Broadband and Me

Tacit Emergence

www.KMWorld.com Magazine Archives

Excellent article outlining two of my favourtie topics: Knowledge Management and Complxity. This snippet (the conclusion) speaks volumes:

So, the attempt to make explicit the tacit knowledge in an organization may in fact be an attempt to short-circuit the chaotic process of emergence. But that's exactly what emergence doesn't allow. In such cases, a KM system can nourish the intelligence from which wisdom emerges but neither replace it nor make it explicit.

This is why so called 'best practice' programmes or initiatives never work, and why trying to implement knowledge management to a business case is so difficult: its success or failure is based upon emergent properties, far more complex than initially obvious.

Its why when I hear that best practice will help us speed up our throughput and increase our productivity that I develop a cynical attitude. After all following a best pratice process eliminates the ability to be creative and innovative, takes away chance and serendipity and heads us towars the emrgence of failure.