J.UCS Special Issue: I-KNOW '01 - International Conference on Knowledge
Management, Part 1
Klaus Tochtermann (Know-Center, Graz, Austria)
ktochter@know-center.at
Hermann Maurer (Graz University of Technology and Know-Center,
Graz, Austria)
hmaurer@iicm.edu
Abstract: Knowledge management has become an organizational imperative
for all types of corporate and governmental organizations. A key objective
is to apply knowledge which resides within an organization to achieve the
organization's goals most efficiently and cost-effectively. To implement
knowledge management in organizations, different aspects from different
disciplines have to be taken into account. Organizational aspects are required
to define which knowledge should be captured and the way it is captured.
A new knowledge-friendly culture has to be developed to support knowledge
sharing and creation and to overcome the employees' fear that sharing of
knowledge means loosing power. Finally, information technologies play a
key role as enabling technology for knowledge management.
Successful knowledge management requires one critical ingredient: collective
positive action to shape it, so that it properly contributes to the larger
goal of achieving an added-value for organizations. Taking advantage of
the potentially huge benefits of knowledge management will require significant
changes in attitudes and practises among organizations and individuals.
Fully exploiting the enormous potential benefits of successful knowledge
management methodologies and tools requires a far more coordinated effort
and a much wider overview than can possibly be achieved by individuals
or single organizations acting alone. What is required is a platform which
brings together an interdisciplinary group of organizations. Ideally, a
group which does not only consist of organizations with a scientific background
in information technologies, organization management and human resource
management but also of companies which operate in knowledge-intensive market
segments.
The Competence Center for knowledge-based Applications and Systems (Know-Center,
www.know-center.at) is such a platform
which strives to improve the cooperation between science and industry.
The objective of the Know-Center is to stimulate pre-competitive research
and development and to develop leading edge technologies in various fields
of knowledge management together with and for its partner companies and
scientific partners. The Know-Center is funded within the Austrian competence
center program K plus (www.kplus.at)
under the auspices of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Transport, Innovation
and Technology. Up to 60% of the budget is financed out of public funds.
The participating companies contribute at least 40% of the budget. The
Know-Center started operation on January 1, 2001. When in full operation
about 40 researchers distributed among three thematic divisions (knowledge
management/knowledge portals, organizational memories/knowledge transfer
and knowledge retrieval/knowledge visualization) will be employed at the
Know-Center.
The opening event of the Know-Center is organized as an international
conference on knowledge management (I-KNOW '01) under the auspices of the
Austrian Federal Minister of Transport, Innovation and Technology, Dr.
M. Forstinger, the Governor of Styria, W. Klasnic, and the Major of the
City of Graz, A. Stingl. The I-KNOW '01 is also the kick-off of a series
of an international conference on knowledge management which will take
place every year in Graz, Austria. At the I-KNOW '01, invited high-level
speakers from research, industry and politics address knowledge management
from various perspectives: Leading scientists present latest research results,
key players from industry report on best practices with knowledge management,
and policy makers address the need of knowledge management of an emerging
information society.
An event such as the I-KNOW '01 requires much support at different levels:
We are grateful to our invited speakers for their impressive talks and
profound contributions published in these proceedings. Slightly revised
versions of the contributions will also appear in our electronic journal
J.UCS, Volume 7, Issues 6 and 7 (www.jucs.org). The high number of about
140 conference attendees indicates that there are more questions than answers
in knowledge management. Many thanks to all who came to Graz to celebrate
with us the opening of the Know-Center. We would like to thank the City
of Graz for the sponsoring of our social event at the evening of the first
conference day. Without the support of the Graz University of Technology
it would not have been possible to hold the conference in such technically
well-equipped premises. The Wirtschaftskammer Steiermark (chamber of commerce
of Styria) provided us with further technical equipment - thanks for this
support. And finally many thanks to the staff at the Know-Center for their
perfect organization of the I-KNOW '01 and for their tireless efforts to
get the conference proceedings ready in time.
Klaus Tochtermann and Hermann Maurer
Graz, July 2001
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