Customer Reviews

Knowledge Management

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

This book as assigned as the text for a Knowledge Management course I am currently taking. There are many problems with this text. The level of detail goes from theoritical (i.e., explaining what is knowledge, differentiating between tacit and explicit knowledge, etc.) to suggesting how to dress when performing a knowledge capture interview! Seriously, does a textbook on knowledge management need to get into the details how how to dress for an interview with an expert?

The other problem is that it states that expert systems have failed, but the KM systems that are discussed throughout the book appear to be just that - expert systems. I have read over half the text so far and I still don't get what they are really trying to tell me.

Lukily, my professor has assigned other readings and I am getting much more from these other papers. I also started reading "The complete idiot's guide to KM" and found that it is more useable that this text.

This text was required by National University for BKM 400 (Business Knowledge Management) and whoever decided that this text was the best material to use needs to reconsider their decision. Material is poorly written to the point that it is very complex to understand. Even my Professor admits having to reread the chapters several times before lecturing because the material is so dry and poorly written!! In addition, there are a lot of mislabeled Tables and a lot of jumping around in the book (meaning it does not flow or transition smoothly from one concept to another). I just checked how much I would get back for selling this book and I'm not surprised--$2.25 from Amazon! Bookrenter.com isn't even buying this text at all! Please consider purchasing this book USED or from the local Library... WASTE OF MONEY!

I have to say that I'm not quite done reading the book, but I have skimmed through the entire thing and have read several chapters. I would like to see more mentioned on security aspects of KM, but so far, not so bad.

I don't usually consider this in a book review, but I am disappointed with the physical quality of the book itself. It seems like the authors submitted a color document and took it to the cheapest publisher and had the darn thing photo copied. There are a number of illustrations that simply can't be read. The quality is terrible. This also goes for the labeling of figures, tables, etc.... On one page, I can read that it says Figure X.X but can't really see the text next to it. It is seriously detracting from the book.

The book could be the greatest book on KM in the world, but what good is it if you can't clearly see what is on the page?

Using this book for a Business Knowledge Management Class. The book is convoluted, contradictory, and a nearly impossible read. The writing is dryer than anything I've ever encountered, and it takes numerous page reads to try to remember anything you just read. If the class was not a prerequisite for my Accounting degree, I would very quickly drop this class.

I really dislike this book (2nd ed paperback). The book could have communicated the theories and concepts so much better than it actually did in this second edition. The missing pieces are many. To introduce a concept so incredibly thick with information should be illustrated better, use examples of companies which currently implement the topics discussed in the book, and use the technology discussed to create more visually appealing figures and boxes. These figures and boxes are a secondary method of learning and reinforce the text. If the illustrations are bad, and the explanation is not great, you have just lost your reader.

Learners need to relate the information to real live experiences or to known companies if the information is to be absorbed appropriately. I did not read many well-known companies identified in this text. The information is flat which creates a very boring book to read - a book that contains a tremendous amount of information that is difficult to digest.

Moreover, I found the book very frustrating to read. I threw it down a couple times but then picked it back up and tried again to understand the concepts. Aside from the grammatical and punctuation errors, the authors repeat themselves on occassion and use way to many bulletted lists when making their point. I don't want to read a bunch of bulleted lists. This book reminds me of a rough draft that somehow made it into print without going through review.

I gave this book only one star because of the attempt made to disseminate the informaiton. I think the authors could do a whole lot better if they worked with a creative team to capture a more innovative way to capture and sustain the reader's attention. The book needs to be re-vamped by a publisher/editor who can add reader interest into the topics. If you are an insomniac, this book's for you.

For professors considering using this book in the future, kindly think again. Find another book with does not let your students down.

This book is written by two academics primarily for classroom use. But, it still has value for practitioners. It provides a wide coverage of KM research findings. The first three chapters cover the theory underlying KM practice (of considerable value for practitioners). The authors also cover knowledge creation, capturing techniques, codification, transfer, and data mining.

This book is well worth the investment of your time.

Michael Beitler, Ph.D

Author of "Strategic Organizational Learning"

This isn't a bad textbook, I just find it repetitive and therefore really dull. The chapters average about 30 pages and I feel that they could be edited down to about half that. I have found that just reading the end of chapter review pages and my instructor's power points give me plenty of information. I liken trying to read the chapters straight through to poisoning yourself with narcolepsy. It's the perfect cure for insomnia.

This book isn't straight forward, lots of redundancies in it. It mixes computer science with organizational behavior and operation and production management : confusing !

this book was in great condition an a great price...seller was speedy with delivery....thank you very much!!!

Unfortunately we used this book for a graduate-level Knowledge Management class. In my opinion, there was little information that could be applied in the real world. I'd venture to say that nobody with actual IT application management or development experience was involved in the writing of the book.