Document Type

Dissertation

Rights

This item is available under a Creative Commons License for non-commercial use only

Publication Details

Dissertation submitted for the award of MSc in Computing (Knowledge Management), 2008.

Abstract

The preservation of knowledge has been a human endeavour since the dawn of time. Using whatever resources possible, humans have recorded knowledge for the purpose of bequeathing it to the next generations. With each technological advance, it would appear that the resources available for recording knowledge have improved. Not only this, but with each advance, the accessibility and availability to this knowledge has been enhanced; and in our present times, the impact of technology has made it easier than ever before. As with education, the consequence of making knowledge more available and accessible is the creation of more knowledgeable individuals - individuals who live in a modern society, which has been termed the knowledge society. The potential of these knowledgeable individuals or knowledge workers as key assets in the production of services and goods is well recognised. Knowledge management has emerged, hand in hand, with this new breed of worker. As a tool, organisations are using knowledge management as means to preserve the knowledge of these workers. For different reasons, private sector organisations have been quicker to embrace knowledge management than their public sector counterparts. Ironically, governments support the concept of the knowledge society and all the benefits it promotes, yet, many of the agencies who operate on their behalf do not use knowledge management. This is, all the more, strange given that conducting business on behalf of the nation is knowledge intensive. Oberstown Boys School is one such agency. Operating in the domain of justice, its business is the detention of juvenile offenders. Given the nature of business, which is people focussed, the research of this project explores if a knowledge management initiative could be cultivated there. Through use of a knowledge audit the project will explore where the knowledge is in the organisation and explore how technology can help.

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