4/10: Managing Knowledge

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4/10 Managing Knowledge IS Tools for
Decision-Making

• Knowledge Management
• Office document management systems
• Knowledge work systems
• Group collaboration systems, intranet knowledge
  environments
• Artificial intelligence Expert Systems,
  Case-based reasoning
• Neural networks, Fuzzy logic, Genetic algorithms,
  Hybrid AI systems, Intelligent agents
• Enhancing Management Decision-Making
• Decision Support Systems (DSS)
• Group DSS
• Executive Support Systems (ESS)

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Knowledge Management

• The process of systematically and actively
  managing and leveraging the stores of knowledge
  in an organization.
• An organizations knowledge base may include
• Structured internal knowledge
• External knowledge
• Informal internal knowledge (tacit knowledge)

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Information Work

• Work that primarily consists of creating or
  processing information.
• Two types of workers
• Data workers those who process disseminate
  information paperwork.
• Knowledge workers those who create knowledge
  those who design products services.

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Office Document Management Systems

• 3 basic functions of an office
• Managing coordinating the work of data
  knowledge workers
• Connecting the work of the local info workers
  with the larger organization
• Connecting the organization to the external
  environment

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Office Workers Activities

• Managing documents
• Document creation, storage, retrieval,
  dissemination
• Scheduling for individuals groups
• Communicating for individuals groups
• Voice,digital, document-based communications
• Managing data

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Office Systems Help Office Workers

• Computer systems, such as word processing, voice
  mail, and imaging that are designed to increase
  productivity of office workers.
• Help with
• Document creation, dissemination, retrieval
• Collaboration
• Scheduling
• Etc.

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Document Imaging Systems

• Convert printed documents images to digital
  form for storage access by computer.
• Not-often-used documents can be stored on a
  jukebox (optical disk system w/ multiple disks).
• Alternative to DIS Intranets
• Workers publish documents to web-based form
  directly

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Knowledge Work Systems

• Information systems that aid knowledge workers
  in the creation and integration of new knowledge
  in the organization.
• 3 key roles for knowledge workers
• Keeping the organization up to date with
  knowledge in external world
• Serving as internal consultants in their areas of
  expertise
• Acting as change agents to evaluate, initialize,
  promote change.

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Requirements for KWS

• Specialized tools needed for particular task
• User-friendly interface
• Access to external databases
• Examples of KWS
• CAD
• Virtual reality systems, VRML systems
• Investment workstations

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CAD Computer-Aided Design

• Automates creation modification of designs by
  using computers.

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Virtual Reality, VRML Systems

• Have visualization, rendering, and simulation
  capabilities beyond conventional CAD.
• VRML Virtual Reality Markup Language
• Virtual reality designed for the Web

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Group Collaboration Systems

• Groupware
• Software that provides functions and services
  that support the collaborative activities of
  workgroups.
• Examples
• publishing tracking multiple users edits to a
  document
• replication keeping identical data on multiple
  PCs
• discussion tracking
• security preventing unauthorized access to data

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Group Collaboration Systems

• Intranet knowledge environments
• An alternative to traditional groupware
• Cheaper, easier to maintain for email, discussion
  groups, multimedia Web documents
• Which to choose?
• Groupware projects requiring extensive
  coordination management, editing on the fly,
  tracking revisions, greater security
• Intranet simple tasks like sharing documents,
  email, publishing documents, etc.

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Artificial Intelligence

• The effort to develop computer-based systems
  that behave like humans. (inc. hardware
  software)
• AI systems are based on human expertise,
  knowledge, and selected reasoning patterns, but
  do not exhibit human intelligence.
• Why would businesses want this science-fiction
  idea?
• to preserve expertise that may be lost
• to store information in an active form
• to create a mechanism invulnerable to human
  feelings
• to eliminate boring unsatisfying jobs
• to enhance an organizations knowledge base by
  providing interactivity.

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Expert Systems

• Knowledge-intensive computer program that
  captures the expertise of a human in limited
  domains of knowledge.
• Narrow brittle
• Perform tasks that a professional could do in a
  few minutes or hours.

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Expert Systems Parts

• Knowledge base model of human knowledge used by
  ES.
• Rule base the part of the knowledge base that is
  contained in IF/THEN structures.
• Knowledge frames organizes knowledge into chunks
  of interrelated characteristics.
• AI shell programming environment of an ES.
• Knowledge engineer a systems analyst expert in
  converting human knowledge into an ES.

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Case-based reasoning

• Artificial intelligence technology that
  represents knowledge as a database of cases and
  solutions.
• Each new case is compared with existing cases to
  suggest a solution. Each new case is added to the
  database of cases upon arriving at a satisfactory
  solution.

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Other Intelligent Techniques

• Neural networks
• attempt to emulate the processing patterns of the
  biological brain have a general capacity to
  learn.
• Fuzzy logic
• rule-based AI that tolerates imprecision using
  membership functions.
• Genetic algorithms
• Solution evolves through mutation, adaptation,
  and natural selection out of possible answers.

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Intelligent agents

• Software that uses a built-in or learned
  knowledge base to carry out specific, repetitive,
  and predictible tasks for the user, business
  process, or other software application.
• Example uses
• wizards in MS Office
• delete junk email
• find cheapest airfare
• search auctions for lowest price on item
• Bots http//www.mySimon.com

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Enhancing Management Decision-Making

• Decision Support Systems (DSS)
• Computer systems for management that combines
  data, analytical tools, and models to support
  semi-structured and unstructured decision-making.
• MIS are predefined management reports, etc., not
  unstructured.

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Two types of DSS

• Model-driven DSS
• Primarily stand-alone system that uses a model
  to perform what-if analysis.
• Data-driven DSS
• A system that allows users to extract analyze
  information in large databases.

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Data-driven DSS Datamining

• Associations things linked to a single event.
• Sequences events linked over time.
• Classification patterns that describe a group,
  inferring a set of rules.
• Clustering like classification, but no defined
  group yet exists.
• Forecasting using a series of values to forecast
  what other values may be.

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Parts of a DSS

• Database all the data
• historical and/or current from various
  applications.
• Software system
• Software tools used for analysis.
• Examples inc. web-based DSS

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Examples of DSS

• American Airlines price route selection
• Frito-Lay price, advertising, promotion mix
• Texas Oil Gas evaluation of drilling sites
• General Accident Insurance fraud detection

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Group DSS

• An interactive computer-based system that
  facilitates solutions to unstructured problems by
  decision-makers working as a group.
• Parts
• Hardware conference facility itself, PCs,
  overheads, etc.
• Software tools electronic questionnaires,
  brainstorming tools, voting tools, etc.
• People

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Executive Support Systems (ESS)

• Information systems for strategic-level
  unstructured decision-making in an organization
  through advanced graphics communications.
• Drilling down ability to move from summary data
  to lower and lower levels of detail.

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Benefits of ESS

• Easy to use little training needed.
• Ability to analyze, compare, and highlight
  trends.
• Enhance quality of decision-making because of
  drill-down capability