S.Afd .Libr.lnf.Sci., I998,66( I) Knowledge management: a literature overview Shana Ponelis* P.O.Box 70555, Pretoria, 0041 Republic of South Africa shana@ilink.nis.za Felicite A. Fairer-Wessels Department of Information Science, University of South Africa, P.O.Box 392, Pretoria, 0003 Republic of South Africa fairefa@alpha.unisa.ac.za The concept of knowledge management is becoming increasingly prevalent in academic and vocational literature. The objective of this article is to review the conceptual foundations of knowledge management starting with a conceptual clarification of knowledge relative to data and information. The characteristics in terms of forms, levels and cate- gories of knowledge are discussed. Against this background a definition of knowledge management is sought which is compared with information management. The increasing emphasis placed on knowledge in an organisational con- text has given rise to a new manifestation of capital which occurs as human or structural intellectual capital. There- fore, the relation of knowledge management to corporate memory as well as the learning organisation is indicated. There are various ways in which knowledge management can be interpreted, the first being analogy; three of which occurring frequently in discussions of knowledge management (biological, economical and their convergence in bio- nomics) are discussed. Secondly, an indication of a paradigm shift in the approach to management is outlined and the ditl'erent management styles (top-down, bottom-up and middle-up-down) are contrasted in relation to knowledge management. Finally the underlying approaches to knowledge management (people-centred versus technology- centred) are considered. Die konsep kennisbestuur kom toenemend voor in die akademiese sowel as popuH~reliteratuur. Die doelstelling van hierdie artikel is om die konsepsionele gronde van kennisbestuur te ondersoek, beginnend met 'n konseptuele verhel- dering van kennis relatief tot inligting en data. Die kenmerkende eienskappe van kennis in terme van vorms, vlakke en kategoriee word bespreek. Gesien teen hierdie agtergrond word daar gepoog om 'n definisie van kennisbestuur te vind wat dan vergelyk word met inligtingbestuur. Die toenemende klem op kennis in organisasies het gelei tot 'n nuwe vorm van kapitaal wat voorkom as menslike of strukturele intellektuele kapitaal. Ous word die verwantskap tussen kennisbestuur en korporatiewe geheue asook die lerende organisasie bekyk. Daar is verskeie raamwerke waarbinne kennisbestuur geYnterpreteerkan word; die eerste is analogie waarvan drie wat geredelik in die literatuur voorkom (ekonomies, biologies en die se samesmelting in sogenaamde bionomie) in verband met kennisbestuur bespreek kan word. Tweedens word 'n aanduiding gegee van 'n paradigmaverskuiwing wat kennisbestuur te weeg bring en die ver- skillende bestuurstyle (bo-na-onder,' onder-na-bo en middel-op-af) word teenoor mekaar gestel. Laastens word die onderliggende benaderings tot kennisbestuur (mensgesentreerd versus tegnologiegesentreerd)onder die loep geneem. Knowledge management is not a radically new concept. Horton indicated in 1979 in his evolution of resource man- agement functions that the management of knowledge al- ready began during the 1980s which comprised of expert systems and artificial intelligence and which recognised the economic and cultural value of knowledge (Horton 1979). The information age has resulted in major structural changes on economic and social front and global trends have resulted in the shift towards a knowledge-based eco- nomy necessitating knowledge management. Increasing amounts of information are being generated but without the corresponding increase in the ability to manage, interpret and act on relevant information resulting in an information overload. It seems that future growth and prosperity depend on the ability to manage both information and knowledge. Although terminologically confusing, in this scenario knowledge management is proposed, mainly by business consultants, as the key to survival within this mass of knowledge and the only means to gain and maintain the competitive edge in the global economic marketplace. Problem statement Firstly, an attempt will be made to define or accurately de- scribe the core concepts involved, namely data, information and knowledge as wella!i, attempting to define knowledge management (KM) and its accompanying terminology and. then to position knowledge ~anagement relative to inform- ation management. Secondly, an investigation into knowl- edge management as an organisational management discipline will be contemplated against a somewhat philo c . sophical backdrop and this section is meant not to .provide answers, but to inspire the reader to contemplate the effect the underlying, often philosophical-based, paradigm has on the organisation in its entirety. A limitation of this article is that it does not explicitly address the technology for http://sajlis.journals.ac.za/