KT and Knowledge Sharing: The History Forgotten

Consistency of Change – Benefits of knowledge sharing have remained consistent throughout history, while only the method to share has evolved. Information access and knowledge sharing in 15,000 BC was popular. Lascaux cave drawings used imagery to capture and sharing hunting knowledge. By 3400 BC hieroglyphics appeared as an innovative way to document the spoken language and by AD 77 the first encyclopedia by the Romans was compiled. Classic printing presses of the 1440’s enabled printed material to be available on a broad scale and by the 1600’s, newspapers were the most common method for widespread sharing of knowledge (Simoneau, 2013). Radio in real-time pushed boundaries of information communication in 1912 and the television, of course, transformed social media by 1946. The challenge of the 1960’s was what to do with all the information that was generated. This question spurred the creation of databases for structured data and the famous floppy disk for portable storage was invented by 1971. This progression of information and knowledge sharing is illustrated well in the infographic ‘Information Access and Sharing throughout History’ (see Figure A1 and Figure A2).

 

The Benefit – Sharing information and knowledge has benefited every generation back to the last ice age. Scanning through the inventions of times past, one common theme is apparent. Early adoption of an emerging technology does provide an immediate competitive advantage for the early adopters. From pictures to radio to newspapers to the floppy disk, earlier adopters benefited the most. Many organizations were earlier adopters of knowledge sharing and they too immediately benefited.

 

AOL Grabs for Attention – America Online (AOL) owned the online market in 1986 by creating a friendly face to the internet. Users were unsure about the internet, what it was, and how it could help individuals and business. AOL’s creation of graphical chat environments (chatroom) transformed knowledge sharing. All of a sudden, people from different parts of the country could share ideas within a safe virtual room. Could this have a business application? Many believed it did. This was the beginning, and proof the network effect existed. As users were added to the social environment, the value increased and AOL monetized the opportunity.

 

Metcalfe’s Law and the Social Followers – Many leaders in the 1980’s were well aware of Metcalfe’s law. In 1986, Robert Metcalfe, a former researcher at the famous Xerox Palo Alto Research Center who co-invented Ethernet, hypothesized that while “the cost of the network grew linearly with the number of connections, the value was proportional to the square of the number of users” (Hendler & Golbeck, 2007, p. 1). There is a direct connection between telephone communications and network effect that can be applied today to social network theory (the network effect).This means that the community value of a network grows as the square of the number of its users increase. In short more users equals more value (Hendler & Golbeck, 2007).

Appendix A

Appendix A -Figure 2

References

Goyet, S. (2014). Understanding “Knowledge Translation” In Other Languages by Sophie Goyet | Knowledge Translation Network (KTNet) Africa (online image). Retrieved June 30, 2015, from http://www.ktnetafrica.net/blog/understanding-%E2%80%98knowledge-translation%E2%80%99-other-languages-sophie-goyet

Hendler, J., & Golbeck, J. (2007). Metcalfe’s Law, Web 2.0, and the Semantic Web (pp. 1–12). Retrieved from https://www.cs.umd.edu/~golbeck/downloads/Web20-SW-JWS-webVersion.pdf

Simoneau, L. (2013). Coveo Insights. Retrieved June 24, 2015, from http://blog.coveo.com/the-history-of-knowledge-sharing-a-coveo-infographic/

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Peter is a technology executive with over 20 years of experience, dedicated to driving innovation, digital transformation, leadership, and data in business. He helps organizations connect strategy to execution to maximize company performance. He has been recognized for Digital Innovation by CIO 100, MIT Sloan, Computerworld, and the Project Management Institute. As Managing Director at OROCA Innovations, Peter leads the CXO advisory services practice, driving digital strategies. Peter was honored as an MIT Sloan CIO Leadership Award Finalist in 2015 and is a regular contributor to CIO.com on innovation. Peter has led businesses through complex changes, including the adoption of data-first approaches for portfolio management, lean six sigma for operational excellence, departmental transformations, process improvements, maximizing team performance, designing new IT operating models, digitizing platforms, leading large-scale mission-critical technology deployments, product management, agile methodologies, and building high-performance teams. As Chief Information Officer, Peter was responsible for Connecticut’s Health Insurance Exchange’s (HIX) industry-leading digital platform transforming consumerism and retail-oriented services for the health insurance industry. Peter championed the Connecticut marketplace digital implementation with a transformational cloud-based SaaS platform and mobile application recognized as a 2014 PMI Project of the Year Award finalist, CIO 100, and awards for best digital services, API, and platform. He also received a lifetime achievement award for leadership and digital transformation, honored as a 2016 Computerworld Premier 100 IT Leader. Peter is the author of Learning Intelligence: Expand Thinking. Absorb Alternative. Unlock Possibilities (2017), which Marshall Goldsmith, author of the New York Times No. 1 bestseller Triggers, calls "a must-read for any leader wanting to compete in the innovation-powered landscape of today." Peter also authored The Power of Blockchain for Healthcare: How Blockchain Will Ignite The Future of Healthcare (2017), the first book to explore the vast opportunities for blockchain to transform the patient experience. Peter has a B.S. in C.I.S from Bentley University and an MBA from Quinnipiac University, where he graduated Summa Cum Laude. He earned his PMP® in 2001 and is a certified Six Sigma Master Black Belt, Masters in Business Relationship Management (MBRM) and Certified Scrum Master. As a Commercial Rated Aviation Pilot and Master Scuba Diver, Peter understands first hand, how to anticipate change and lead boldly.