Al Capone Does My Shirts

He has an autistic sister called Natalie. They move to an apartment at â€Å"The Rock† after their father is able to work as an electrician at Alcatraz. What follows after are the series of escapades that Moose experiences which exposes him to several scrupulous deals making him compromise his integrity.Moose is intrigued that Al Capone lives in one of the prison cells where he lives and so are the other children. They eagerly pay money to have their clothes laundered by Scarface. He still has connections with other people behind bars of Alcatraz and he is able to help Moose.Moose reasoned in a manner that proves quite helpful in the sense that there is a cognitive behavior that the child manifests through obvious exploring and reconstruction of past events. Most of the children there are receptive to new learnings once new opportunities present themselves.The presence of these dangerous criminals in the midst of children, even if these dangerous elements are locked up, give a sense of inner exhilaration to readers who never know what to expect next. Moos Flanagan himself is witty and funny, which makes his character blend well with the other characters in the story.The family experiences several difficulties as it tries to balance their day revolving around Natalie who is afflicted with autism and their other child.   Thus, there is a strange kind of blending between the children of the prison guards and a story that elicits compassion for a children’s story book. It may seem to be quite heavy on the criminal side of the men in prison, but the author gives us a natural, almost necessary kind of kindness for these men who also manage to show kindness to these people.Delinquent activities is not really a normal process of growing up but it is most of the time an impact of a different kind of peer pressure that young people experiences. Young people have different experiences of puberty and adolescence and this experience is in part influenced thr ough the support systems that surround young people.Most of the time, the family or other support systems would not be able to provide effective support system in terms of development of self-image; young people acquire affirmation through peers and other groups. In their wish to feel that they ‘belong’ to a group they commit deviant behaviors (Juvenile Crime).This means that in general, it is not really a normal process, but rather an impact of the difficulty of the family structures to support young people at this important stage of development towards adulthood. Children act like sponges in terms of imbibing information and acquiring knowledge—a generalization that seems to hold whether they are learning how to speak or how to display emotions.It is not a curse for Moose to be responsible as he is wont to think. It balances with his family and environment so he still grows up well-rounded. It has been mentioned that families who are mentally and physically hea lthy are fundamental to a child's optimal growth and education.The kindness of prisoners melts the hearts of readers as Al Capone himself arranges for the help he is going to give readers. Natalie is brought to other families where she learns to interact like any normal child would do. Even if the daughter of the warden is presented as manipulative, yet the author manages to give him a soft heart for the punishment.Of course, we cannot discount the fact that some children have become more aggressive, which is directly correlated with the escalating prominence of violence among adults. Moose’s father warns him to do good for his sister but Piper, the warden’s daughter makes his life miserable by involving him in a moneymaking scheme to have their schoolmates’ clothes laundered by convicts.Piper even goes to the extent to telling schoolmates that Al Capone, the great gangster, may even be the one to wash their clothes.The story is heart-rending as readers are affo rded a glimpse of the relationship between Moose and his sister. We see the concern he has for his sister and is worth emulating. The setting of the story, even is quite serious for a children’s book prepares young readers for more serious themes as they grow up.Children acquire abilities to aggression more readily through constant exposure because they tend to imitate what they constantly see or read. Without doubt, the story plays a potent role on how children respond to different circumstances that they may have watched, read, or listened to.Oftentimes, the behaviors depicted in this story are extremely aggressive. Yet, this story breaks the belief that children believe that aggression is the only solution to a particular situation they are in.Living in a time and culture in which violence infuses numerous facets of society in both fiction and reality—verbal, visual, overt, and implied—and considering the ubiquity and prevalence of all forms of violence aroun d us, exposure to serious themes through the children’s books evidently casts some negative impact upon children. Yet, this book becomes a compassionate read that makes children want to emulate the kindness shown by the main character, Moose.REFERENCECholdenko, G. (March 30, 2004). Al Capone Does my Shirts. Putnam Juvenile   

Accounts Receivable Crisis

The following criteria will consist of a complete record of all credit amounts which include precise approval and maturity periods, simple debtor background information such as employment position, how they receive money, amount of family members in household, and current place in which they reside. In addition, various documents that shows the exact date in which our establishment physically acquired funds from the patient will also need to be requested. Ill. In order to resolve this problem, a combined effort from all departments within this organization must be implemented.This Includes the Administrative department, the Finance department, the Health Information Management department, as well as the patient. Each department will provide a specific set of functions from various resources to the overall execution of the newly designed plan. L. Administrative department As you may well know, Admission and Registration Is probably the most Important department and is the first line o f defense against this pressing issue. Properly documenting critical patient data, such as insurance information can literally save a inconsiderable amount of money as well as ensure a faster payment.In an effort to reduce employee errors involving insurance changes during this phase of the process, an Increased amount AT training classes well De contacted Tanat would explain in full detail about what the procedures are for checking in a patient and a special session that focuses on proper insurance data collecting. In addition to this, a staff member suggested that a full time individual be utilized on a 24 hour basis. The full time clerk will be responsible for the inspection of all other employees' paperwork to catch any discrepancies that might occur. According to Brown,J.Oily 2000), â€Å"Manual Claim Reviews including utilization and medical reviews are conducted by trained specialists. Staff specialists review specific claims with established program and medical policy, with previously paid claims, and with other information to decide if Medicaid should pay for the services. † Once this task is complete, the data will be passed on to the medical record department for further processing. Lie. Finance department To reduce the number of days that funds remain within Accounts Receivable, an analysis must first be conducted to determine which dollar amounts are either paid or delinquent.This objective typically requires the utilization of an Aging of Accounts Receivable Schedule, which can be retrieved from resources such as financial department records. According to Emerson, P. (n. D. ), â€Å"The accounts receivable schedule is a listing of the customers making up the total accounts receivable balance. Most businesses prepare an accounts receivable schedule at the end of the month. † Accessing this critical data can be quite useful and will give the company a such clearer picture as to why this issue is occurring. Iii.Health Information Manag ement department The Health Information Management department and medical coding personnel's contribution to controlling the Accounts Receivable dilemma consists of decreasing the influx of rejected claims from various insurance providers as well as ensuring that all submitted paperwork from the Administrative department is finalized and thoroughly checked for errors prior to submission. To accomplish these tasks, pertinent information such as reports, medical charts, and patient data should be adhered and referenced. ‘v.

Self Reliance

The Idea of American Self Reliance From the readings of Cooper, Hawthorne, and Emerson you get a coherent understanding of how each writer interpreted the notion of â€Å"American Self Reliance†. Self- Reliance is defined as the dependence on one's own efforts and abilities . There are profound strengths in promoting and practicing the idea of Self-Reliance but also evident weaknesses if the phrase is taken too literally.While making reference to Cooper, Hawthorne and Emerson's readings the following essay will discuss the otion of American Self Reliance as well as an advantage and a disadvantage that can be caused by fully living by its creed. Most of us strive for success and independence. Most take pride in themselves for being able to start from the bottom and emerge on top with no help from others. This is typically interpreted as self reliance. However, it is not always possible to rise to the top by our efforts solely. At times we all need help in succeeding in life or simply bettering ourselves.Emerson's writing persuades you to believe that man alone is completely self sufficient for him r herself. I view this as a disadvantage or weakness in thought and practice because you cannot always believe that you will never need help from anyone or anything. This type of thinking could potentially stagnant one's progress and the reluctance to ask for or accept help would be the cause. Emerson writes â€Å"To believe your own thought, to believe that what is true for you in your private heart, is true for all men, – that is genius†.I disagree with this statement because it can be interpreted negatively or positively and from the reading I deduced that Emerson only presented his statement in a positive cogitation. This quote further influences us to believe that if we feel we can accomplish anything on our own in our hearts then everyone should believe this as well and in turn this is the most intellectual way to think. Unfortunately there a re countless times when what we believe true in our hearts, whether it concerns our capabilities or accomplishments, are in reality not feasible.Certain external or internal factors beyond our control can hinder our progress. Although, with the help of others, and the renouncement of the notion of living trictly by a creed of self- reliance, one could possibly demonstrate success in their thoughtful aspirations regardless of the unknown or potential hindrances that may lie ahead. With help we are able to maneuver and the ability to maneuver in our lives is an advantage and strength. I do not disagree with the complete ideology of self reliance.Emerson writes, â€Å"What I must do, is all that concerns me, not what the people think. It is easy in the world to live after the world's opinion; it is easy in solitude to live after our own; but the great man is he who in the midst of the crowd eeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude†. This quote is powerful because it depicts the strength or advantage (great man) that one can have in life if they focus on self and not worry about the opinions and conformity that society attempts to influence them with.It makes reference to will-power, determination and in solitude, amidst society. Having independent thought no matter what coaxes exists is a vital aspect of self reliance. In Hawthorne's Young Goodman Brown he writes, â€Å"Faith! Faith! cried the husband. Look up to Heaven, and resist the Wicked One! . Despite the fact that Hawthorne does not specifically mention the theory of self reliance in Young Goodman Brown, it is still included metaphorically throughout the text.Here Hawthorne support Emerson's ideology of Self Reliance by showing the strong will and determination Goodman Brown had by sticking to his beliefs and resorting to the higher power (God) in the face of evil and ultimately veering away from the influence of the wicked that surrounded him. After Brown sticks to his beliefs and does not conform to those of his surrounding environment he finds imself alone again in the woods, everything having vanished.Staying committed in your beliefs and views at all times whether in solitude or among others is important and as Hawthorne depicts, can entirely alter a predicament or situation for the better. From the readings I also concluded that self reliance is not only about believing in yourself or staying true to who you are despite the influence of society it is also about not abusing the resources that god has put forth for you to flourish. James Fenimore Cooper writes in The Pioneers, â€Å"It's much better to kill only such as ou want, without wasting your powder and lead, than to be firing into God's creaters in such a wicked manner.But I come out for a bird, and you know the reason why I like small game, Mr. Oliver, and now I have got one I will go home, for I don't like to see these wasty ways that you are all practysing, as if the least thing was not made fo r use, and not to destroy'. Cooper reveals a portion of his interpretation of Self reliance with this excerpt from The Pioneers. The character who speaks these words, Natty Bumppo, was portrayed as the embodiment of American Self-Reliance, who ived free, was strong, determined, self sufficient and lived close to nature.Cooper believed that connection with nature was essential for one's development and ability to be self reliant. In this quote he portrays his distaste for killing god's creations for game and not necessity, which translate into the abuse of our natural resources. Cooper, Hawthorne and Emerson collectively make some great points and examples of American Self Reliance throughout their works. However, it is important to acknowledge that some of their ideologies can serve as strengths as well as potential eaknesses. Cooper, F.J. (2003). The Pioneers. In N. Baym, The Norton Anthology of Literature (pp. 440-449). New York : Norton & Company. Emerson, R. (2003). Self Relianc e. In N. Baym, The Norton Anthology of Literature (pp. 450-467). New York: Norton & Company. Hawthorne, N. (2003). Young Goodman Brown. In N. Baym, The Norton Anthology of Literature (pp. 613-623). New York : Norton & Company. Merriam- Webster. com. (2013, November 3). Retrieved November 3, 2013, from Merriam- Webster: http://www. merriam-webster. com/dictionary/self%20reliance

The sucess of women in engineering programs Essay

The sucess of women in engineering programs - Essay Example Upon the arrival to higher education the female students are recruited and enrolled in the engineering field. There are several established mentoring programs that are offered to the female students so that they start well, maintain the interest, maintain a high Grade Point Average (GPA), remain in the engineering field, graduate successfully from their undergraduate programs, and pursue graduate work in engineering and/or work as engineers. WEPAN (2005) also recognizes the achievements made by women engineers, such as honoring them with The Betty Vetter Award for Research. There are professional organizations and advocate groups (WEPAN, 2005) that offer workshops, lectures, and seminars geared toward the female engineers. This serves as a support system to help them become interested in engineering, maintain them in engineering, and help them become female engineer leaders. They are also given awards in recognition of their active participation in research related topics to women in engineering (WEPAN, 2005). Female engineers are given a variety of tools to support them in their endeavors of becoming and staying in the engineering fields as successful engineers. WEPAN (2005) also has The Women in Engineering Initiative (WIEI) Award that gives recognition to outstanding programs or projects to serve as a model to other institutions. Their selection criteria is that: it serves as a model, shares experiences and materials with other institutions; serves as a model for programming formal pre-college or retention activities/projects; shows improvements in education for women in engineering; and, provides professional guidance to students and/or faculty seeking engineering and science as a career or profession. The Student Outreach Program – Evaluation Tools AWE – Assessing Women in Engineering Project develops assessment instruments and models; assesses program activities to achieve success in the recruiting of women

Porsche Case Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Porsche Case Study - Essay Example Thus, in the mid 1930s, Porsche’s first car, the VW Type 60 was produced, and thereafter a plant dedicated to the production of the Volkswagen was opened in 1938, producing a series of Volkswagen brands such as the VW Beetle (Henderson& Reavis, 2009). Nevertheless, the brand Porsche found its way into the market exactly 3 years after the Second World War had ended, in 1948 where the brand came in form of a branded sports car, and by 1950, Porsche had managed to develop an assembly line that started rolling out its Porsche 356 series brand into the market (Henderson& Reavis, 2009). Another of the Porsche’s brands, which were introduced into the market much later was the Porsche’s Cayenne, the first of its brands outside the sports car market niche in 2003, and then the Panamera sedan which was released in 2005 (Henderson& Reavis, 2009). The major competitors of the Porsche Company brands are the Mercedes, which is closest in the profit margin per unit earning to Porsche, at $59,454 per unit of automobile sold compared to the Porsche’s profit margin of $91,974 per unit (Henderson& Reavis, 2009). The other major competitors to the Porsche brands is the BMW, the Audi and Volkswagen, whose profit margins per unit were much lower compared to those of Porsche. On the other hand, there were a few small competitors in the sports car manufacturing market, such the Maserati, Lamborghini and Ferrari, which could not compete effectively with Porsche, owing to their low production capacity for the sports cars (Henderson& Reavis, 2009). In relation to the competition in the outsourced Engineering services, Lotus Engineering was the major competitor that Porsche Engineering Services (PES) faced (Henderson& Reavis, 2009). The financial position of Porsche Automobile group has been very promising, owing to the fact that the company has been able to

Physiology Assignment about developing human Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Physiology about developing human - Assignment Example blood, will enter into the foetus' and destroy foetal blood cells. The resulting anemia, which results out of destruction of foetal blood cells, that is, haemolytic anemia may be severe enough to cause foetal death. If the foetus survives to be born, this will invariably lead to severe jaundice in the newborn shortly after birth. Several measures may be adopted to prevent this catastrophe. A regular antenatal care and medical supervision in early pregnancy are needed to detect the risk of the blood type incompatibility. If there is a risk, anti-Rh gamma globulins may be injected to the mother at 28 weeks of gestation and within 72 hours after delivery or miscarriage, abortion, or ectopic pregnancy with a mismatched blood type. The foetal health status can be determined in suspected mismatch and isoimmunization by amniocentesis and cordocentesis. Q2. Answer: This is a mathematical model of a bicycle ride on a mountain terrain. This represents a journey. The vertical axes represent the change in the heart rate in beats per minute of the biker as well as the altitude he covers in metres (represented by the blue line). The horizontal axis represents the timeline in minutes. All these parameters were measured from the start of the journey. At the first stage of the journey at time 0, the altitude is just 20+ metres. The heart rate at that point was approximately 100, and that can be taken as the baseline heart rate. As cycling continues, and the biker reaches the base of the mountain, his heart rate gradually increases until he reaches the middle of the altitude to achieve a maximal heart rate of 180. Before that, the biker reaches another lower peak heart rate of 170. The range of maximal heart rates is, hence, 170 to 180.... [ Despite trying hard I could not accommodate in 7 pages, please have a look, if you desire some parts to be compressed, please let me know, I will make the necessary changes. Since it is question and answer, I did not use in-text citations and bibliography]

Emergency Technologies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Emergency Technologies - Essay Example Additionally, the discussion delves on the disadvantages of the same technologies in abetting crimes such as hacking and phising. There are various advantages of computers and the use of computer technology in investigations. For instance, in the determination of crimes, it is essential to conduct forensic investigations. This is to identify their authenticity in order to unearth the evidence. However, despite the numerous benefits of forensics, it also has its disadvantages. On that note, the prevention of crimes such as corporate fraud, intellectual property disputes, phising and contravention of the contract would most likely apply computer technology such as forensics to find the truth. For instance, computer technology through forensics enables the investigators to search and examine hug amount of data fast and efficiently (Moore, 2010). In other words, such technology uses search keywords stored in a hard drive found in different languages. Additionally, computer technology mit igates on cyber crimes because they occur in the internet. Alternatively, the use of forensics is making it easy to recover valuable data that was previously lost and deleted especially in a court of law.

Self-love; do you have to love yourself in order to love others Term Paper

Self-love; do you have to love yourself in order to love others - Term Paper Example Love has been the prescribed remedy for most of the problems that people confront with in their daily life. Love was interpreted by many; we all experience it, share it, long for it; yet know little about what actually love is. Generally, people think that they all have self love. The evidence they find for this belief is that they defend themselves, they enjoy, they work and earn etc. Yet many of them are not able to give an immediate answer to the question whether they love themselves. The reason must be that they have seldom attempted to analyze whether they have self-love, despite, many of them are so familiar with the Christian rule â€Å"love others as you love yourself.† (Mt: 22:39). Question whether we should love ourselves in order to love others is a disputable one. Some are of the opinion that it does not necessarily require self love in order to love others. People of the other view believe that loving others without having self-love is pseudo love because what peo ple find bad with themselves, obviously find more with others. So the love they express toward others is only a short term pretension. Among the both concepts the latter seems to be more justifiable. One of the definitions goes like this; â€Å"Loving self means being real and accepting every aspect of ourselves. We are having a human experience in a unique human body. We are not having an idealistic saintly experience. We are human we get angry, we feel sad, we love, we are selfish, we are generous, we lie, we hide†¦. But we must embrace them all if we want to experience love of self.† (Isha, 2008 p.58). The self love begins with accepting oneself in spite of all the negative factors of one’s character and limitations. An individual can not wait for becoming a perfect character to begin loving himself. In spite of all the bad habits and unworthiness we all have certain virtues within our souls. According to Aristotle’s Nicomachean ethics (Aristotle, Browne &

International Management and Cross-Cultural Competence Essay

International Management and Cross-Cultural Competence - Essay Example Hofstede analyses and defines uniqueness and peculiarities of world cultures and their impact on business relations. The Globe pays a special attention to leadership and organizational practices taken place on the global scale. One common understanding, however, seems to be that it is related to human values one way or the other and, like culture, interest in human values dates back many years. It should go without saying, but corporations consist of people. The Globe project investigates relationships and communication between employees and the global community. However, people are often not objectively rational and, even if they should fit such a model, they should be in there from the start (The Globe Project, 2008). Competition is a challenge to any participating firm. This challenge cannot be taken on by new technology and economic resources alone. Technological innovation and resource allocation (as all organizational activities) are results of human processes. Few leaders poss ess all the attributes, and many nonleaders may possess many or even most of them. Also, the attribute approach gives no guidance as to how much of each characteristic a person should have. The relations of the Global to Hofstede cultural dimensions can be explained by the fact that managers in a firm (as well as other employees), be they leaders or not, have a culture (not only from the national level) which is more or less shared and common. This fact influences, often implicitly, how they manage themselves and other employees, and how they conduct their business, for example, decisions they make about the organization's relationship with its environment and about its strategy. It seems as if culture is having a major effect on the success of the business, somehow. It is common to read statements such as 'the well-run corporations of the world have distinctive cultures that are somehow responsible for their ability to create, implement, and maintain their world leadership positions' However, drawing the conclusion from this that a strong and pervasive culture, directed by formal decree, means business success is not correct, as mentioned previously. At a somewhat dee per level lie the hidden values and assumptions -- the fundamental drives and beliefs behind all decisions and actions. In a business context, this understanding pertains, say, to the importance of listening to peers, what stakeholders to prioritize, the nature of the environment and what learning and progress is all about (Hofstede Cultural Dimensions 2008). In sum, the Globe project uses Hofstede's theory to investigate and analyze current leadership and organizational trends and create a unique vision of modern business culture and human relations. The actual content of the culture and the degree to which it relates to the environment (present or future) seem like the critical variables here, not strength, pervasiveness or direction. People have come to understand that culture is shared, no matter how it is defined. A key issue in discussing culture is then how deep-seated it is. The degree to which a culture is conscious and open rather than nonconscious and covered has implications for how easily a culture can be studied and, in a business management context, be managed. Works Cited The Globe Project. 2008. Hofstede Cultural

Business Law Conference Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Business Law Conference - Research Paper Example icials claimed that if they validated the results they could in turn be sued by a minority community for developing a practice that disadvantaged the minority groups (Supreme Court of the US 2008). The use of disparate treatment as an alternative to disparate impact has to be strongly justified based on evidences and reasonable standards (remedial action). The Judge rejected the claim that the Department did not discriminate but said that the Department was involved in making a decision based on race, which was more like disparate treatment. IF there is a conflict between disparate treatment and disparate impact, then disparate treatment should be avoided based on clear and outright evidences and standards. Title VII, Civil Rights Act of 1964: â€Å"Title VII prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex and national origin. The Civil Rights Act of 1991 (CRA) and the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 amend several sections of Title VII.† By invalidating the results, there was an impermissible disparate impact, which in turn amounted to a racial preference, and was against Title VII. The Court gave a decision in favor of the 12 firefighters claiming that invalidation of their test results was a violation under Title VII. Another judge mentioned that the court failed to provide a clarification between the provisions of disparate impact under Title VII and the equal protection clause under the US Constitution (14th Amendment). Other evidences suggested that there were many flaws in the testing system adopted by New Haven, and if the testing system was better, the results outcome was have not been skewed. The court found the racial decision making adopted by New Haven Department as discriminatory and hence had to reinstate the results. However, it was also found that the testing system adopted by New Haven was improper compared to that of other Departments. However, this was not a basis invalidating the results obtained by the White

Peace Building and Community Development Essay Example for Free

Peace Building and Community Development Essay Community development is a multi-faceted activity that has different ends. It also has different requirements depending on the needs of people inside the community. Development can be achieved through sustaining small and medium businesses, ensuring education for all, managing inclusion and diversity, keeping peace and order, and creating comprehensive disaster management. Through these, a community can be sustainable. Peace and order is an important aspect of community development. Without peace and order, it is impossible to unite the members of the community and enforce other sustainability projects. It will also be difficult for the community to prosper if chaos is widespread. Businesses will perish and investors will be elusive. This shows that peace building is important for a community. According to Maiese (2003), the United Nations defined peace building as an interplay of â€Å"capacity building, reconciliation, and societal transformation†. For other organizations, the short-term goals are more evident—peace building revolves around promoting peace in an immediate situation. In hindsight, despite the contradiction, both definitions are true. They also help create the whole concept of peace building for communities. Peace building can concentrate on resolving current issues between constituents. It involves moderating by authorities or other members of the community to maintain understanding between parties. On the other hand, it is also creating a society where the constituents are educated and transformed so that they do not only know peace but also lives peace. In these terms, education plays an integral role. This creates a community which is not only dependent on intermediaries but with self-regulation of peace as well. In the end, a community filled with peace-loving citizens is a community where peace has been built.

Outlining Career Goals Essay Example for Free

Outlining Career Goals Essay For this unit, you will write a 3-5 page paper (excluding title and reference pages) summarizing what you have learned about your chosen profession so far. It should be double-spaced, 12-point font, and use proper APA citations. Be sure you use the Writing Center and ask your instructor any questions before the assignment is due. See below for details. Incorporating your reading and research thus far in the course, write a 3-5 page paper (APA style), excluding title and reference pages, regarding your chosen profession. Your paper should include the following sections: overview of the profession educational requirements including any relevant certifications or credentials current issues relevant to your profession, summary of your career goals, and where you see yourself in 5 years. Your paper should include an introduction, topic sentence, supporting statements for each paragraph, and a conclusion. You will be graded not only on the content but your writing and format. Please see the project rubric located in the course syllabus. Outlining Career Goals Keyanna Retic Kaplan University Depending upon the size of the facility, location, and specialty, duties of a Medical assistant may vary. Medical assistant specialty is to complete all clinical tasks and administrative tasks in hospitals, physician offices, and other health care clinics. Their duties may include taking a patients vital signs and history, arranging appointments for patients, helping the physician with examinations, following physician orders and administering injections, and preparing blood samples for testing. When obtaining all the patients information, it is important for Medical Assistants to keep the patients information private and is not to be discussed with anyone but other physicians who are involved with the patients. They work in clean environments and relate with the patients, doctors and other medical professionals. Medical assistants are very busy and are required to complete a certain amount of tasks on a daily basis. They usually work 40 hours a week but some may work only part-time. There are different types of Medical Assistants and different duties depending on where the Medical Assistant practices. There are three types of medical assistants: administrative, specialized, and clinical. Administrative medical assistants are basically responsible for organizing all information in the facility. Specialized medical assistants deal with assisting in operating rooms, x-rays, help doctors administer eye care, instruct on contact lens usage, and work in all other types of specialized treatment centers. Clinical medical assistants mainly assist the doctors in the examination room and perform duties such as, drawing blood, administer medication, vital signs, change dressings, prep patients for x-rays and keeping work environment clean. Medical assistants have to learn how to multi-task. Sponsors believe that medical assistants are required to complete duties in a short period of time and learn how to keep up with all patients that they take care of and keep all important information all in the same hour. It may take some time getting used to but it is all a part of becoming a medical assistant. They also have to learn how to respond to the patients and keep in mind of the patients beliefs. There may come a time when medical assistants have to deal with mean and rude patients or even patients that are in a lot of pain, but that is why the medical assistant is there and certified for. Knowing how to deal with certain patients and their pain levels is a big priority in the medical field, so the best thing is to just have a mindset of calm and collective thoughts. Having the love and mindset for this job will make things so much easier and fun. I like anatomy and physiology. I like to read medical information and having the love in the medical field will help things run smooth and happy. On the job training is a faster way to become a medical assistant and it is possible to start a career in medical assisting that way although many people prefer to go through a training program or receive appropriate education. Typical medical assistant training programs lead to a degree or certificate, and last one or two years, respectively (QuinStreet, Inc, 2003-2012). The Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) or the Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES) is medical assistant programs that the medical assistants go through to receive internships at clinics or hospitals. Medical terminology, physiology and anatomy, medical law, ethics, and patient relations are medical courses to be taken upon medical training. Keyboarding, record-keeping, accounting procedures, and insurance processing are office training courses. First aid, laboratory and clinical procedures, and administering medications are taught to students in the program. But although there is no national licensing requirements, depending on the state that the medical assistant decides to work in, medical assistants may have to receive a license to complete certain duties. One of several agencies certifies medical assistants and it is very important to get certified if medical assistants decide to apply for entry level positions. My first priority in starting my career as a medical assistant is to become certified first. Setting goals is one of the best methods that I can do in order to achieve and become a medical assistant. As a medical assistant, a goal that I would like to accomplish is getting involved in activities such as the American Association of Medical Assistants. The AAMA offer education opportunities so that medical assistants can enhance their educational skills and it offers seminars to attend. Getting involved in programs can help lead to career improvements and getting involved is another goal I have set for myself to push me forward. I would also like to become certified in different fields. The more fields I am certified in, the more money I will make and have more job duties to perform. As I move forward in my career, I will make it my goal to push myself harder into taking on high quality task and responsibilities. I will work extra hard to get promoted and receive other opportunities in my field, like becoming office manager. I am prepared to learn new things and enhance my knowledge. If any opportunities come my way, I am open and acceptable to anything. I am willing to put forth effort my success and stay dedicated as a medical assistant. I can see a clear picture of myself in a physician’s office putting my knowledge to work and doing what I love which is helping others. I can see myself advancing and making everyone proud. I know that it will take some time for me to complete all that I need to but in the end it will be worth the wait. In 5 years I hope to settle into an office where I know I will retire from and be happy. But the main thing for me is, that I will go with the flow and according to my facility I work in. I will just have to make wise decisions and keep my head up. I will never settle for less and work really hard and accept everything that I know I deserve. If trials and tribulations get in the way, I know that I will need to keep pushing forward. Medical assistants have to learn how to multi-task. They are required to complete duties in a short period of time and learn how to keep up with all patients that they take care of and keep all important information all in the same hour. It may take some time getting used to but it is all a part of becoming a medical assistant. They also have to learn how to respond to the patients and keep in mind of the patients beliefs. There may come a time when medical assistants have to deal with mean and rude patients or even patients that are in a lot of pain, but that is why the medical assistant is there and certified for. Knowing how to deal with certain patients and their pain levels is a big priority in the medical field, so the best thing is to just have a mindset of calm and collective thoughts. Having the love and mindset for this job will make things so much easier and fun. I like anatomy and physiology. I like to read medical information and having the love in the medical field will help things run smooth and happy. References QuinStreet, Inc. (2003-2012). Healthcare careers: Your information resource for education, training, and schools in the medical and allied healthcare fields. Retrieved from www.health-care-careers.org/medical-assistant-career-training.html Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Handbook, 2012-13 Edition, Medical Assistant, on the Internet at www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/medical-assistants.htm Sponsors. (n.d.). Medical assisting career job and training information. Retrieved from www.awesomelibrary.org/medical-assisting-career.html

The View That Transnational Corporations Are Footloose Economics Essay

The View That Transnational Corporations Are Footloose Economics Essay Introduction For decades, business has existed in almost every country around the world; regardless of what industries those businesses belong to. Whether it is agriculture, finance, food and beverage, service, etc., it all started long before modern businesses were established. As of today, we can see that various corporations exist in every country around the world, regardless of name, type and the size of it. There are about 23,343,821 corporations in the US alone (U.S. Census Bureau, 2002), which still is where the majority of companies come from. These corporations all adopt different structures, all the more complex when they expand their operations to foreign countries. According to Dicken (2007), there are 4 types of TNC organisations which are Multinational, International, Global and Integrated Network. Each type serves different functions for the company; so depending on the businesses the company is involved, the organisation culture and the decision making of top management, companies adopt the one type that suits them the best. Examples of TNC organisations are such as Microsoft, Toyota and Samsung. These TNCs started off as small organisations within their own domestic countries and have been very successful domestically. Once they dominated their domestic markets, market share was no longer sufficient to satisfy their growing desire for increase market share and profits. This resulted in them moving their businesses into foreign markets and expanded their business scope globally, which began with exports and then FDI as they could exploit differences in costs in those countries. We can now see that these TNCs exist not only in a few countries but some even have developed to numerous countries and markets. These transnational corporations are deemed as companies that have supremacy to coordinate and control operations in more than one country, even if it does not own them (Dicken, 2007). According to BBC, TNCs are massive firms that conduct their businesses in several countries and some are wealthier compa red to less developed countries. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/find_out/guides/world/trade/newsid_3099000/3099680.stm) There is an ongoing debate on the issue of whether TNCs are actually that powerful to be considered footloose. Footloose is defined as mobility of companies moving in and out of countries if they find it attractive in terms of market or resources opportunities. Market opportunities are such as consumers, governments regulations, number of competitors, etc. Resource opportunities on the other hand, are like labour costs, raw materials availability and technology accessibility. In this task, a detailed assessment on TNCs and their operations will be done to help determine the fact on whether TNCs are footloose or not. Findings TNCs are Footloose Profits Labour costs TNCs open up operations in foreign countries according to geographic matters which benefits to them. In a certain extent to this, I agree that TNCs are footloose. Based on the example of Nestlà ©, we can assume that TNCs are footloose. Nestlà © was established in Switzerland, a small country where market size is not as large as in US or UK. Today, Nestlà © is one of the leading food and beverage manufacturers in the world (Food Engineering Magazine, 2010). After 5 months of its establishment, it started manufacturing outside of Switzerland. It did not export its products to other countries because of its companys mentality to always produce locally rather than exporting. Thus, it conducted FDI and built manufacturing plants in foreign countries such as US (Appendix 1). As TNCs are capitalist where profit is key for them (Dicken, 2007), TNCs like Nestlà © expanded globally to increase profits, market share and brand equity. Besides market opportunities, Nestlà © also built a plan t in China to take opportunities on its low labour costs in 2007 (Appendix 2). Both points to two broad categories of motivation for companies to engage in transactional operations which are market and asset orientated (Dicken, 2007). Market factors are size, structure and accessibility (Dicken, 2007). Asset factors point to knowledge and skill, wage costs, labour productivity, labour controllability and labour mentality (Dicken, 2007). This applies to Nestlà © due to its company culture, where it hails from Switzerland. Its history points to Nestlà © utilising its strong brand equity and financial structure to negotiate its way into foreign countries (Nestlà ©, 2010), also by offering improvements to infrastructure and job opportunities to the locals. According to IMF (2001), with entrance of TNCs into countries, this will create jobs for unskilled workers as they have difficulty in searching jobs, moving their social class from lower class to middle class. Internal competences Hymer (1960) stated that domestic companies always had advantage over foreign firms as they understood the environment better; but foreign companies could out-compete domestic companies based on firm-specific assets such as firm size, economies of scale, etc (Dicken, 2007). Companies like HSBC started out domestically but soon built up its brand name globally which was used as an advantage to move into countries and compete with their domestic firms. It currently operates in more than 60 countries and is one of the leading banks in the world (Appendix 3). Dunning (1980) suggested that firms like HSBC engaged in transactional production was due to it having ownership-specific advantages not possessed by competitors such as knowledge, technology, etc., where it internalised these advantages and keeping it secret from competitors; also because of location-specific factors, some of these advantages has to be used in certain locations (Dicken, 2007), for example, they have strong human re sources (HSBC Finance, 2009) and can use it to train the labour from China about their operations, transferring knowledge as well as saving labour costs simultaneously. This benefits both HSBC and China as the company gains in terms of cost saving while China earns new knowledge regarding how to conduct banking and utilise it for their domestic banks later. Access to markets WTO is one of the main reasons why TNCs are considered as footloose, such as the deregulation of the financial services in 2001. This is because WTO discovered the benefits outweighed the risk of doing so. By allowing foreign banks to enter domestic markets, it could help strengthen the financial systems in those developing countries, such as by improving the quality and efficiency of financial services. Although domestic banks suffer through the sudden increase of competition, customers gain as banks reduce interest rates and are also provide a wider range of services to customers. These benefits however depended on how it was timed with other financial reformations such as domestic financial deregulation and capital account liberalisation. In the case of the EU, internationalisation can actually support domestic deregulation (Appendix 4). Nevertheless, internationalisation is not fully dependant on other financial reformations; it could still help in stabilising capital flows as we ll as the financial sector of a country. Lastly, governments still need to set up regulations for foreign banks although the industry was deregulated, as this could control their operations to a certain extent. Thus, with all these, the phenomenon of international banks such as HSBC entering different foreign market has been gradually increasing, as long the regulations set for them are complied. Generally, TNCs help foreign countries gain job opportunities and improve growth for industries. For example, the banking industries in less developed countries like Vietnam are getting more competent due to threat of foreign banks entering the country (IFC, 2009). Both domestic banks and government will benefit from this as banks have to improve their services while governments earn the taxes paid by TNCs to boost growth of the country (John Madeley, 2003). Besides liberalisation increasing competition between domestic and foreign firms, competition between governments exists as well. Certain countries around the world loosened their regulations in order to attract foreign investments into the countries (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development UNCTAD, 2008). These countries are mainly developing countries as they require the economy boosts. This is done by lowering tax rates as incentives for TNCs to enter. As governments compete, this inadvertently increases TNCs footloose cause they have choices of entering and exiting countries that are desperately fighting over their entrance. TNCs are NOT Footloose Costs Some empirical studies has classified TNCs are more footloose compared to domestic companies, meaning that they are more prone to leaving an industry compared to a domestic firms of the same size. (Gà ¶rg and Strobl, 2003; Bernard and Sjà ¶holm, 2003; and Van Beveren, 2007) The exit process is slowed down though, by TNCs abundance in sources of income. Added by the fact that TNCs are less knowledgeable about the business environment and have to encounter unexpected barriers, they can afford to make losses initially and try to claw back those losses. Unless the losses are too much and hard to bear; only then these TNCs decide to leave the country. Therefore, it is debatable that TNCs are not as footloose as people think they are. Government Technology

The Benefits Of Study Hall Essay -- Argumentative Persuasive Education

The Benefits Of Study Hall   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Mark, you won’t get anywhere without studying†, His mother use to tell him when he use to waist all his time playing rather that studying. Mark wasn’t such a good student because he wouldn’t spend any time studying, until one day his parents decided to send him to Cushing Academy, a boarding school in the USA, which they knew it was going to improve his study habits and help him being more responsible. But what really amazed his parents was this period of time used to study called â€Å"Study Hall†. Because of its amazing results, preparation for college, and providing responsibility, Study Hall remains as one of the vital qualities Cushing Academy possess and give students an opportunity to lead in higher education.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Study Hall was Mark’s first negative impression of Cushing Academy. He thought this was done in order to keep the students in silence and restrain them from having freedom. After he experienced Study Hall at Cushing for over two months, he could really see the changes and results it produced on him. He realized that he didn’t have to worry about having enough time for his studies. Also, he could see his grades improve every week. One day Mark received a phone call from his mother. Before picking up the phone, the only thought he had in his mind was that he was going to get grounded for his grades or performance at school. He answered the phone and there was his proud mother congratulating him for his wonderful grades he ...

Handwriting: More than Just Ink [Graphology] Essay -- essays research

Handwriting analysis is also known as graphology. Graphology is defined as the study of handwriting, especially as used to infer a person's character. The interest in handwriting as an expression of personality is as old as the practice itself. â€Å"Chinese philosophers have been fascinated with handwriting since ancient times and have been especially interested in the distinct styles of calligraphy produced by different writers† (Sackheim,1990, p. xv-xvi). The first methodical attempts to study handwriting took place in Italy in the beginning of the seventeenth century. Alderisius Prosper published in Bologna a study called Ideographia. Camillo Baldo soon after tried making a formal recording which presented a way for judging the nature of a writer from his letters. These were all lost. But they obviously attracted readers. It became practiced from â€Å"castle to castle† by people trying to make money from handwriting interpretations (Roman, 1952, p.3). The sur prising thing about graphology that is not all about handwriting analysis. â€Å"Graphology is the study of the graphic movement; it is not simply ‘handwriting analysis† (McNichol and Nelson, 1991, p. 23). This is why graphologists can also study doodles, drawings, sculptures, and paintings to infer a person’s character and the physical, mental, and emotional states of the subject. These creations are called brain prints. These reveal who we are, how we think, feel and behave. These mind x-rays are very evident in handwriting since we for the most part don’t think about how we write. Graphology is a good way to loosely judge people, who they truly might be. Whenever we take a write utensil and begin writing, much of what we’re doing comes naturally. This is an unconscious act. But there are times when we’ll change how we write certain letters because we like the other way of writing it more. This is a conscious effort. Both of these can be analyzed. The latter can be analyzed just as well as the former because it is a conscious effort of trying to change unconsciously to a certain trait. The style of the changed letter seems appealing because the characteristic does, unconsciously or consciously (McNichol et al, 1991). There are the fixed traits: IQ, aptitudes, temperament, and identity. And there are unfixed traits: ability... ...tremendously. I found out who the people around me are according to graphology. And it made me pick up on certain characteristics of myself that perhaps I need to change. If I change them in writing, eventually they will change in real life if I make that effort (McNichol et al , 1991) Bibliography Greasley, P. (2000). Handwriting analysis and personality assessment: the creative use of analogy, symbolism, and metaphor. European Psychologist., 5(1), 44-51. Koehler, Derek J., and Roy N. King. "Illusory Correlations in Graphological Inference." Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied Vol. 6.4 (2000): 336-348. Roman, K. (1952). Handwriting: a key to personality. New York: Pantheon Books, Inc. Santoli, O. (1989). How to read handwriting. New York: Crown Publishers, Inc. McNichol, A., & Nelson, J. (1991). Handwriting analysis putting it to work for you. Chicago: Contemporary Books, Inc. Sackheim, K. (1990). Handwriting analysis and the employee selection process. Westport, CT: Quorum Books, Inc. Handwriting: More than Just Ink [Graphology] Essay -- essays research Handwriting analysis is also known as graphology. Graphology is defined as the study of handwriting, especially as used to infer a person's character. The interest in handwriting as an expression of personality is as old as the practice itself. â€Å"Chinese philosophers have been fascinated with handwriting since ancient times and have been especially interested in the distinct styles of calligraphy produced by different writers† (Sackheim,1990, p. xv-xvi). The first methodical attempts to study handwriting took place in Italy in the beginning of the seventeenth century. Alderisius Prosper published in Bologna a study called Ideographia. Camillo Baldo soon after tried making a formal recording which presented a way for judging the nature of a writer from his letters. These were all lost. But they obviously attracted readers. It became practiced from â€Å"castle to castle† by people trying to make money from handwriting interpretations (Roman, 1952, p.3). The sur prising thing about graphology that is not all about handwriting analysis. â€Å"Graphology is the study of the graphic movement; it is not simply ‘handwriting analysis† (McNichol and Nelson, 1991, p. 23). This is why graphologists can also study doodles, drawings, sculptures, and paintings to infer a person’s character and the physical, mental, and emotional states of the subject. These creations are called brain prints. These reveal who we are, how we think, feel and behave. These mind x-rays are very evident in handwriting since we for the most part don’t think about how we write. Graphology is a good way to loosely judge people, who they truly might be. Whenever we take a write utensil and begin writing, much of what we’re doing comes naturally. This is an unconscious act. But there are times when we’ll change how we write certain letters because we like the other way of writing it more. This is a conscious effort. Both of these can be analyzed. The latter can be analyzed just as well as the former because it is a conscious effort of trying to change unconsciously to a certain trait. The style of the changed letter seems appealing because the characteristic does, unconsciously or consciously (McNichol et al, 1991). There are the fixed traits: IQ, aptitudes, temperament, and identity. And there are unfixed traits: ability... ...tremendously. I found out who the people around me are according to graphology. And it made me pick up on certain characteristics of myself that perhaps I need to change. If I change them in writing, eventually they will change in real life if I make that effort (McNichol et al , 1991) Bibliography Greasley, P. (2000). Handwriting analysis and personality assessment: the creative use of analogy, symbolism, and metaphor. European Psychologist., 5(1), 44-51. Koehler, Derek J., and Roy N. King. "Illusory Correlations in Graphological Inference." Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied Vol. 6.4 (2000): 336-348. Roman, K. (1952). Handwriting: a key to personality. New York: Pantheon Books, Inc. Santoli, O. (1989). How to read handwriting. New York: Crown Publishers, Inc. McNichol, A., & Nelson, J. (1991). Handwriting analysis putting it to work for you. Chicago: Contemporary Books, Inc. Sackheim, K. (1990). Handwriting analysis and the employee selection process. Westport, CT: Quorum Books, Inc.

Business Marketing :: GCSE Business Marketing Coursework

Business Marketing Four basic categories define the business market: 1. The commercial market 2. Trade industries 3. Government organizations 4. Institutions Commercial markets include individuals and firms that acquire goods and services to support, directly or indirectly, production of other goods and services. Example: When Lufthansa buys aircraft built by the European consortium Airbus Industry, when Sara Lee purchases wheat to mill into flour for an ingredient in its cakes. Trade industries include retailers or whole sellers that purchase products for resale to others. Example: retail meat markets may carry out bulk purchases of sides of beef and then cut individual pieces for their customers. Institutions include a wide range of organizations, such as hospitals, churches, nursing homes, colleges and universities, museums and not-for-profit organizations. Example: state universities. Government organizations include domestic units of government- federal, state, and local as well as foreign governments. Example: national defense or pollution control. Q2. What are the characteristics of the commercial market? Show how each characteristic affects the marketing strategies of firms serving that market. The commercial market is the largest segment of the business market. It includes all individuals and firms that acquire goods and services to supports directly or indirectly, production of other goods and services. Some products aid in producing another good or service. Others are physically used up in the production of a good or service. Still others contribute to the firms day to day operations. Q3. What are the SIC codes? How do the marketers use these codes? Standard Industries Classification codes are the US government classification system that subsides the business market place into detailed market segments. Businesses use SIC code data for more then segmentation. These codes also help them to estimate the demand and forecast sales. Q4. Contrast organizational buying behavior and consumer purchasing behavior. What are the primary differences and similarities? Business buying behavior takes place with in a formal organization with its budget, costs and profit considerations. The primary differences include excessive organizational steps, considering budget, costs, prioritizing techniques for purchase decision analyses. Where as, consumer-purchasing behavior includes knowledge of business buying situations and is influenced by peers and ads. Q5. Give examples of the effect of industrial market demand of derived demand, volatile demand, joint demand, inventory adjustments, and the accelerator principal. Derived demand: Demand for a business product that results from demand for a consumer product of which it is a component. Example: The growing global demand by food service firms for packs of Heinz ketchup, mustard, mayo, etc. is all driven by consumer’s appetite for their convenience and joy of dining out.

A Critical Review of Knowledge Management as a Management Tool

Journal of Knowledge Management Emerald Article: A critical review of knowledge management as a management tool Maria Martensson Article information: To cite this document: Maria Martensson, (2000),†A critical review of knowledge management as a management tool†, Journal of Knowledge Management, Vol. 4 Iss: 3 pp. 204 – 216 Permanent link to this document: http://dx. doi. org/10. 1108/13673270010350002 Downloaded on: 23-04-2012 References: This document contains references to 78 other documents Citations: This document has been cited by 18 other documentsTo copy this document: [email  protected] om This document has been downloaded 12944 times. Access to this document was granted through an Emerald subscription provided by Shahid University of Beheshti For Authors: If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service. Information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guid elines are available for all. Additional help for authors is available for Emerald subscribers. Please visit www. emeraldinsight. com/authors for more information.About Emerald www. emeraldinsight. om With over forty years' experience, Emerald Group Publishing is a leading independent publisher of global research with impact in business, society, public policy and education. In total, Emerald publishes over 275 journals and more than 130 book series, as well as an extensive range of online products and services. Emerald is both COUNTER 3 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. *Related content and download information correct at time of download.A critical review of knowledge management as a management tool Maria Martensson E Introduction Over the past several years there have been intensive discussions about the importance of knowledge management (KM) within our society. Scholars and observers from disciplines as disparate as sociology, economics, and management science agree that a transformation has occurred  ± â€Å"knowledge† is at centre stage (Davenport et al. , 1998). KM and related strategy concepts are promoted as important and necessary components for organisations to survive and maintain their competitive keenness.It has become necessary for managers and executives to address â€Å"KM† (Goodman and Chinowsky, 1997). KM is considered a prerequisite for higher productivity and flexibility in both the private and the public sectors. McKern (1996) argues that powerful forces are reshaping the economic and business world and many call for a fundamental shift in organisation processes and human resources strategy. The prime forces of change include globalisation, higher degrees of complexity, new technology, increased competition, changing client demands, and changing economic and political st ructures.Organisations are beginning to recognise that technology-based competitive advantages are transient and that the only sustainable competitive advantages they have are their employees (Black and Synan, 1997). This development has forced steep learning curves as organisations struggle to adapt quickly, respond faster, and proactively shape their industries (Allee, 1996). To remain at the forefront and maintain a competitive edge organisations must have a good capacity to retain, develop, organise, and utilise their employee competencies (Gronhaug and Nordhaug, 1992).E The commonality of the above studies is that they all regard knowledge as a critical factor for an organisation's survival. However, knowledge has always been a valuable asset (Chase, 2000) and an important production component, but what is KM? Is it a new way to understand organising and organisations, is it a tool for exploiting knowledge, or is it just This study was supported by the European Commission, the OECD, the Swedish Council for Work Life Research, Nutek, the Swedish Ministry of Trade and Industry, and the Swedish Public Relations Association.The author Maria Martensson is a PhD student in the Stockholm E University School of Business, Stockholm, Sweden. Keywords Knowledge management, Knowledge, Strategy Abstract Over the past several years there have been intensive discussions about the importance of knowledge management within our society. The management of knowledge is promoted as an important and necessary factor for organisational survival and maintenance of competitive strength. To remain at the forefront organisations need a good capacity to retain, develop, organise, and utilise their employees' capabilities.Knowledge and the management of knowledge appear to be regarded as increasingly important features for organisational survival. Explores knowledge management with respect to its content, its definition and domain in theory and practice, its use and implications, and to point out some problems inherent in the concept. The main contribution of this paper is an extensive literature survey on knowledge management. Electronic access The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at http://www. emerald-library. com Journal of Knowledge Management Volume 4 .Number 3 . 2000 . pp. 204 ±216 # MCB University Press . ISSN 1367-3270 04 A critical review of knowledge management as a management tool Maria Martensson E Journal of Knowledge Management Volume 4 . Number 3 . 2000 . 204 ±216 another relabelling in the ceaseless flow of fashionable management concepts? The purpose of this paper is to map the contents given to KM, its definition and domain in theory and practice, its use and implications, and to point out some problems inherent in the concept. To determine what KM is, a review of the literature is necessary. Since it is not feasible to cover all the literature, the aim of the survey is not so much to summarise but to draw some conclusions about KM.The first step was to search for articles in databases using the keyword â€Å"knowledge management† and the combination â€Å"knowledge management† and â€Å"strategy†. The literature review is narrow in the sense that only studies using these keywords were included. Most of the literature in this review is of practical nature rather than theoretical (i. e. knowledgebased theory and competence-based theory). The emergence of KM seems to a great extent to be business driven (Carrillo, 2000). The limited number of keywords probably accounts for the skewed distribution of articles in favour of the practical-oriented articles.Another limitation is related to how the concept of knowledge is regarded. What is found in the literature survey is of course just a fraction of what is written about knowledge; however, these are still the things that are pointed out in the literature. In describing knowledge, it is not my intention to give a comple te overview of the concept; rather, the description of knowledge is used as a tool for describing the concept KM. The paper is organised into three sections. The first section is devoted to the origins and domain of KM. The second describes KM as a tool for management, as an informationhandling tool, and as a strategic tool.In the final section, a critical examination of the concept and its implications is presented. I try to determine whether the concept of KM is a necessary tool for more efficient management, or if it is just â€Å"the emperor in new clothes†. Origins and domain of knowledge management Theoretical origins to knowledge management The field of KM can be seen as an integral part of the broader concept â€Å"intellectual capital† (Roos et al. , 1997). Guthrie (2000) make is the following distinction between KM and â€Å"intellectual capital†  ± KM is about the management of the â€Å"intellectual capital† controlled by the company.However , too often the delineation between the two terms is unclear and seldom adequately addressed (Guthrie, 2000). The problem of the management of knowledge is not new according to Roos et al. (1997). The authors use the concept â€Å"intellectual capital† as an umbrella term. â€Å"Intellectual capital† in Skandia, a major insurance company, is defined as â€Å"the possession of knowledge, applied experience, organisational technology, customer relationships, and professional skills that provide Skandia with a competitive edge in the market† (Edvinsson, 1997).Within this descriptive framework, Skandia, Dow Chemical (Petrash, 1996), and many other companies (e. g. Stewart, 1997) prefer to make an operational distinction between human, organisational, and customer capital. Roos et al. (1997) suggest that â€Å"intellectual capital† can be traced to two streams of thought, strategy and measurement. Within the strategic area, the focus is on studying the creatio n and use of knowledge and the relationship between knowledge and success or value creation.Measurement focuses on the need to develop new information systems, measuring non-financial data alongside the traditional financial ones. The conceptual roots of intellectual capital are depicted in Figure 1. With respect to this study, strategic planning and (operational) management of knowledge are important topics. The paper attempts to explore the creation and use of knowledge and the way it is leveraged into value. Key questions addressed include how is the use of knowledge translated into value? How can it be implemented? What important factors are needed for strategic management planning and implementation?A firm's tangible and intangible resources, which are under the control of the firm's administrative organ (referred to as an organisation's condition in Rutihinda, 1996), may be grouped into two main categories: firm resources and firm capabilities (Grant, 1991). According to Grant (1991), this designation implies that resources are inputs into the production process and the capability of a firm is the capacity, what it can do, as a result of teams of resources working together. 205 A critical review of knowledge management as a management tool Maria Martensson E Journal of Knowledge Management Volume 4 . Number 3 . 000 . 204 ±216 Figure 1 Conceptual roots of intellectual capital A differentiation between intangible and tangible resources, or an equivalent distinction, appears to be logically required. In a study by Johanson et al. (1998), the question of what is meant by intangibles was raised. The authors concluded that there is no generally accepted definition of intangibles. Intangibles can be studied from at least three perspectives (e. g. accounting, statistics, and managerial). The present paper defines intangibles from the perspective of managerial purposes, i. e. management on both the strategic and operational level.To summarise, whereas a classif ication of intangibles in terms of R&D, software, marketing, and training appears to have been the dominant mode ten years ago, today's classification schemes are oriented towards distinguishing between external (customerrelated) and internal structures, on the one hand, and human capital, on the other (e. g. Sveiby, 1997; Roos and Roos, 1997; Petrash, 1996; Skandia, 1995). Influenced by the resource-based theory of the firm (e. g. Penrose), Luwendahl (1997) and Haanes and Luwendahl (1997) have classified a number of intangible resources from a strategic management perspective.Because there appears to be little consensus on the definition of â€Å"resources†, Haanes and Luwendahl refer to Itami (1987). Resources consist of: . . physical, human, and monetary resources that are needed for business operations to eventuate; and information-based resources, such as management skills, technology, consumer information, brand name, reputation, and corporate culture. After further ela boration on the concepts of intangible resources, intangible assets, capabilities, and competencies, Haanes and Luwendahl categorise intangible resources into competence and relational resources.The latter term refers to such intangibles as reputation, relations, and client loyalty, which are conceived of as being fundamental to the performance of the firm. Competence is defined as the ability to perform a given task and exists at both the individual and organisational level. Within the individual sphere, it includes knowledge, skills, and aptitudes; within the organisational sphere, it includes client-specific databases, technology, routines, methods, procedures, and organisational culture. The basic scheme s shown in Figure 2. Luwendahl (1997) takes the division one step further, since he divides competence and relational categories into the subgroups individual and collective, depending on whether the employee or the organisation is accentuated: Scholars of the â€Å"theory of t he firm† have begun to emphasize the sources and conditions of what 206 A critical review of knowledge management as a management tool Maria Martensson E Journal of Knowledge Management Volume 4 . Number 3 . 2000 . 204 ±216 Figure 2 Intangible resources ave been described as â€Å"the organizational advantages†, rather than focus on the causes and consequences of market failure. Typically, researchers see such organizational advantage as acquiring from the particular capabilities organizations have for creating and sharing knowledge (Nahapiet and Ghoshal, 1998). in knowledge creation, storage, and deployment (Roberts, 1998; see also Grant, 1991). A firm's distinctive competence is based on the specialised resources, assets, and skills it possesses, and focuses attention on their optimum utilisation to build competitive advantage and economic wealth (Penrose in Rutihinda, 1996).From the theory of the firm, two basic theories have emerged: resource-based theory and know ledge-based theory. Knowledgebased theory of the firm postulates that knowledge is the only resource that provides sustainable competitive advantage, and, therefore, the firm's attention and decision making should focus primarily on knowledge and the competitive capabilities derived from it (Roberts, 1998). The firm is considered being a knowledge integrating institution. Its role is neither the acquisition nor the creation of organisational knowledge; this is the role and prerequisite of the individual.Knowledge resides in and with individual people, the firm merely integrates the individually owned knowledge by providing structural arrangements of co-ordination and cooperation of specialised knowledge workers. That is, the firm focuses on the organisational processes flowing through these structural arrangements, through which individuals engage Empirical origins to knowledge management DiMattia and Oder (1997) argue that the growth of â€Å"knowledge management† has emerge d from two fundamental shifts: downsizing and technological development.Downsizing During the 1980s, downsizing was the popular strategy to reduce overhead and increase profits; however, the downside to being â€Å"lean and mean† soon became evident (Forbes, 1997). The downsizing strategy resulted in a loss of important knowledge, as employees left and took the knowledge that they had accumulated over the years with them (Piggott, 1997). With time, organisations had come to recognise that they had lost years of valuable information and expertise and were now determined to protect themselves against a recurrence (DiMattia and Oder, 1997).This led management to undertake a â€Å"knowledge management† strategy in an effort to store and retain employee knowledge for the future benefit of the company (Forbes, 1997). Organisations are now trying to use technology and systems to capture the knowledge residing in the minds of their employees, so it can be easily shared within the organisation. When stored, it becomes a 207 A critical review of knowledge management as a management tool Maria Martensson E Journal of Knowledge Management Volume 4 . Number 3 . 2000 . 204 ±216 eusable resource that can provide a wealth of competitive advantages, including enhanced organisational capacities, facilitating output, and lowering costs (Forbes, 1997). Technological development The technological development has heightened the interest in â€Å"knowledge management† through two main sources: the explosive growth of information resources such as the Internet and the accelerating pace of technological change (Hibbard, 1997; Mayo, 1998). The recent IT development has affected both the lives of people and organisations (Mayo, 1998).The continual flow of information leaves us feeling overwhelmed and in a general state of disquietude (e. g. that we are missing important details) (Hibbard, 1997). DiMattia and Oder (1997) postulate that â€Å"knowledge managementâ €  is an attempt to cope with the explosion of information and to capitalise on increased knowledge in the workplace. The emerging technological development enables global sharing of information across platforms and continents (DiMattia and Oder, 1997) and can serve as a tool within an organisation to use knowledge more effectively.Capturing a company's collective expertise in databases can help organisations to â€Å"know what they actually know†, and then marshal and exploit this knowledge in a systematic way (Blake, 1998). The domain of knowledge management An essential part of KM is, of course, knowledge. To map the domains of knowledge, traits of the concept knowledge have been put forward based on the stream of research reviewed. The question of the nature of knowledge is extremely challenging.Although philosophers have been discussing the issue for several hundred years, the search for a formal definition continues (Emery, 1997). The definitions appearing in the lit erature range from studying knowledge from a broad perspective to more sophisticated definitions. The present review has resulted in two definitions of knowledge. Characteristics of knowledge The following taxonomy of knowledge has been expressed in the KM literature: . Knowledge cannot easily be stored (Gopal and Gagnon, 1995). Knowledge is something that resides in people's . . inds rather than in computers (The Banker, 1997). Unlike raw material, knowledge usually is not coded, audited, inventoried, and stacked in a warehouse for employees to use as needed. It is scattered, messy, and easy to lose (Galagan, 1997). Furthermore, Allee (1997a) has defined knowledge in terms of 12 qualities: knowledge is messy; it is self-organising; it seeks community; it travels on language; it is slippery; it likes looseness; it experiments; it does not grow forever; it is a social phenomenon; it evolves organically; it is multi-modal; and it is multi-dimensional.To use the flow of data/informatio n we must develop effective ways to make the input of and access to information easy (Mayo, 1998) and to sort the useful from the useless (Schaefer, 1998). We must develop systems where people are able to â€Å"navigate† effectively. This can be made by storing the information in different databases and make it possible for people to cross-reference and link documents speedily and easily (Mayo, 1998). Information has little value and will not become knowledge until it is processed by the human mind (Ash, 1998).Knowledge involves the processing, creation, or use of information in the mind of the individual (Kirchner, 1997). Although information is not knowledge, it is an important aspect of knowledge. The process begins with facts and data, which are organised and structured to produce general information. The next stage involves organising and filtering this information to meet the requirements of a specific community of users, producing contextual information. Next, individu als assimilate the contextual information and transform it into knowledge.This transformation process is affected by individuals' experiences, attitudes, and the context in which they work. The final stage of the continuum is behaviour; unless information and knowledge lead to an informed decision or action, the whole process becomes invalidated (Infield, 1997). Knowledge should be studied in context. Knowledge is information combined with experience, context, interpretation, reflection, and perspective (Davenport et al. , 1998; Kirchner, 1997; Frappaolo, 208 A critical review of knowledge management as a management tool Maria Martensson EJournal of Knowledge Management Volume 4 . Number 3 . 2000 . 204 ±216 . 1997) that adds a new level of insight (Frappaolo, 1997). Allee (1997b) suggests that knowledge becomes meaningful when it is seen in the larger context of our culture, which evolves out of our beliefs and philosophy. The final characteristic is that knowledge is ineffectual if it is not used. Knowledge is a high-value form of information that is ready to be applied to decisions and actions (Davenport et al. , 1998). Sveiby (1997) has defined it as the capacity to act on information and thereby make it valuable.Knowledge management as a management tool KM is often described as a management tool. More precisely, it is described either as an operational tool or as a strategically focused management tool. Knowledge management as an information handling tool Within the field of KM (Figure 3), knowledge is often regarded as an information handling problem. It deals with the creation, management and exploitation of knowledge. Some of the literature fits into a definition of KM that consists of separate but related stages. The first two stages are invariably linked, both on abstract theoretical grounds and in practice.As the first step in the process, there is acquisition of information. In the second stage, the information is entered into a storage system and organised logically. Almost every definition of knowledge management includes the storage of knowledge (e. g. Yeh et al. , 2000; Blake, 1998, 2000; Mayo, 1998; Anthes, 1998; Cole-Gomolski, 1997a, 1997b, 1998; Symoens, 1998; Laberis, 1998; Nerney, 1997; Ostro, 1997; InfoWorld, 1997; Watson, 1998; LaPlante, 1997; Ash, 1998; DiMattia and Oder, 1997; Hibbard, 1997; Finerty, 1997; Bassi, 1997).KM is about acquisition and storage of workers' knowledge and making information accessible to other employees within the organisation. This is often achieved by using various technologies such as Internet and databases, and is a conversion of tacit knowledge to explicit knowledge (Papows, 1998). Once the information is stored in the various databases, the third stage is initiated. In this stage, the stored information is made accessible to as many employees as possible within the organisation (LaPlante, 1997).It is about distributing it into the hands of the right end users at the right time (Ost ro, 1997) and where it can be of best use (Nerney, 1997). The final stage is about utilisation of information. This process begins with people sharing knowledge by talking and socialising with one another or by exchanging information in digital or analogue form (Laberis, 1998). Tacit and explicit knowledge Another way of defining knowledge is to make a distinction between â€Å"tacit† and â€Å"explicit† knowledge (Polyani, 1966).Nonaka and Takeuchi (1995) make the same point in more precise terms: . Explicit knowledge is documented and public; structured, fixed-content, externalised, and conscious (Duffy, 2000). Explicit knowledge is what can be captured and shared through information technology. . Tacit knowledge resides in the human mind, behaviour, and perception (Duffy, 2000). Tacit knowledge evolves from people's interactions and requires skill and practice. Nonaka and Takeuchi suggest that tacit knowledge is hidden and thus cannot be easily represented via elect ronics.Tacit refers to hunches, intuitions and insights (Guth, 1996), it is personal, undocumented, contextsensitive, dynamically created and derived, internalised and experience-based (Duffy, 2000). Nonaka and Takeuchi mean that knowledge is the product of the interaction of explicit and tacit knowledge. The process of creating knowledge results in a spiralling of knowledge acquisition. It starts with people sharing their internal tacit knowledge by socialising with others or by capturing it in digital or analogue form. Other people then internalise the shared knowledge, and that process creates new knowledge.These people, with the newly created knowledge, then share this knowledge with others, and the process begins again. Hibbard (1997) articulated this process as innovation. 209 A critical review of knowledge management as a management tool Maria Martensson E Journal of Knowledge Management Volume 4 . Number 3 . 2000 . 204 ±216 Figure 3 The stages of knowledge management Knowl edge management as a strategic management tool KM and its implications are frequently discussed at seminars and conferences. The number of companies claiming to work with knowledge management is growing steadily.Several surveys have been conducted to determine how many organisations are working or planning to work with KM (Nerney, 1997; Hibbard and Carrillo, 1998; Cole-Gomolski, 1998). A recurrent problem with these studies is that the concepts (e. g. the use of KM) are seldom defined. This uncertainty has made it difficult to draw the desired inferences from the results of these studies. The surveys are attempts to either implement KM strategies or implement measurement systems on how to measure different intangible assets, or a combination of both. The central idea underlying a strategy is that organisations must adjust their capabilities (i. . their resources and skills) to a constantly changing complex external E environment (Teece, in Gronhaug and Nordhaug, 1992). Gopal and Gag non (1995) put it succinctly when they maintain that effective KM starts with a strategy. Within a KM strategy, knowledge is recognised as an organisation's most valuable and under-used resource and places the intellectual capital at the centre of what an organisation does (Ash, 1998). To start to create a KM strategy, an organisation needs to build systems for capturing and transferring internal knowledge and best practices (Allerton, 1998).The purpose, goal and expected outcomes of an organisation's work with KM are many. For instance, KM can be seen as a way to improve performance (Ostro, 1997; Bassi, 1997), productivity and competitiveness (Maglitta, 1995), a way to improve effective acquisition, sharing and usage of information within organisations (Maglitta, 1995), a tool for improved decision making (People Management, 1998; Cole-Gomolski, 1997a, 1997b), a way to capture best practices (ColeGomolski, 1998), a way to reduce research costs and delays (Maglitta, 1995), and a way o become a more innovative organisation (People Management, 1998; Hibbard, 1997). A study by the American Productivity and Quality Center shows that 89 per cent of the participants in the study said that the core goal for knowledge management is to capture and transfer knowledge and best practices (Allerton, 1998). People Management (1998) reports on a survey in which individuals responsible for implementing KM strategy were interviewed.The results indicated that the main obstacles to implementation were lack of ownership of the problem (64 per cent), lack of time (60 per cent), organisational structure (54 per cent), senior management commitment (46 per cent), rewards and recognition (46 per cent), and an emphasis on individuals rather than on teamwork (45 per cent). Among â€Å"Fortune 1000† companies the main problems with KM projects are a lack of focus and a lot of reinventing the wheel (Coleman, 1998).Based on an extensive multi-firm study by the American Productivity and Quality Center, hurdles to KM include the lack of a commonly held model for knowledge creation and dissemination and the absence of systems or processes designed to support and evaluate the effectiveness of KM (Ostro, 1997). Most firms with a KM system based purely on a technology solution have found that such an approach fails. Though technology may be necessary for KM, it appears never to be sufficient (Warren, 1999; Bassi, 1997).To successfully create and implement a knowledge management strategy, authors have suggested that certain critical elements must be included. The elements I have found to be of particular importance are the following: . the â€Å"so what? † question; . support from top management; . communication; . creativity; . culture and people; . sharing knowledge; . incentives; . time; . evaluation. 210 A critical review of knowledge management as a management tool Maria Martensson E Journal of Knowledge Management Volume 4 . Number 3 . 2000 . 204 ±216 The importance of the â€Å"so what? ‘ questions A KM strategy should be linked to what the organisation is attempting to achieve. It is also important to articulate the purpose of the KM strategy. What benefits does the organisation expect to gain from their work with KM? How will it affect the employees' work? (Klaila, 2000) The importance of support from top management The personnel function should focus on top management to encourage processes that will promote cross-boundary learning and sharing. This includes helping to set up and, possibly, fund knowledge networks, as well as defining and developing the skills of learning from other people (Mayo, 1998).Organisations that have achieved the greatest success in KM are those that have appointed a senior-level executive to assume the mantle of full-time chief knowledge officer (Gopal and Gagnon, 1995). The importance of communication Saunders (in Ash, 1998) found that the missing factor in strategic management texts was com munication. According to the consultants, a large proportion of the organisations failed to implement the strategies because of a lack of communication. Only a few companies designed a â€Å"good† communication plan to follow through on business strategies.After reviewing nearly 200 articles and conference proceedings on data warehousing, Keen (1997) was struck by how little is said about action  ± â€Å"real† people making â€Å"real† decisions to have a â€Å"real† impact. They do not look at how those real people become informed. The importance of creativity As Kao (1997) notes, a good strategy to work with KM issues is not enough. The author describes the link between strategy and creativity. A connection between these two allows organisations to survive in the future.The implications of business creativity will depend upon the type of fusion created between KM and the basic skills of creativity management (Kao, 1997). The importance of culture and people Successful implementation of KM is linked to such entities as culture and people. In a recent study where the importance of people, as opposed to technology and processes, was examined when implementing a KM strategy, 70 per cent reported that employees are the most important factor and 75 per cent reported that there should be an even greater emphasis on people (People Management, 1998).In the view of the best-practice organisations, people and culture are at the heart of creating a successful knowledgebased organisation. Several studies have shown that people and cultural issues are the most difficult problems to resolve, but produce the greatest benefits (People Management, 1998). The biggest challenge for KM is not a technical one  ± it can be integrated into any number of IT systems  ± but a cultural one (Forbes, 1997; Koudsi, 2000). It is the difficult task of overcoming cultural barriers, especially the sentiment that holding information is more aluable than sharin g it (Warren, 1999; Anthes, 1998). This is supported by Hadley Reynolds, at Delphi Group, in Boston who released a study demonstrating that corporate culture was cited by 53 per cent of the respondents as being the biggest obstacle to deploying KM applications (Cole-Gomolski, 1997b). In another study (People Management, 1998), culture was seen by 80 per cent of those surveyed as the biggest obstacle in creating a knowledge-based organisation. The importance of sharing knowledge The ability to share knowledge and collaborate are all too often missing in our organisations (Mayo, 1998).Efforts to deploy KM group-ware are frequently met with employee reluctance to share their expertise (Cole-Gomolski, 1997b). The likely reason for this is that employees are competitive by nature and may be more inclined to hoard than share the knowledge they possess (Forbes, 1997). On the other hand, a better process of sharing knowledge benefits the firm. This is shown in a study of 33 organisations co nducted by the American Productivity and Quality Center (Alter, 1997). Ostro (1997) reports the results of an extensive multi-firm study by the American Productivity and Quality Center.He found that the main reason why knowledge was not being shared was that employees did not realise their experiences would be valuable to others. Mayo (1998) feels that recruiters should look for capabilities to share knowledge with 211 A critical review of knowledge management as a management tool Maria Martensson E Journal of Knowledge Management Volume 4 . Number 3 . 2000 . 204 ±216 new employees, as well as assessing what new knowledge they can bring to an organisation.Part of the introduction process for recruits should involve â€Å"capturing† their knowledge and experience. Although most new employees bring useful specialist experience with them, few people tap this rich reservoir of information. Meanwhile, the introduction should also be about passing on the experience of predecessor s to new employees. Mayo states that: When people leave, the HR department asks for their company car keys and so on. Why not conduct a recruitment interview in reverse to retrieve information? nd that the pivotal role is played by culture; by an unquestioned, even unconscious, code that encourages knowledge sharing and cooperative behaviour (The Banker, 1997). The importance of time It is important to create time and opportunities for people to learn. One successful approach is to create formal learning networks so that the identification and transfer of effective practices become part of the job (Galagan, 1997). The greatest enemies of knowledge sharing are the time that is required to input and access information and the lack of motivation among potential users (Mayo, 1998).The importance of evaluation It is important to create a system for evaluating the attempts that are made to use KM. The evaluation system can range from informal attempts, such as talking to people about how â€Å"best practice† is shared within the firm, or to the use of far more sophisticated tools to measure the outcomes. To summarise, to implement a KM strategy successfully both the creation and the leverage of knowledge must be taken into account. He also points out that there is an unwillingness to trust employees with information.A favourite excuse given by organisations that withhold information is one of â€Å"commercial sensitivity†, which reflects an unwillingness to trust employees with information. Salary surveys are a good example of this. In how many organisations are such data freely available to all interested employees? The importance of incentives One of the most important issues when working on a KM strategy is to create the right incentives for people to share and apply knowledge (The Banker, 1997). The personal reward systems must support the culture of sharing knowledge (Keeler, 2000; Mayo, 1998).To improve this process it is crucial to reward employ ees that contribute their expertise and to make sure employees understand the benefits of KM (ColeGomolski, 1997b). The organisations should ask themselves the following questions: Are the employees receiving signals that encourage the process of sharing knowledge? What criterion is used for promoting staff? Are instances in which the business has benefited from sharing learning publicly celebrated? Are mistakes made that could have been avoided if it had been known that similar errors had happened in the past (Mayo, 1998)?A problem with many reward systems and incentives for sharing knowledge is that useful knowledge comes from relatively low down in the organisation, from people who are not on incentive systems and probably respond much more readily to the feeling that they belong to highly motivated, leading edge, innovative groups of people. This probably means in the Discussion The literature and theories concerning the management of knowledge have grown remarkably during the p ast couple of years. Nevertheless, what is the contribution from KM?Is it business salvation or the â€Å"emperor's new clothes†? Because of downsizing, organisations have been forced to create systems and processes that decrease the dependencies on the knowledge residing within the individuals. To exploit knowledge more efficiently organisations are now trying to codify and store the individual's knowledge, i. e. making tacit knowledge explicit and transposing individual knowledge into organisational knowledge. Those transformation processes have been made possible through the recent and fast development within IT.Because knowledge is largely tacit and individually owned, it is difficult to have charge of and control over the course of knowledge. The literature review suggests that the major contribution from KM concerns the effort to transpose tacit knowledge into explicit information, which 212 A critical review of knowledge management as a management tool Maria Martensson E Journal of Knowledge Management Volume 4 . Number 3 . 2000 . 204 ±216 will lead to greater possibilities to manage and control knowledge effectively. One major issue that has hardly been dealt with and, therefore, n need of further inquiry concerns how this process of translating tacit into explicit knowledge works. The management of knowledge may be examined from two theoretical perspectives. One perspective involves theories where the focus is on the individual's knowledge; the second comprises theories wherein the knowledge itself is the centre of interest. Human capital is defined by Flamholtz (1985) as â€Å"the knowledge, skills and experience of people†. Within human capital theories, the employee is regarded as the bearer of knowledge.Another perspective, in which knowledge is the centre of interest, is the knowledge-based theory of the firm. In such theories, the individual exists but the focus is more on knowledge than the individual. The two perspectives could be described as being either individualistic or holistic. From a holistic view the sum of an organisation is more than the sum of the individuals, whereas from an individualistic view, the sum of an organisation is the sum of the individuals (Hollis, 1994). Within the recent theoretical development (i. e. nowledge-based theories of the firm), the focus has shifted from an individual perspective to an emphasis on knowledge residing in the organisation as a whole, i. e. a holistic approach. Mayo (1998) noted that many companies have been managing knowledge for decades but that few companies, whether global or national, use these disciplines on a regular basis. One problem regarding knowledge and KM is to outline its content and domain. This literature review highlights the need to better clarify what we mean when we are using concepts such as â€Å"knowledge† and â€Å"KM†.Carrillo (2000) argues that one can often find the most diverse labels applied to KM. There are al so those who believe that term to be inconsistent because knowledge as such cannot be managed (Carrillo, 2000). The lack of clearly defined concepts has been explored in closely related areas (Johanson et al. , 1998; Grojer and Johanson, 1998; Power, E 1997). Also the boundaries of KM are fuzzy. To illustrate, what are the differences between â€Å"competitive intelligence† (Fleicher, 1998), â€Å"intellectual capital† and KM? Sometimes knowledge is clearly defined in the original source, but too often it is not.Because of the nature of knowledge, the attainment of a formal definition is unlikely. There is thus a need for clarification of what we are talking about whenever the word â€Å"knowledge† is used. A large bulk of the present review is based on an IT perspective. The focus here is more on creating databases for storing information and making the information available, and thus the literature review focuses mainly on explicit knowledge (Warren, 1999). Th e first part of KM, the storage of information, is the one most often described. This is probably because the storage of information is the first and perhaps the easiest phase of KM.However, what is missing is how this information can be used and translated into knowledge and become a part of the organisation's knowledge base. The ambiguity of the distinction between information and knowledge has been a major source of difficulty and, in many articles, the distinction between information and knowledge is not clearly articulated. Duffy (2000) argues that technology vendors have contributed to this confusion. Every technology that ever had anything to do with digitised information is now a KM product, or even a complete KM solution.Knowledge is often used as something similar to information, but information and knowledge are far from synonymous. Tacit knowledge might have begun as information, but because it is processed by the human mind, it can be translated into explicit knowledge. Explicit knowledge is identical to information; it can be easily stored outside the human mind (e. g. in databases), but nonetheless it cannot be described as knowledge until it has been processed. The impact of KM is a complex field. If KM is used as a strategic tool the outcome is difficult to estimate.The problem to estimate the value of KM remains even if it is used as an operational tool. However, the operative perspective could be considered estimated by the organisation if the tool is used. If it had no value the organisations would not use it. Theoretically, it is easier to determine the value of KM. This is because knowledge, through downsizing, is a scarce resource. Another pertinent topic missing when the value of KM is described in the literature is costs. None of the articles reviewed discussed the connection between the costs in the 213 A critical review of knowledge management as a management toolMaria Martensson E Journal of Knowledge Management Volume 4 . Number 3 . 2000 . 204 ±216 organisation's work and KM. That is, the values created by the management of knowledge are not related to the costs connected to the work. When analysing Roos et al. ‘s (1997, p. 15) model on the conceptual roots of intellectual capital (see Figure 1), we see that all the strategic contributions on knowledge zero in on two essential features: the way knowledge is created and the way it is leveraged into value. Some concepts focus almost exclusively on one point or the other; e. g. he learning organisation concepts mostly examine the mechanism of knowledge development. However, other concepts such as KM are more balanced, focusing on both. The knowledge leverage class is divided into three sub-classes: KM, core competencies, and invisible assets. Likewise, the knowledge development class is divided into three subclasses: learning organisation, conversation management, and innovation. An organisation's work with KM should focus on transposing tacit knowledge into explicit knowledge and see to it that individual knowledge becomes organisational knowledge.This can be explained not only by a need for organisations to better manage knowledge by establishing core competencies for individuals, judging success and performance indicators via recognition of invisible assets, but also for organisations to strive to become an innovative organisation and a learning organisation with a knowledge sharing culture. The final question raised in this paper concerns whether knowledge is always something good? Knowledge is assumed to be generally positive. However, it is untenable to assume that knowledge is always positive and good.Within the framework of knowledgebased theory, it is claimed that the only resource that provides an organisation with sustainable competitive advantages is knowledge. Nonetheless, knowledge as such will not have much value for the organisation in building its competitive advantages since only relevant knowledge can function in such a capacity. To see that the concept of KM will not just vanish as so many other management concepts have done over the years, it is important that KM is not regarded as â€Å"the Jack of all trades†. If this happens, there is the risk that it will probably become â€Å"the master of none†.