Knowledge management and risk : a case study in Sasol between 2005 and 2009

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: SUMMARYThis research studies the concept of Knowledge Management (KM) in organisations and alsoits integration with other structures. While KM is seen as being beneficial to organisations, itis of crucial importance for its proponents not to overlook the fact that it may also havedisadvantages. There are numerous publications, both scholarly and otherwise, that describehow a well-implemented KM initiative can add value to an enterprise by improving thesharing of information between managers and employees, but the risk factors aroundinstituting KM have not received the same attention.Its proponents have generally inadequately explained how even a 'well-implemented KMinitiative can spell disaster for an organisation; KM, like other management theories such asTotal Quality Management (TAM), Business Process Re-Engineering (BPR) and others, canand have failed and there needs to be an understanding of why this happens.This research looks at the risk and value issues that come with KM and the various ways inwhich these risks may be mitigated and the value retained. In particular, the integration ofKM with management initiatives like Value Management (V.M) and Risk Management (RM)will be examined. This process is seen as problematic because of the nature of theinterrelationship between KM on the one hand and V.M and RM on the other. It is arguedthat only when organisations fully understand this interrelationship, can they begin tointegrate risk and Value Management into their Knowledge Management initiatives.Therefore, the analysis of the relationship between Value Management and Risk Managementas semi or fully formalised management processes plays an important part in the research.The study examines cases where V.M and RM have been incorporated in KMimplementations in the South African petrochemical industry in an attempt to arrive at a moreaccurate assessment of this process. The study argues that Knowledge Management can posea threat to any organisation that does not manage its attendant risks as well as it does itsbenefits. As an example, this research looks at how knowledge workers can be deployed byknowledge managers to add value to an enterprise without risking the loss of its intellectualcapital, for instance when such workers are recruited by competitors.The finding of this thesis are somewhat varied in nature. As far as this research is concernedthere are no adequate and streamlined measures taken to analyse risk in SASTECH,particularly Risk that comes with or as a result of Knowledge Management. As aconsequence there are no formalised control measures and review processes put into place formonitoring these risks.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University