KNOWLEDGE CAPTURING TECHNIQUES

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KNOWLEDGE CAPTURING TECHNIQUES
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Techniques Covered

• On-site Observation (Action Protocol)
• Brainstorming (Conventional Electronic)
• Consensus Decision Making
• Repertory Grid
• Nominal Group Technique
• Delphi Method
• Concept Mapping
• Blackboarding

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On-Site Observation

• Process of observing, interpreting, and recording
  problem-solving behavior while it takes place
• More listening than talking
• Some experts do not like to be observed
• Fear of giving away expertise is a concern
• Process can be distracting to others in the
  setting

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Brainstorming

• Unstructured approach to generating ideas about a
  problem
• All possible solutions considered equally
• Emphasis is on the frequency of responses during
  the session
• Idea generation, followed by idea evaluation

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Role of Knowledge Developer in Brainstorming
Session

• Introduce brainstorming session
• Give experts a problem to consider
• Prompt experts to generate ideas
• Watch for signs of convergence
• Call for a vote or a consensus to reach agreement

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Electronic Brainstorming

• Computer-aided approach to dealing with multiple
  experts
• Begin with a pre-session plan that identifies
  objectives and structures the agenda
• Allow two or more experts provide opinions
  through PCs asynchronously
• Protect shy experts and prevents tagging comments
  to individuals

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Protocol Analysis

• Think-aloud method
• Expert keeps talking, speaking out loud while
  solving a problem
• Effective source of information on cognitive
  processes
• Makes expert cognizant of the processes being
  described
• Similarity / Difference to On-site Observation

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Consensus Decision Making

• Clear agreement regarding the best solution to a
  problem
• As a tool, it follows brainstorming
• Procedure ensures fairness and standardization in
  the way experts arrive at a consensus
• Can be tedious and take hours
• The rigidity of the consensus method can be a
  problem for many experts

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Nominal Group Technique (NGT)

• Provides an interface between consensus and
  brainstorming
• Panel of experts becomes a nominal group whose
  meetings are structured in order to effectively
  pool individual judgment
• An ideawriting or idea generation technique

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NGT Procedure

• Each expert is asked to list pros and cons of the
  problem or alternate solutions
• A list of all pros and cons are compiled
• Each expert is given the list and asked to rank
  them on basis of their priorities
• Knowledge developer lead a discussion on the
  relative ranks in hope of getting possible
  solutions
• A group discussion is followed to choose the
  best solution from the alternatives

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NGT (Advantages)

• Effective in multiple expert knowledge capture,
  especially when minimizing differences in status
  among experts
• In NGT, each expert has an equal chance to
  express ideas in parallel with other experts in
  the group
• With discussion proceeds in sequential order, NGT
  can be a more efficient and productive approach
  than brainstorming

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NGT (Drawbacks)

• Technique can be time consuming
• Has been known to promote impatience among
  experts who must listen to discussions with other
  experts
• With experts sharing expertise, things can jell
  in adopting the best solution
• NGT is ideal in situations of uncertainty
  regarding the nature of the problem

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The Repertory Grid

• Domain expert viewed as a scientist who
  categorizes a problem domain using his or her own
  model
• Grid used to capture and evaluate the experts
  model
• Experts see problems based on reasoning that has
  stood test of time
• A representation of the experts way of looking
  at a particular problem
• A grid is a scale or a bipolar construct on which
  elements are placed within gradations

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Job Performance Rating Repertory Grid (Example)
Scale 1 to 3
T1 Dixie T2 John T3 Barry T4 Curt T5 Lester T6 Joa
nne
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The Repertory Grid (Pros and Cons)

• Benefit May prompt the expert to think more
  seriously about the problem and how to solve it.
• Drawback Difficult to manage when large grids
  are accompanied by complex details
• Because of complexity and manageability, the tool
  is normally used in the early stages of knowledge
  capture

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Delphi Method

• A survey of experts
• A series of questionnaires used to pool experts
  responses in order to solve a difficult problem
• Each experts contributions shared with rest of
  experts by using results of one questionnaire to
  construct the next questionnaire

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Delphi Method (Pros and Cons)

• Pros
• Anonymous response
• Controlled feedback
• Statistical group response
• Cons
• Experts often lack necessary knowledge on which
  to base final judgment
• Poorly designed questionnaire could cause all
  kinds of problems

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Concept Mapping

• A network of concepts, consisting of nodes and
  links
• A node represents a concept and a link represents
  the relationship between concepts. (See next
  slide)
• An effective way for a group to function without
  losing their individuality

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Concept MapAn Example
White horse
Beard
At chimneys
On roofs
Birthday
has
rides
Spain
listens
has
climbs
lives in
lives in
SAINT NICOLAS
helper of
BLACK PETER
brings
gives
not same as
Santa Clause
Presents
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Steps in Concept Mapping
1 Preparation of Project Participants, focus,
schedule
2 Idea Generation (focus for brainstorming)
6 Utilization
STEPS IN CONCEPT MAPPING
3 Idea Structuring (sorting/rating statements)
4 Statement Representation
5 Interpretation (cluster analysis)
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Blackboarding

• Assumes all participants are experts with unique
  experience
• Each expert has equal chance to contribute to the
  solution via the blackboard
• Process continues until the problem has been
  solved
• Diverse approaches to problem solving

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Blackboarding (Characteristics)

• Participants share a common language for
  interaction
• Flexible representation of information
• Efficient storage and location of information
• Organized participation
• Iterative approach to problem solving

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The Interview As a Tool

• Commonly used in the early stages of tacit
  knowledge capture
• The voluntary nature of the interview is
  important
• Interviewing as a tool requires training and
  preparation
• Convenient tool for evaluating the validity of
  information acquired

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Sources of Error that Reduce Information
Reliability

• Experts perceptual slant
• Experts failure to remember just what happened
• Experts fear of the unknown
• Communication problems
• Role bias

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Errors Made by the Knowledge Developer

• Age effect
• Race effect
• Gender effect

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Problems Encountered During the Interview

• Response bias
• Inconsistency
• Communication difficulties
• Hostile attitude
• Standardized questions
• Lengthy questions
• Long interview