Effect of Knowledge Management Systems on the performance of knowledge management practices of global and transnational organizations

Organizations are continuously facing complex and dynamic global markets, which threaten their ability to grow, and to survive. In response to this threat organizations generally implement one of two actions. First, the implementation of a global infrastructure that allows developing and deploying Knowledge Management Systems (KMS) that capture and share corporate knowledge to increase competitive advantage. The second action is development of strategic plans that attempt to understand the complexity of dynamic and global markets. For the first action there are positive and negative lessons learned from the domain of artificial intelligence and intelligent systems development. The most critical is the lack of understanding about the development and deployment of these technologies and their impact on the organization (nurturing people with knowledge, redefining their roles, and helping them to unlearn their mental models). Thus, knowledge management systems should not be seen as the sole solution to their problems. Traditional strategic planning approaches have been unsuccessful because these they often apply very precise and accurate models, which are not feasible in such a dynamic environment. Traditionally, corporate growth is measured by a "work/performance" activity instead of a combination of "knowledge management" and "work/performance" activities. These lessons define a set of premises of this research. First, knowledge-based strategies must begin with strategy, not knowledge or technology. Second, strategies need to be linked to organizational performance, success and learning. Third, knowledge must be leveraged in organizations through networks of people who collaborate, not through networks of technology that interconnect. This research intends to contribute to the field by: Presenting a discipline of perceiving organizations as complex social systems that perform two major activities "work/performance" and "knowledge management practices". Presenting a dynamic framework that helps strategic planning to deal with the problem of global corporate evolution from a knowledge management point of view. Presenting a three-tiered taxonomy that addresses a framework to design, development and deployment of knowledge management systems within an organizational context. Describing the significant effects of knowledge management systems on the performance of knowledge management practices of global and transnational organizations.