When Knowledge is the Critical Resource, Knowledge Management is the Critical Task

Abstract

The author argues that the increasing centrality of technology and other forms of knowledge to competitiveness induces long-run changes in both operations managementl and engineering management. Those emergent trends in practice are paralleled by changes in academia, in both teaching and research. The author further argues that in several domains of management practice, the 'public good' nature of knowledge undermines the effectiveness of both market and planning models of organization, reinforcing the role of cooperation as a third mode of coordination. It is concluded that researching the essential issues posed by such a change requires a paradigm shift from management science and operations research formulations to more qualitative, less analytical, and more inductive approaches.