The Knowledge Activist's Handbook: Adventures from the Knowledge Trenches

By Victor Newman

The role of the knowledge activist is to be unreasonable, to identify and combine those small grains of truth that have the potential to become pearls. The Knowledge Activist's Handbook demonstrates... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 184112320X
• ISBN13: 9781841123202
• Release Date: January 2003
• Publisher: Capstone
• Length: 184 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.7" x 0.6" x 6.2"

Customer Reviews

A Real Gem

Newman's The Knowledge Activists Handbook is a revelation, or should be to so called KM practioners! It should be compulsory reading for all KMers as well as anyone studying business management, information studies and information management and more importantly computing and IT! It is innovative, revolutionary and iconoclastic and de-bunks all the myths of "knowledge management" The book has a unique character in that you can dip in and out but more importantly is action oriented. Knowledge Management previously and still is high-minded and scholastic. Newman cuts to the chase and gives practical points at each chapter Get on the "Dead Cat Hunt", stop paralysis by analysis and kill the "Knowledge Idiots" I am waiting for Newman's sequel!

Insightful!

Author Victor Newman sets out to demystify knowledge management, strip away the jargon and offer a clear, useful guide to integrating emotions and logic practically. His information is random, bouncy with unconnected - though interesting - anecdotes, mostly in the first person. The author didn't assemble his thoughts in a very orderly way, given that this is more of a notebook than a book, but he comes through with punchy, tight chapters and a rare sense of humor. Most writing about knowledge management is tedious and academic. This book aims to break that pattern. It's a collection of personal stories, because knowledge management is, after all, a personal enterprise. As a notebook, this publication has both utility and merit. Newman offers valid criticisms of current knowledge management practices, and suggests some modes of thought and some useful readings. Sequence isn't the priority here, content is. You will find nuggets of useful knowledge management lore and counsel. We recommend keeping the book handy and dipping in often for a helping hand. This notebook is like any other set of knowledge: you'll have to manage it a bit.

Excellent, fun read on the realities of KM

Newman has put together a very readable collection of articles and thought-pieces that express his somewhat-contrarian ideas on knowledge management. The book aims at high-level management and people who will be leading KM efforts for the good of an entire company. A major theme is that knowledge management has to be about innovation. He argues in a number of pieces that for KM to provide any value to the organization, it must enable the innovation process in all its forms. This means supporting the Creators (the idea people), the Implementors (the people who can see the value of the Creators' ideas and get them to market) and the Stabilizors (the people who keep the ship running) in the correct balance. Newman argues that knowledge management is about stability, whereas knowledge development is about dynamism. My favorite thought in the book is that having knowledge does not fix a problem, just like knowing smoking causes cancer. The organization has to have something in addition to the knowledge to make the requisite changes.Newman rails against the hijacking of the KM terminology by three "lost tribes" of infromation technology, organizational learning, and lean production. I am not sure what value this adds to the book besides providing grounds for several diatribes and funny examples of the wrong way to do KM.

The best Business book I've read in 10 years

Since the mid 90's, CONSULTANTS (from a strategy and/or implementation perspective) have been attempting to explain a product/solution/offering called "Knowledge Management" (KM) to CORPORATIONS.It took 10 years, but someone has finally written a practical, yet breakthrough, "handbook" on the subject of KM. There have been volumes of time (and energy) devoted to this topic (publications, seminars, thinktanks, products, etc.), but Victor Newman is the first to "Break it All Down" and apply this high-level concept to the real world.To do this, he has broken ALL the rules. The book is intentionally short (167 pages). The chapters are short (2-5 pages). He pokes fun at the academics who theorize KM, but also the consultants who pitch it, and the corporations who want to implement it.Through the use of concise (and very humorous) chapters, rounded with historical context and real-life stories from the business world, he paints a picture of how to use Knowledge for increasing the value of any business.A few favorite passages:"Ultimately, if your addiction is to technology you are in for a bumpy ride. If your addiction is to the creation and delivery of value, you just might get what you want.""If you want to understand how organizations manage their knowledge, look at the way they manage projects. If they don't capture the lessons and integrate them into their processes and behaviors, they don't understand knowledge management."You must read this book, whether you are a consultant, academic, or corporate employee with a desire to attain the status of "knowledge activist".

Best Business Book of the last 10 Years!

Since the mid 90's, CONSULTANTS (from a strategy and/or implementation perspective) have been attempting to explain a product/solution/offering called "Knowledge Management" (KM) to CORPORATIONS.It took 10 years, but someone has finally written a practical, yet breakthrough, "handbook" on the subject of KM. There have been volumes written about the topic (publications, seminars, thinktanks, products, etc.), but Victor Newman is the first to "Break it All Down" and apply this high-level concept to the real world.To do this, he has broken all the rules. The book is intentionally short (167 pages). The chapters are short (2-5 pages). He pokes fun at the academics who theorize KM, but also the consultants who pitch it, and the corporations who want to implement it.Through the use of concise (and very humorous) chapters, rounded with historical context and real-life stories from the business world, he paints a picture of how to use Knowledge for increasing the value of any business.A few favorite passages:"Ultimately, if your addiction is to technology you are in for a bumpy ride. If your addiction is to the creation and delivery of value, you just might get what you want.""If you want to understand how organizations manage their knowledge, look at the way they manage projects. If they don't capture the lessons and integrate them into their processes and behaviors, then they don't understand knowledge management."You must read this book, whether you are a consultant, academic, or corporate employee with a desire to attain the status of "knowledge activist".