The aim of the dissertation is to indicate that a large number of problems in rural communities are the consequence of ineffective knowledge management, and that the effective management of knowledge could significantly improve the range and quality of services provided to community members. Knowledge is reviewed by examining the process of changing social facts into data, data into information and information into knowledge. Knowledge management is examined by reviewing the history of knowledge management as well as defining the term knowledge management. A generic model for knowledge management is developed that divides knowledge management into five basic processes namely; knowledge identification, knowledge mobilisation, knowledge generation/elaboration, knowledge application and knowledge evaluation. The model further describes the knowledge management ”enablers” that can either facilitate or debilitate the management of knowledge. Various practical suggestions are proposed that will facilitate the implementation of a knowledge management programme in a rural community. / Psychology / MA (PSYCHOLOGY)

This thesis is addressing the knowledge base of project managers in the South African Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) sector. It is determining if project management is recognised as an important profession in the ICT Sector; it is also establishing the attributes required for an ICT project manager; the background of ICT project managers with respect to their job experience and qualification and lastly the effectiveness of project management in the ICT sector. A literature review on the knowledge base of ICT project managers is done to clarify particular issues, to determine international perspective on the issues of the study and to contextualise the study. The central research tool was a questionnaire. Project managers from different ICT companies in South Africa were selected to respond to the questionnaire which was mailed to them. Close-ended questions were used in the development of themes and the data were analysed on the basis of tables and graphs and hypothesis testing. The study found that project management is recognised as a career path within the South African ICT sector. It was also found that ICT project managers seem to have a good capability in terms of technical, organic, conceptual and business skills. Most ICT project managers are qualified up to a postgraduate level. They have a degree in another profession and then undertake project management certification. The study also found that project management adds value to the client as well as the company and also adds to the effectiveness of relationships with peers in achieving project goals. The study concluded with recommendations on what can be done to improve the competency of ICT project managers in the ICT sector and also made recommendations for future research.

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Thesis (DTech (Marketing))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2009. / Many South African businesses experience a lack of competitiveness against a background of increasing globalised competition. One of the reasons for the lack of competitiveness in South African businesses is as a result of a lack of innovation. In response, many scholars have concluded that design can contribute to the competitiveness of a company. Distinguished and refereed business journals have published articles that claim design can have value. One of the causes of the lack of innovation could be that managers do not use design as widely as it might be. Some say that it is mainly as a result of a poor understanding of the benefits of design. This prompted the research question: How can the competitiveness of businesses be improved through the application of product design as a knowledge creation management tool? This question was investigated by a combination of a literature survey, construction of a conceptual model, a questionnaire survey, a focus group discussion and a curriculum content analysis. Through a literature study evidence was presented that design could contribute to innovation, which could add a competitive edge and could lead to commercial success, provided it is managed properly. Unfortunately, managers do not use design as widely as it might be as a result of a poor understanding of the contribution of design. This raises the question, how can the understanding of design be improved? An alternative to the traditional views was presented whereby product design can be used as a knowledge creation management tool. In this regard, a framework was proposed, which indicated product design as both a user and a producer of knowledge. This framework could assist managers to acquire a sufficient understanding of design. The next step is to ask what managers should understand about design in order to use it as a knowledge creation management tool. A questionnaire survey managed to distinguish, in a statistically significant manner, between certain items that were indicated by the respondents as important for managers to understand and other items that the respondents felt were unimportant. In general, the items that were design specific, such as conceptualisation and the psychology of creativity, were indicated as unimportant and the items close to managing a business, such as the writing of a creative brief and the risk factors, were indicated as important for managers to know. Two focus group discussions agreed in the main with the results of the questionnaire survey, but with one exception. One group felt that managers should have a basic understanding of the whole design process. Another aspect of importance was that the manager should trust the designer. The groups also suggested a number of topics that should be included in a curriculum on a basic understanding of product design for management students.

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D.Litt. et Phil. / There have been numerous approaches to Knowledge Management (KM) over the past number of years. In addition there is also confusion amongst enterprises and enterprise management as to the role and contribution of KM, the differences between information management, information technology and KM. There has been an overflow of information and “knowledge” in large enterprises and this situation will only worsen if not managed appropriately. Knowledge is now universally accepted as a factor of production and similar to other factors of production viewed as being scarce and expensive. The knowledge inventory of an enterprise should thus be managed in a similar manner as physical inventory – kept at the essential minimum level and to be provided at the time that it is required. The challenge to creating a successful knowledge enterprise is more reliant on the people aspects than technology per se and this view is supported by recent research. This situation is exacerbated by the diversity of participation amongst knowledge workers who as a “grouping” speaks a different language based on their perspectives of issues within and external to the enterprise. Because knowledge is not synonymous with information, information technology cannot deliver knowledge management, yet a large proportion of managements view information technology as the panacea for their failure at implementing successful KM or what they consider to be KM. Another concern of management is that current management approaches cannot handle imperfect information with certainty. Enterprises are thus faced with the situation of not being able to deliver the right information to the right person at the right time because enterprises are unable to predict what is the right information to distribute, who the right recipients of that information should be and all of this may take place under conditions of uncertainty – as found in today’s dynamic business environment. Defining knowledge from an enterprise management perspective or in terms of an organisational context present a number of issues. The most important being that there is no single all encompassing definition of KM. However, in terms of the objectives of this research a definition which relate the dimensions of time, delivery, the right information and the right recipient is applied. KM varies from the perspective of controlling knowledge processes within the enterprise to methods applied to the extraction of knowledge from the flow of information, internal and external to the enterprise. Recent thinking on KM distinguishes between demand-side KM and supply-side KM. The supply-side of KM is associated with the “delivery-oriented” assumptions that valuable knowledge exists within the enterprise and that it is the task of management to find it, codify it and place it into a repository. This is then followed by an approach which “decrees” and determine how it is to be distributed, e.g. via learning, databases, documents, etc. and to whom. Demand-side KM is initiated with an approach requiring a view of where does valuable knowledge exist within the enterprise, is what is required in existence, does it support the enterprise's strategies and how can the use thereof benefit the enterprise's competitive advantage? Obviously the proponents of both of these sides do see the need for closing the gap between supply and demand and that they are in fact complimentary activities. A view is taken on the KM approach / practices undertaken by the enterprise. There are a number of KM taxonomy approaches based upon the process applied in the enterprise to extract knowledge. An understanding of the different approaches employed is necessary to locate the role of the knowledge worker in the overall KM value chain. The knowledge processes approach is considered to be a factor of production where the person is central to the process as the carrier or owner of knowledge. Communication amongst individuals is of primary importance, especially in respect of the management of the enterprise and its outputs. This approach also considers an enabling culture in the enterprise to be a pre-requisite to the successful management of knowledge. The focus of this approach is on knowledge transfer through human interaction. Technology is recognised as playing a supporting role in this approach. Knowledge is more than information and also considers experience, skills, competencies and attitudes as part of knowledge created in the process of human interaction. The term Just-in-Time (JIT) can be defined as a production or inventory scheduling technique found within the more complex production logistics disciplines. JIT is more appropriately thought of as a philosophy as it is more than a mere set of management and production principles. KM JIT is an endeavour to provide the right knowledge at the right time to the right person. This requires an insight into the knowledge demand and supply process as well as the time horizon applicable to the knowledge required. Over the longer term business forecasts, environmental scans, strategic planning, etc. can be applied to close the gap between these variables. However, it is in the short term and immediate requirements that the present systems fail and management concerns are emphasised. To summarise the relationship: JIT KM searches for an optimisation of the matching process between demand and knowledge supply within enterprises, i.e. it endeavours to translate the logistic concept of JIT to the knowledge management field. In addition to JIT KM the concept of real-time KM is introduced as an alternative since present research indicates that the implementation of JIT KM presents major issues in terms of cost and development effort, restricting its use to mission critical applications. A more generic application for JIT KM need to be developed and it is contended that real-time KM fits the requirements of enabling the enterprise to be agile in respect of its ability to respond to present and future knowledge demands. The major difference between JIT KM and real-time KM being the latency of information concept which applies to the latter.

Nowadays, business activities become more and more complex; they entangle numerous aspects of knowledge: legal, financial, management, information technology, and so on. Knowledge Management, a still novel solution for most organization, aims boost and optimize the knowledge transfers in organization. The thesis is about should and how small and middle medium enterprises apply knowledge management. The author argues the content of knowledge management, and how implements those ideas into real business environment.

This thesis sets out to examine the scope for integrated knowledge based planning systems. Five planning departments in the South East Midlands of the UK have been investigated through environmental appraisal, conceptual modelling and empirical evidence gathering. The results of analyses suggest a number of configurations, which could provide reformation instruments in the context of technological innovation, social coordination and knowledge management for sustainable development. This research study provided the insights and learning into how to successfully develop and implement an integrated knowledge based planning system. The primary aspiration of this research was to develop a robust pragmatic framework to support an efficient and effective delivery of the planning system in the UK local government towards sustainable development. A mixed research methodology was employed for the research fieldwork. Firstly, an extensive review of literature took place to summarise and synthesise the arguments of the key research propositions contributing to the development of an integrated knowledge based planning system. Secondly, exploratory fieldwork took place as an appropriate methodology in this study, applying the semi-structured interview and questionnaire techniques to gather data from senior level planning officials who were directly involved in the planning system transformation. This study was initiated by examining the previous planning environment in the UK local government and its transformation from its conventional state to a contemporary emergent state. The fieldwork was carried out to identify the key supportive and preventive knowledge factors for both explicit and tacit knowledge domains. As a result, the nature of successful technology based initiatives was determined and solutions to the possible emerging challenges were appraised.

Linked data are usually visualized as graph structures which are useful for browsing resources but less useful for viewing structured data. This thesis proposes a solution how to visualize linked data in a tabular structure. The goal of the visualization is to make an orientation in data easier for a user. A tabular structure for specific data can be designed and managed in a graphic editor. Visualized data can be checked for errors and can be edited to obtain a script which fixes them. Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)

M.B.A / The aim of this study is to conduct a literature study on knowledge management with specific reference to the Human Resources environment and compare these practices in the various identified companies that operate In the Chemical Sector in South Africa. Knowledge management has demonstrated to be an essential contributor to business success in many global companies. As an evolving discipline within organisations, the Human Resources function can benefit from this by adopting the appropriate knowledge management tools and principles to ensure maximum Human Capital output is achieved. The foundation of this dissertation is based on the literature review, where the researcher attempts to highlight important aspects relevant to this topic. These include concepts associated with the Human Resources function - but are viewed in perspective of a knowledge-driven organisation. The focus will be primarily on Learning and Development, Compensation and Benefits, Recruitment and Placement, and Performance Management and associated concepts that support these Human Resources technologies. In order to gain a better understanding of currant practices in the identified South African companies, the researcher will survey these companies. Both the providers of Human Resources services (Human Resources Professionals) and recipients of the Human Resources services (Employees) will be surveyed. From the findings, the researcher will provide appropriate recommendations based on the expertise provided by the authors in the literature review so that the companies may adapt and implement these. Since South Africa is a developing economy, these companies can learn from the tried and tested methodologies as illustrated in the literature review, to enhance their competitive edge.