to identify the understandings and skills required for effective knowledge management. For the purposes of this report, 'understandings' were defined as the 'knowing about', 'knowing what', that is, the broader theoretical and conceptual foundations and underpinning ideas central to knowledge management. Skills were defined as 'knowing how', the procedural and technical competencies required for the practice of knowledge management. The following table demonstrates the wide range of factors that arose. Many of course, are common to information management, and about two thirds of the participants stayed within that framework. The rest demonstrated understandings that went beyond to more social and conceptual issues.

Understandings
Table 1 summarises the range of understandings perceived to be central for effective knowledge management. Five categories of understandings were identified, clearly emphasising people and organisational factors over technology. However, also identified were other dimensions such as user needs and uses, knowledge dynamics and critical thinking and analysis.

Table 1: Understandings required for knowledge management

As shown in Table 1, some emphasis was given to understanding the nature of human knowing, how our knowing grows, is constructed, is structured, and is integrated into already existing knowing, as well as to understanding how it can be acquired, documented, and integrated with other existing knowing. Complementing this emphasis was also an emphasis on understanding the knowledge dynamics of people - how people learn, think, and share ideas, how they consume information and impart their knowing, and understanding group dynamics that foster or limit the sharing of personal knowing. Also perceived to be important was an understanding the organisation as a knowledge generating and using entity - organisational structures, cultures, dynamics, politics and values, and how knowledge creation and flow shape and are shaped by the organisation and its stakeholders.

This was also strongly expressed in the focus groups:

'It just seems to me knowledge management is a powerful thing because you have to know your organisation well, or in the process of developing a knowledge management policy or process you have to know an awful lot about what goes in at all levels to make it work.'

'More in-depth understanding of one's organisation and the knowledge it contains, and how this knowledge is developed and collected. Understanding the purposes this knowledge may be used for.'

Participants also perceived that underpinning knowledge management was an understanding of the fundamental principles of information management - organising, retrieving and utilising information, and to some extent a broader understanding of information structures and architectures. This was particularly emphasised by those participants whose conceptions of knowledge management centred on the technical processes related to tangible information documents: their collection, aggregation, organisation, control and retrieval. Those participants whose view of knowledge management focused on the use of technology tended to give emphasis to understanding how information technology impacts on and shapes organisational functions, and the use of networked technology, particularly the internet, to enhance the organisation, access, flow and uses of information in the organisation. As one participant expressed it:

With information technology you need more than a passing understanding of it and be able to talk knowledgeably with technologists ... you may not be a programmer, you may not be an operator but you do [need to] understand what their job is about and what the technology is about and how you want it to work for you...

Skills
Table 2 summarises the range of skills perceived to be central for effective knowledge management. Six categories of skills were identified, clearly emphasising people and cognitive skills and organisational factors over technology. The bullet points in each category are representative of the range of specific skills identified.

Table 2: Skills for knowledge management

The majority of the participants identified people-centred skills, such as negotiation, sharing, team-working and communication, as important in effective knowledge management - skills that centre on the development of a collegial, collaborative and co-operative organisational environment where the exchange of knowledge and information is enabled and facilitated. This is consistent with the earlier reported finding of the most predominant perspectives of knowledge management which centred on the cognitive state of the individual and the accumulated knowing, wisdom, experiences, skills, competencies, residing within the mind, as well as the value of the collective knowing integrated into the organisational infrastructure. Particularly strongly stated were the cognitive skills - the mental skills or intellectual scaffolds associated with the engagement of knowledge and information through analysis, synthesis, evaluation and reflection, and the communication of the outputs of this intellectual processing. This represents an information-knowledge consolidation role in the organisation that is tailored to the specific needs of individuals in the organisation.

These skills were also acknowledged by focus group participants:

'Skills of managing connections, of being the navigators, which may be interpersonal.'

'Assisting people sharing their own information as a navigator through somebody else's information, enabling them to communicate.'

'I think communication is the most important thing, knowing how to impart knowledge because unless you can communicate the knowledge, you may as well not have it. It is not valid unless it can be communicated to others and used.'

Of note also was the emphasis on skills associated with aspects of management of the organisation as a whole, rather than management of parts or sectors of the organisation. As one focus group participant expressed:

'It is far bigger than managing just processes of knowledge. It is really an issue of managing the organisation as a whole.'

These skills, such as change management, project management, human resources management, might be seen to be an acknowledgment that knowledge management is about knowledge and knowledge processes and their inter-relationships throughout the organisation. This is further illustrated by the substantial consideration given to communication, policy, business management issues, promotional, organisational and project management skills. Some emphasis was also given to information technology use and management, information management and retrieval, and the selection and organisation of information resources.

Discussion
These findings reveal a considerable breadth of factors identified by the participants. They cover a substantial range of those issues required for a sophisticated information service, as well as a number of items specifically addressing knowledge issues. This list is analogous, though not as extensive, to those presented by Abell and Oxbrow (2001:124). Clearly they see that knowledge management is at least an extension of information management, if it is not merely a relabelling of it.

In interpreting these findings one needs to consider that they arise from reasonably experienced information professionals, a number of whom have experience with knowledge related activities which go beyond the normal scope of the information service, but few if any participated in a comprehensive knowledge management program. Therefore the areas that they do emphasise must be considered important: however those areas that they ignore also need to have consideration because they represent areas that they don't know that they don't know.

Managing skills
The range of skills required is daunting. A training program cannot feasibly address them all in any substantive way and must consider how it may best approach the task. Different aspects may be considered:

1. In selecting program applicants, to ensure that they have the basic characteristics. Information professionals, and librarians in particular, have a reputation of being fairly reserved and narrowly focussed, and recruitment needs to avoid this stereotype. However the required skills have much in common with the skills required of candidates for management and many other positions, so they will have considerable competition.
2. Develop programs which enable professionals to identify the most critical skills required for their particular positions.
3. Design specific continuing education programs to address specific skill deficits in graduating or employed professionals.

While having to maintain and even enhance their current skills, information professionals will need to be realistic about what skills they have, what will be of benefit to them in their situation, what they can feasibly develop, and what are the appropriate means of approaching them.

Continuing education will play an important role as senior staff sees opportunities:

'...what is becoming more and more obvious is that some of the senior staff are very interested, [and] some of the new graduates ... who are doing masters as well are interested in the idea of knowledge management, some are extremely keen wanting to know where they can find the right position in that area.'

But it was important to be clear about motivation:

'Do you think that librarians are jumping on the knowledge management bandwagon for the wrong reasons, as a way of liberating their historical image, which is a negative stereotypical one, rather than jumping into it because they have some vision or goal for the organisation?'

Diverse knowledge management perspectives
These findings suggest the need for education and training for knowledge management to encompass several aspects and theoretical areas. In the first instance, an understanding of the different perspectives of knowledge management, together with their underpinning assumptions and epistemological stances and implications for professional practice, would seem essential. While knowledge management consultants, trainers and educators might each choose to take different perspectives, situating a preferred perspective within an understanding of multiple perspectives (Southon & Todd 1999) may alleviate the uncertainty about the nature of the field and its practices, and the confusion surrounding its status as a fad or legitimate area of practice and inquiry, and may contribute to more effective implementation strategies within an organisation.

In particular there needs to be a clarification of the difference between knowledge management, which involves the co-ordination of a broad range of professionals and disciplines, led by a professional of very high-level skills, and the enriched role of the information professional within a broader knowledge management program. Such a distinction would enable information professionals to recognise the many different roles in knowledge management (Abell and Oxbrow 2001) while affirming the importance of information management. Thus they would be able to develop their role in co-operation with other professionals (IT, HR, strategic management, customer relations) rather than competing in promoting their distinctive perspectives.

Information management skills
Despite whatever new skills would be required for knowledge management, there was strong agreement that the traditional information management skills would be the basis of what they would be able to contribute to the organisation.

'...without our information management skills it would be very difficult for us to do anything else because that is the core of our ability to organise and disseminate and create information and we do create it by cataloguing and all that.'

Knowledge representation
These findings also suggest that the theoretical arena of knowledge representation might provide an important foundation from which it might be possible to build the theoretical basis of knowledge management.

Knowledge representation refers to the field of study that seeks to portray the state of knowledge of a person in ways that allow conclusions about what is being modeled to be drawn through the examination of the representations.

It is concerned with how people take in information and create new knowledge, how this is represented and structured in the mind, and how this might be acquired, externalised, and developed to be made available to be used by others. This arena has a scholarly tradition spanning many decades, and draws on interdisciplinary studies from diverse areas such as cognitive psychology, cognitive science, information science, linguistics, semantics, and education (Berger and Luckman 1966). This field is also rich methodologically, providing considerable insight into procedural and operational approaches to knowledge elicitation and acquisition, and how this now-externalised knowledge might be represented and structured for effective access.

Knowledge creation
Complementing such work might be studies that focus on people as both information consumers and knowledge creators. While the examination of information seeking behaviour is well established in library and information studies, this tends to give emphasis to understanding people's patterns of interactions with tangible information resources and how improved access might be facilitated, rather than on the cognitive dimensions of engagement with information, its utilisation, and the construction of new understanding. A more holistic study of information behaviour to embrace issues such as the role of tacit knowledge (Baumard 1999), insight (Sternberg and Davidson (1995) and thinking styles (Sternberg 1997), as well as of information attributes could provide a richer basis for understanding the patterns of knowledge construction and use in an organisation, knowledge needs analysis, and the what, how, when and why of knowledge elicitation, representation and access in organisations (Seely Brown and Duguid 2000).

The knowledge organisation
It is also clear that an important area of understanding centres on the nature of the organisation as a knowledge entity, in which it is conceptualised as an integrated knowledge-information system, and its management for the effective integration and utilisation of that knowledge and information. This is likely to contribute to the comprehension of organisational processes and provide an understanding of group and inter-group behaviour from a knowledge-information perspective. One participant expressed it in these terms:

'A lot of what goes on in organizations - there is a lot of subtlety that moves into the knowledge management arena, and library schools have not been adequate in coming to terms with that...'

This will involve concepts such as interpretation in the organisational context and culture, the information environment (Davenport 1997) and the role of the information professional in the knowledge organisation (Abell and Oxbrow 2001):

'What is coming out of the discussions is that it is to do with people and communication and cultures more than managing documents, to make a different mindset or different approach to move from information management to knowledge management, is keeping in tune with the culture of the organisation.'

Information professionals will need to think clearly about the way that they can most effectively respond to the needs of people within the organisation, not only in terms of their expressed needs, but in terms of the overall contribution in their use of information.

'To me that is an interesting issue because at the heart of knowledge sharing is feeling free and excited about sharing ideas and I still think there is a barrier that is individual based that needs to be recognised.'

This involves strong engagement with top management.

Something else that this raises ... [is] that [for] knowledge managers one of the more interim roles in development is lobbying senior management. You don't get anything to happen unless there is that drive from the top

In providing such services, they may be in a position to develop a valuable understanding of the way information and knowledge are used within the organisation, and thus be able to contribute to the appreciation by the organisation, including senior management, of how to best enhance its management of information and knowledge.

'You raise an important point - what you are suggesting is that the knowledge base that underpins the education of this new person has to go beyond the various notions of information - organisation, control, retrieval, that kind of library stuff to what you were pointing to ... as the dynamics of an organization - the way that an organisation interacts with itself - the patterns and processes of human interaction.'

Technology
While few participants gave much emphasis to technology, there was recognition that it played a critical part, and that it was necessary for professionals to understand its application and use.

With information technology you need more than a passing understanding of it and be able to talk knowledgeably with technologists or they will do snow jobs on you merrily and you have to be able to pull them up short and say: 'Excuse me - can you explain that a bit further?' or 'Don't you think there is another way?' or 'I don't think that is quite right'.

And to be able to train the users

'...because they don't know how to they expect you to know how to do it and learn to work with CD's and to know the software on the CD's and then to train the users and the staff to use it...'

Another problem is dealing with the common view of knowledge management coming from the IT industry:

'I work in a technology industry and yes, interestingly enough, when I talk to people and mention knowledge management they immediately think of databases and data warehousing, data mining and so on.'

Change
It is important that information professionals understand the complexities of change processes involved in knowledge management initiatives. While there are many pressures promoting relatively short-term technology-based knowledge management 'solutions', these have poor records of effectiveness, and there is a need for longer term, culturally based initiatives (Malholtra 2000). These, however, are much more difficult to conceptualise and develop, especially when short-term fixes are expected. It is important for the information professional to recognise the breadth of factors involved, and to work with others within the organisation to develop a common understanding of what might be involved (Nadler & Shaw 1995). This will require a long-term commitment and considerable education effort. They will also need to appreciate that knowledge management is probably much greater than any of them, and it is necessary to establish and recognise the relative contributions. (Davenport and Prusak 1998)

Conclusion
Developments in knowledge management present significant opportunities and challenges for information professionals whether or not they take positions central to the knowledge management endeavour. This research provides some understanding of the thinking of experienced information professionals and their expectations of roles within the knowledge management environment. Institutions which are preparing people for roles in it will need to be very flexible in the way that they act to best match the needs of the students with the opportunities of the market place, and the demands of the specific organisations in which they are working.

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Dr Ross J Todd is visiting associate professor School of Communication, Library and Information Studies at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey 4 Huntington Street New Brunswick New Jersey 08901 US E-mail rtodd@scils.rutgers.edu.nospam (please remove '.nospam' from address)