Knowledge Innovation And Change Management Essay

Knowledge Innovation And Change Management Essay INTRODUCTION Innovation is conceptualized in different ways in the literature, but the main idea is the introduction of a new idea or behavior. Damanpour (1991) gives a dual definition to innovation, referring to its technical (new products or services) and administrative aspects (new methods, procedures and information flows). An innovation orientation, which is an orientation that enables innovation, can have both positive and negative outcomes for organizations (Simpson et al., 2006). It seems, however, that in some knowledge-based organizations, negative implications of innovation can outweigh the positive ones; although they maintain a good level of innovation, they cannot achieve high efficiency. Why does this happen? Can technology help a knowledge-based organization achieve a good balance between innovation and efficiency? This essay aims to answer the previous questions. The first section focuses on knowledge-based organizations, identifying the key characteristics that enable innovation. The next section analyses the contradictory nature of innovation and efficiency and describes some of the potential challenges that knowledge-based organizations face, when an innovation orientation is adopted. This analysis gives an answer to the first question on why although an organization is highly innovative it may not be as efficient. The last two parts describe how knowledge-based organizations can achieve a balance between innovation and efficiency and the role of information technology in this objective. INNOVATION IN THE KNOWLEDGE-BASED ORGANISATION In the knowledge-based organization, knowledge is the key element that leads to efficiently turning inputs into valuable outputs (Teece et al., 1997). A common perception in literature is that knowledge should be privatized and restricted to the organizations boundaries (Argyres, 1996). Its internalization and protection is the key to efficiency; organizations should prioritize exploiting their existing knowledge over creating knowledge (Grant, 1996). On the other hand, Anand et al. (2007) argue that it is innovative knowledge that can help organizations create value. As a consequence, the real challenge for a manager in a knowledge-based organization is not to protect and exploit current possessed knowledge, but to generate knowledge and capability, that is to innovate (Nickerson and Zenger, 2004). Innovation is feasible in knowledge-based organizations for different reasons. First and foremost, in terms of organization structure, it is often either flat with little hierarchical level (Drucker, 1998), or hierarchical but flexible consisting of three levels; bureaucratic, project team and knowledge layer (Nonaka, 1994). A considerable number of authors also state that autonomy is a factor that assists innovation processes (Feldman, 1989). In addition, managements role is to create and promote a vision of knowledge sharing and creativity both internally and in the external environment of the organization and to orient this flexible and less hierarchical structure toward purposeful knowledge creation, as Nonaka (1991) suggests. According to the literature, innovation also requires knowledge acquisition and sharing within the organization. The acquisition depends both on the organizations existing knowledge base (Salavou and Lioukas, 2003), as well as on knowledge and information coming from the external environments (Chang and Cho, 2008). Many knowledge-based organizations innovate because they have the capacity to absorb new ideas and to adjust new external knowledge to their operations (Cohen and Levinthal, 1990). Knowledge sharing is essential, because it is easier to generate and formulate new ideas based on existing knowledge. Knowledge workers are the owners of knowledge, which is the most vital asset in a knowledge-based organization (Neagu, 2008). Knowledge can be explicit or tacit; the former is codified in systems or embedded in processes, while the latter is in peoples heads, highly personal and not easily expressible (Nonaka, 1991). It is therefore hard to capture tacit knowledge or to communicate it to others. Acquiring and sharing knowledge can be achieved in formal (e.g. meetings) or informal (e.g. chats) ways and it is the key facilitator of organization learning, which is the process of developing new knowledge from insights and experience of people in the organization (Jimenez-Jimenez and Sanz-Valle, 2010). Several knowledge-based organizations encourage social networking to enable information and knowledge flow and sharing of tacit knowledge and, lastly, to promote an environm ent of communication, trust and freedom to innovate (Wiig, 2000). Last but not least, information and communication technologies can be both conditions and assisting tools for innovation in knowledge-based organizations, as managing and communicating information is essential to ensure that knowledge can be acquired and generated by knowledge-workers (Maier, 2002). The above aspects help some knowledge-based organizations innovate. But what happens, in terms of efficiency, when emphasis is put on innovation? This question is discussed in the following section. THE IMPACT OF INNOVATION ON EFFICIENCY In literature there are management theories and practices (e.g Porter, 1980) which imply that when an organization tries to pursue multiple strategies at the same time, it is very likely to get stuck in between them. As a consequence, it is implied that an organization should select one of the two aspects to put emphasis on: either efficiency or innovation. However, selecting one of the two to put emphasis on can harm the other one and create long-term problems, leading to management myopia of organizational inertia (Sarkees and Hulland, 2009). In addition, the characteristics of innovation and efficiency reveal a contradiction: an innovation task is based on prior knowledge and offers a solution to an unfamiliar problem, whereas an efficiency task involves repeatedly applying optimal solutions to a problem, focusing on speed and accuracy (Sears, 2006), standardization and economies of scale (Farrell and Saloner, 1985). Knowledge-based organizations that choose to adopt an innovation orientation have to deal with challenges in the management of innovation (Van De Ven, 1986); these problems are often related to inefficiency. For instance, although Simpson et al. (2006) argue that innovative ideas result in the company adopting new processes and producing better products and services, leading to customer benefits and competitor-related advantages, this is not always the case. Innovation can sometimes be novel, but not meaningful (Im and Workman, 2004). Some organizations seem to emphasize on innovation and take too many risks, without extracting profits (Levinthal and March, 1993). For example, several organizations invested heavily in innovation during the late 1990s Internet boom, without achieving any profits or creating efficiencies that would help them gain the long term competitive advantage (Sarkees and Hulland, 2009) Knowledge-based organization can also be innovative but not efficient as a result of inconsistent performance in different levels or departments. For instance, there might be an important time lag between the introduction of an innovation and its utilization, realization or commercialization by the respective department (Maier and Haustein, 1980). As mentioned in the previous section, innovative knowledge-based organizations are based more on autonomy and flexible structures and, as a result, less on hierarchy and control. Lack of control may result to inefficiency; Jensen (1993) highlights the significance of control systems, which can ensure that capital investments lead to real-value added innovations. Another relevant risk is investing on innovations despite past failures and encouraging fast followers to imitate and copy innovative ideas, processes or products, without taking any actual innovation risks. For example, General Motors was one of the first carmakers that invested heavily in hybrid vehicle technologies research and development from the 1960s. However the first hybrid car is yet to be launched (scheduled, end of 2010) as a result of inconsistent business and marketing decisions (Maynard, 2008). In contrast Toyota, known for its capacity to exploit new ideas and realize them before its competitors, managed to be the first to convert hybrid technology innovations into routines, manufacturing processes and products, launching the successful Prius in 2000. Efficiency depends, to an extent, on knowledge workers performance. Although innovation can have a positive effect on their satisfaction and morale, which leads to improved productivity, Simpson et al. (2006) however identify job stress, dissatisfaction and turnover as a potential outcome of innovation that can directly affect individual and team performance and cause inefficiency. As previously mentioned, knowledge-based organizations are often flexible, open and creative and this could form an ideal environment for most knowledge workers to perform well, however there are people who cannot adopt in innovative environments. Lukas et al. (2002) agree that, inventions and new ideas brought into being can increase organizational stress. Another argument is that some organizations become too enamored with the idea of innovations, creating more innovations for the sake of innovation (Simpson et al., 2006). This applies to some knowledge-based organizations that over-emphasize on knowledge exploration and generation and forget their core competencies, fail to achieve cost-effective operations and ultimately forego efficiency. Laursen and Salter (2006) also argue that extensive and in-depth external knowledge search beyond a limit affects performance negatively. Most significantly, activities related to innovation often demand increased substantial resources (Van den Ven, 1986) and involve high costs, which are rarely recovered. By definition, efficiency is the output/input ratio that an organization can realize within the given economic circumstances (Maier and Haustein, 1980); minimizing use of resources (input) contradicts innovation initiatives that mainly rely on organizational slack, which is the pool of resources in an organization that is in excess of the minimum necessary to produce a given level of organizational output (Nohria Gulati, 1996). The same authors also suggest that slack might cause relaxation of internal controls and support of new ideas and projects with uncertain outcome. In addition, Leibenstein (1969) introduces the term X-inefficiency that involves the discrepancy caused by the organizational slack, between the maximum output and the actual outcome for a certain amount of inputs. Finally, we should not forget that knowledge-based organizations are based on knowledge, and innovation is to a large extent based on prior knowledge, experience and lessons learnt. In some knowledge-based organizations though, culture of low trust, competitive subcultures, as well as knowledge barriers and limitations can lead to innovation inefficiency (De Long, 1997). In an example of an electronic engineering company, the engineering teams subculture was open to exploration, tacit knowledge-sharing and socializing, whereas the MIS subculture was based on rules, standardized processes and explicit knowledge (De Long, 1997). Efficient collaboration was difficult; strong subcultures, lack of knowledge sharing across teams and different definitions of knowledge hindered efficiency. Consequently, organizations that fail to acquire, transform and exploit existing knowledge and share it across are likely to be inefficient, as they will keep re-inventing the wheel and waste valuable reso urces. IS IT POSSIBLE TO HAVE IT ALL? A global survey by Accenture (2005) revealed that organizations are continuously struggling to achieve a balance between efficiency and innovation, as a means of gaining the competitive advantage. Despite traditional theories suggesting that innovation and efficiency are incompatible, recent literature supports their compatibility or complementarity. Some authors have defined the ambidextrous organization; an emphasis on efficiency ensures that the organization enhances the utilization of its resources, while an emphasis on innovation involves exploration, experimentation and introduction of new products and services, methods, processes and relationships (Sarkees and Hulland, 2009). In knowledge-based organizations, ambidexterity can be defined as balancing knowledge exploitation and exploration at the same time. Other authors argue that the answer in finding a balance lies in punctuated equilibrium, which suggests cycling through periods of experimentation and exploitation (e.g. Bur gelman, 2002). Nucor is an example of a knowledge-based organization that successfully balances both efficiency and innovation (Sarkees and Hulland, 2009). It is the greatest steel recycling company in the United States, with more than 12 billion dollars in 2005 sales. Nucor pursues a strategy that involves optimizing existing products and operations (efficiency) and revolutionizing the market, introducing new technologies (innovation). For Nucor, it is a priority to continuously explore and acquire new knowledge from the external environment as well as internally. This is also facilitated by its decentralized structure, almost flat hierarchy and team-oriented culture. In the final section of this essay we will discuss how information technology can help a knowledge-based organizations find this balance. THE ROLE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY Information technology (IT) can help knowledge-based organizations find a balance between innovation and efficiency through systems that effectively support innovation business processes, control and decision-making, as well as knowledge management (KM). According to Malone (1997), as communication costs decrease, control becomes decentralized and decision-making is divided among connected decision-makers. This encourages creativity and flexibility, as well as efficiency thanks to reduced costs. In terms of knowledge management, the extent to which IT can assist in balancing innovation and efficiency in a knowledge-based organization depends on the organizations approach; cognitive or community network (Scarbrough et al., 1999). The former emphasizes on static IT-based networks (IT has a crucial role) and information flows, whereas the latter focuses on communication and socializing (IT has an enabling role). Technology offers tools that organize knowledge and resources, enable social interactions internally and externally, encourage organizational learning and help knowledge-workers become more innovative and efficient. Based on the complementarity of innovation and efficiency, Newell et al. (2003) argue that the concurrent implementation of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Knowledge Management (KM) systems can have a positive effect on both aspects. ERP systems focus on efficiency, integrating business operations and providing a database, in which all transactions are entered, processed, controlled and reported (Umble et al., 2003). On the other hand, KM systems focus on management of knowledge assets, knowledge sharing across the organization and knowledge creating, fostering innovation and flexibility (Von Krogh et al., 2000). Newells et al. (2003) research concludes that implementing ERP and KM technology in tandem can help an organization exploit existing knowledge, increase efficiency, and innovate simultaneously by sharing and creating knowledge. In knowledge-based organizations, this can assist in redressing the innovation-efficiency balance. Lastly, IT should be adopted and shaped by the organization (Barley, 1990) according to its needs and objectives. IT initiatives should deliver business-value and take into account the organizations cultural and socio-political perspectives. Swan et al. (1999) agree that IT-led initiatives aiming in knowledge exploration and exploitation should be combined with the development of a knowledge-sharing culture and social-networking initiatives. CONCLUSION Despite the difficulties involved, knowledge-based organizations can balance the competing nature of innovation and efficiency by addressing problems that an overemphasis on innovation causes: effectively managing knowledge, focusing on meaningful innovations, efficiently utilizing organizational slack and enabling social-networking, as well as culture of collaboration and knowledge-sharing. IT can assist in redressing the innovation-efficiency balance, however IT investments should be targeted and applied appropriately; technology is no panacea for an organizations problems.

Policy-making in the Federal System Essay

The U.S. government’s expansive role in public policy is caught in a swirl of conflicting cross-currents. On the one hand, popular expectations about government’s responsibility to solve problems often exceed the capacity of state and local authorities to respond effectively. On the other hand, policies developed at the national level may not sufficiently reflect the great diversity of interests across the U.S. to be effective at the local level. Moreover, the search for effective policy is further complicated by theoretical debates about the constitutional framework of federalism, e.g., what limits on national power can be derived from the Tenth Amendment? A policy area in the middle of these cross-currents is elementary and secondary education – a subject traditionally under local control, with some oversight by the states. However, during the last four decades – especially since 2001 – the national government’s role in education has grown significantly as a result of initiatives by Republican and Democratic administrations. Use the assigned resources to inform yourself about this role and the arguments of its supporters and critics. In your initial post of at least 200-250 words, briefly summarize the national government’s education policies. Explain the main pros and cons in the debate about these policies. Evaluate them from two perspectives: The policies’ effectiveness in improving the quality of U.S. elementary and secondary education. (Justify your assessment by clearly explaining your definition of â€Å"effectiveness† and how it should be measured or determined.) Their consistency with the constitutional framework of federalism. (Justify your assessment by clearly explaining your interpretation of American federalism’s constitutional framework and why federal education policies are or are not consistent with it.) Fully respond to all parts of the question. Write in your own words. Support your position with APA citations to two or more different resources required for this discussion. By Day 7, respond to at least two of your classmates’ initial posts. Your peer responses each must be at least 75 words. They must demonstrate  critical thinking (e.g., ask a relevant question about your peer’s post while explaining why your question is significant, or state a perspective that contrasts with your peer’s while explaining or justifying your position). In the Federal government’s role in education, I think it can be seen in the â€Å"No Child Left Behind Act† that the Federal Government has set down certain educational guidelines for the states to follow. These guidelines have to provide the Federal government from the states with information such as student achievements, performance by school districts; test performed by students in grades 3 through 8, and ensures that teachers meet minimum qualifications for teaching, in order to get federal funding from the Federal government. I think that in one way, it could be construed as within the federalism’s constitutional framework, in that the Federal government is making sure that in order for the states to receive federal help that they must be in compliance with certain guidelines to best give a proper education to the children of today. Yet according to K. Hettleman, the U.S. Government has not gone far enough, as seen in his article, Expand â€Å"No Child† through Federal Standards, Funding, that the Federal Government holds states accountable for the low performance of poor and minority students, but is undermined by political compromises, that allow state and local officials to continue to devise their own academic standards and tests. I think there ought to be stricter regulations by the federal government of making the states do more for the students in education practices that would make all students equal in performance no matter of race, color or statue in order for that state to receive federal assistance. As seen by educational statistics, â€Å"Illiteracy in the U.S. Compared to the rest of the world, the U.S. is doing well. According to the latest International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS), between 19% and 23% of American adults performed at the top levels for each of the three literacy scales: document literacy, prose literacy and quantitative (number) literacy. Sweden is the only country that scored higher. Yet many Americans are being left behind. The same survey found that between 21% and 24% of U.S. adults performed at the lowest level  for all three scales, a figure echoed by the National Adult Literacy Survey (NALS). I think that the State and Federal Government ought to work closer together to ensure a better education for all Americans. Reference: Wong, K. K. (2008, December). Federalism revised: The promise and challenge of the No Child Left Behind Act, Retrieved from: Public Administration Review: Special Issue on The Winter Commission Report Revisited, S175-S185. Document ID, ProQuest Social Science Journals database in the Ashford Online Library Gabriel, T. (2011, October 9). G.O.P. anti-federalism aims at education [News analysis]. Retrieved from: New York Times (Late Edition (east coast)), A28. Document ID: 2480540871. Retrieved from ProQuest Newspapers database, in the Ashford Online Library Levin- Waldon, O.M. (2012). American Government. San Diego, Ca: Bridgepoint Education, Inc. Http://www

Family Size Essay

As the world economy weakens, resources continue to become limited and the interdependence among countries increase, different countries have been introducing new policies which seek to control the rate at which the human population is growing. Most of these policies have been geared towards controlling the number of children a single family should have. The main aim of these policies has been to relief the environment and the resources within it some stresses of over exploitation. However while countries like China have been doing this for a long period now, many people see it as an interference with the basic institution (family) and as a result many people have been fighting against such policies which seeks to control the number of children a family should have. While limiting the number of children per family is positive since it would ease in government planning, enabling the economy prediction to be as accurate as possible, if it was to happen in the US, the policies would not work to the advantage of the State due to few reasons which include the fact that, the USA is not suffering from overpopulation rather under population, the aging population has been growing at an alarming rate forcing the country to allow high number of immigrants to the US and as a result it would not be advisable for the US government to control the number of children per family it should be on the other hand support and encourage her citizens to increase the number of children per family for example by using incentives and thus, the US government should not limit the number of children a family should have. Why the US government should not control the number of children people have: The total fertility rate (defined as the total number of children a woman is likely to have during her lifetime) in the USA in the last decade has been declining (Newman, B& Newman, P, 2008). As many and many women  concentrate on their education, jobs and careers, the American population has been growing at a very slow rate. As a result of countering the problems of a low population growth, the country has been allowing migration of skilled workers through the green card lottery to migrate from their countries to the US to come and offer their expertise in the USA. This program is very beneficial to the country since it allows continuous operation of the industries. If the government controls the number of children people should have the population will grow even less and the country might cease having an active economy (Hanson, Scheve& Slaughter, 2007). The importance of a young population is the fact that it makes the economy active by ensuring goods and services are moving with in the stores. For example new clothes are being bought as people are growing old; items such as phones which have emerged with technology improvements still have people to buy them: With an old population, these items would to be bought. As a result, a high young population is good for the economy and thus best for the government interests. If the US government could start controlling the number of children a family should have, it would find itself in similar problems which are facing countries in the Eastern European region such as Russia and also in Asia such as in Japan where as a result of small family sizes and low fertility rates, the majority of the population is made up of old people. As a result, the governments from these countries have been using large portion of their budget to cater for the old population through pensions and also medical support (Goldsmith& Larson, 2003). With the family sizes also reduced, responsibilities of these aged people are being delegated to the few family members who were born and as a result instead of these people engaging in national building activities, they spend most of their time taking care of the elderly whereas with a high population, responsibilities could have been divided easily among the many siblings. Another economic effect of a controlled family size is the fact that, with a controlled population, almost every citizen is likely to read up to the maximum level of education and as a result, industries would miss the much needed cheap labor which they need to run their companies cheaply. This could force these industries either to use much money to run the companies, close down if they  cannot afford the operating costs or even relocate to other countries where labor is cheap. As a result, this would deny the government much of its needed revenues since the companies would have to pay for taxes in the countries where their investments are (Navaretti, Castelani& Disdier, 2009). Finally, many people argue against the uncontrolled number of children in a family due to the high taxes paid in order to keep the extra child born in school. However, with the US government supporting the education of each and every child born in the US, there is likelihood for high social mobility. The education system enables people to move from poor backgrounds to occupy high levels in the government where they pay high taxes thus giving back to the society (Barnett& Belfield, 2006). The government should thus not be worried about the family sizes of its citizens since the US is not suffering from an overpopulation problem. If each and every person is given a chance to study and become professionals, they would pay high taxes just like any other citizen despite their different social backgrounds. Conclusion: While controlling of the number of children people should have is a good idea, it would not be advisable for the US government to introduce such laws since the country is not suffering from high population rather it is due to under population that people migrate to the US through the green card lottery to provide the much needed labor for the US industries. A controlled population would mean sometimes in future the country’s population is likely to be highly composed of old people where the government would have to dig deep into its budget in order to maintain these people and old population could also lead to a sluggish economy since the old population does not have need for the emerging products such as phones, computers and so on. It is therefore not advisable for the government to control the number of children people should have.

Personal Narrative My Political Identity - 1242 Words

Myles Porter Professor Rick Armstrong English 12 12 October 2016 My Political Identity Confessing one s political identity in 2016 truly embodies the phrase â€Å"walking on eggshells†. Whether you’re a liberal or conservative, owning up to your political resolutions sometimes comes with some intense backlash. In this years’ presidential election we have an intense candidate with very radical views, and if you don t know who I’m talking about you should probably move from the rock you are living under. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has gained a immense popularity amongst not only the American public but Internationally as well. His chauvinist rhetoric, egotistical outlook, and how he continuously fabricates lies upon lies has truly brought him into the public eye. Hearing Trumps incredibly horrifying agenda makes me proud to admit that I am a Democrat, a solid liberal to be exact. 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