Knowledge Management

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Knowledge Management

• Cooperative ERP Life-cycle Knowledge Management
• ??????? ??

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Outline
Abstract INTRODUCTION
THEORETICAL FOUNDATIONS
RESEARCH OBJECTIVES, QUESTIONS EXPECTED
OUTCOMES
THE RESEARCH PROPOSITIONS
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
RESEARCH QUALITY AND SIGNIFICANCE
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Abstract

• Strategic alliances between ERP software vendors,
  their implementation partners and clients.

• Define a
• system
• architecture.
• Propose
• strategies to
• promote the
• framework.

• Explore
• alternative
• responsibility.
• Role sharing
• scenarios.

• KM facilities
• Approaches
• Technology

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INTRODUCTION

• SAP - Enterprise Resource Planning systems (ERP).
• SAPs client/server software package - R/3.
• The international director of Education and
  Learning was promoted to head a new business unit
  titled Knowledge Management.
• A major SAP development regionally has been the
• advent of Sapient College.
• R/3 sales in Australia have grown from 33M in
  1995
• to 175M in 1997.
• Turnover and poaching of staff is rampant - ERP
• knowledge drain.

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INTRODUCTION

• Three related problems of concern for Sapient
  College?

1. Rapidly changing technology and organization
philosophy demand quite new
R/3-related roles
2. There exists a serious dearth of R/3 expertise
internationally and for Australia in
particular
3. The market size for R/3 is constrained by the
people costs of implementation

• Having made costly errors by disregarding the
  importance of knowledge.
• Thomas Davenport.

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INTRODUCTION

• e.g.?

intranet development tools
document management systems
search engines
implementation methodologies and groupware

• R/3-related work contributes the largest
  proportion
• of total revenues for several of the worlds
  major
• consulting companies.

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INTRODUCTION

• All 3 key players stand to benefit from effective
  ERP
• knowledge management.
• Innovative clients too have developed ERP
  knowledge
• management practices worthy of study.

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THEORETICAL FOUNDATIONS
Nonaka and Takeuchi 1995
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THEORETICAL FOUNDATIONS
Winter 1987
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THEORETICAL FOUNDATIONS
Higher and Lower Level Learning

• Double-Loop

• Single-Loop

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THEORETICAL FOUNDATIONS
Cooperative knowledge management

• Knowledge links, are a form of strategic alliance
  that give organizations access to the skill and
  capabilities if a partner and opportunity to
  create new capabilities together(Badaracco 1991).
• The purpose of a partnership is to improve a
  firms capabilities and resource when there is a
  perceives deficiency or opportunity(Badaracco
  1991, Borys and Jemsion 1989, Eisenhardt and
  Schoonhoven 1996, Hamel 1991, Lasher, Ives and
  Jarvenpaa 1991).

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THEORETICAL FOUNDATIONS
Kanter 1994
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THEORETICAL FOUNDATIONS
Badaracco 1991, Winter 1987
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THEORETICAL FOUNDATIONS
Benefits
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THEORETICAL FOUNDATIONS
Process management and knowledge management

• Published work includes books, refereed journal
  articles, refereed conference proceedings, and a
  large number of practitioner articles.
• In addition, Professor Davenport has authored
  refereed conference proceeding and practitioner
  articles on ERP systems.

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THEORETICAL FOUNDATIONS
Consultant Engagement Success Factors
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RESEARCH OBJECTIVES, QUESTIONS EXPECTED
OUTCOMES
Research Objective

• Facilitate reciprocal value adding by SAP and its
  partners and clients to client R/3
  implementations.
• Develop a cooperative framework for ERP knowledge
  management across SAP, its partners and its
  clients.
• Diffuse best practice ERP knowledge management
  throughout SAP, its clients and consulting
  partners in the Australasian region.

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RESEARCH OBJECTIVES, QUESTIONS EXPECTED
OUTCOMES
Research Objective
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RESEARCH OBJECTIVES, QUESTIONS EXPECTED
OUTCOMES
Research Questions?

• How can improvements in knowledge management
  contribute to ERP success?
• What new knowledge do clients and consultants
  rein a dynamic ERP environment?
• What respective roles can clients, consultants
  and SAP play in capturing, transferring and
  managing this knowledge?

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RESEARCH OBJECTIVES, QUESTIONS EXPECTED
OUTCOMES
Expected outcomes for ERP client?

• Reduced costs of ERP implementation
• Increased independence with the installed ERP
• Increased satisfaction with ERP implementations
• Improved ability to evolve the installed ERP
  system in line with a changing environment
• Important prescriptions to firms adopting ERP on
  how to introduce knowledge management practices
  in order to meet future organizational challenges

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RESEARCH OBJECTIVES, QUESTIONS EXPECTED
OUTCOMES
Expected outcomes for Sapient College and its
partners?

• Realignment and clear definition of the three
  main players roles in R/3 implementation
• Revised Sapient College curriculum and methods in
  line with the changing roles of key players
• Revised Sapient College University Alliance
  members curriculums in sync with the evolving
  Sapient College curriculum and strategy

Additionally, insights may point to development
of software tools or a knowledge management
software architecture.
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RESEARCH OBJECTIVES, QUESTIONS EXPECTED
OUTCOMES
Expected research outcomes?

• A conceptual framework for interrelating
  knowledge management concepts, tools, techniques,
  and roles

• The conceptual framework will serve as an aide in
  better
• anticipating and reacting to a changing
  environment and
• to facilitate agreed levels of
• Client independence
• Ongoing involvement of the implementation partner
• Ongoing support from SAP page 3

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The Research Propositions

• Clients dont effectively capture vendor and
  consultant knowledge during implementation
• Clients are suffering knowledge drain during
  ERP implementation which is impairing the
  installed ERP
• Australia is suffering from serious ERP knowledge
  drain
• Australias competitiveness and ability to react
  to a changing competitive environment is
  constrained by static ERP installations
• Clients and consultants pay insufficient
  attention to knowledge transfer in their proposals

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The Research Propositions

• The vendor, in their quality control role, is not
  paying sufficient attention to the need for
  knowledge transfer to the client from the vendor
  and from the consultant during ERP implementation
  and beyond
• Vendor education and training (Sapient College)
  does not address all relevant client knowledge
  requirements for implementation
• Systematizing ERP knowledge management is complex
  and expensive and beyond the capabilities of most
  individual clients
• Vendors and consultants can aid clients to
  systematize their ERP knowledge management
• Knowledge management is more beneficial when
  undertaken formally
• Knowledge management projects are more likely to
  succeed when they change motivational practices

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Research Methodology

• Phase 1 Refine strategy and study context
• Phase 2 Delphi study of ERP implementation issues
  and perceived knowledge management potential
• Phase 3 Pilot case study of SAP knowledge
  management practices
• Phase 4 Multiple case study knowledge management
  practices of key players

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Research Methodology

• Phases 5 6 7 Quantitative data collection
• Phase 8 Report descriptive statistics
• Phases 9 10 Testing
• Phase 11 Write-up

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RESEARCH QUALITY AND SIGNIFICANCE

• The research is novel in that?

1. The team has unusual access to relatively
sensitive data from the cooperating vendor,
consulting companies and their clients,
through SAPs substantial market influence.
2. SAP and several of their implementation
partners are at the forefront in related
areas of current business practice.
3. ERP implementations tend to be highly
structured, well defined and well documented
in order to manage the potentially
substantial costs and complexity. By studying a
single package (R/3) the sample is relatively
more homogeneous. Also,R/3 by itself is a
significant phenomenon in the marketplace.
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RESEARCH QUALITY AND SIGNIFICANCE
4. The study seeks to leverage an already strong
teaching learning alliance with industry
into research.
5. The package implementation process has been
largely neglected to date and represents an
important research niche.
6. The process of packaged software
implementation and support is inherently
multidisciplinary and applied, both
increasingly important research dimensions at
ISMRC, nationally and internationally.
7. The research proposes to triangulate
qualitative and quantitative findings
through a multi-method involving multiple
methods of data collection multiple sources of
data , multiple methods of analysis and
multiple perspectives in analysis and
interpretation.
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RESEARCH QUALITY AND SIGNIFICANCE

• The proposed research will advance our knowledge
  of the structure, formation and development
  processes of knowledge management for ERP
  life-cycle support.
• The research has national significance.
• It seeks to address intra- and
  inter-organisation knowledge management
  capabilities in a significant component of the
  economy the engagement of software vendors and
  external consultants to provide for improved IT
  solutions.

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RESEARCH QUALITY AND SIGNIFICANCE

• While findings are expected to be particularly
  valuable to organisations implementing R/3 and
  other ERP, the tripartite knowledge management
  framework is expected to have value for other
  types of systems and the complete range of a
  consulting firms services.
• The study will identify and make recommendations
  for the transfer of best practice ERP knowledge
  management practices from around the globe to
  Australian subsidiaries.
• Identify limitations of current ERP knowledge
  management practices.

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RESEARCH QUALITY AND SIGNIFICANCE

• Identify methods of introducing best practice
  ERP knowledge management into Australian
  organisations, thereby addressing the serious ERP
  resource shortage plaguing the country.
• Produce recommendations regarding the recruitment
  of consultants with appropriate experience to
  take on demanding roles required in transforming
  organisations and managing and transferring
  knowledge.
• Provide clear staff development objectives for
  improving knowledge management skills of vendor,
  client and consultant staff and Facilitate
  better matching of expertise with ERP projects.

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Thank you