Knowledge Ecosystem

An extension of knowledge management ideas, a knowledge ecosystem fosters the dynamic evolution of knowledge interactions between entities. This bottom-up approach seeks to provide a more resilient approach (for more details, see March 1998). Within certain contexts (e.g., turbulent environments), top-down knowledge management is viewed as indeterminate; hence the intention of creating a knowledge ecosystem to improve decision-making and innovation through improved evolutionary networks of collaboration.

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In contrast to directive management efforts that attempt either to manage or direct outcomes, knowledge ecosystems espouse that knowledge strategies should focus more on enabling self-organization in response to changing environments (for more details, see Clippinger 1999). The suitability between knowledge and problems confronted defines the degree of "fitness" of a knowledge ecosystem. Articles discussing such ecological approaches typically incorporate elements of complex adaptive systems theory. The United Nations, W3C, Canadian Government, and several academic institutions have prototyped and employed knowledge ecosystems for various purposes (see References below).

References

• Building an Ecosystem of Policy-Related Knowledge
• Clippinger, J. (ed.). The Biology of Business: Decoding the Natural Laws of Enterprise, San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 1999.
• Designing a Knowledge Ecosystem on SSRN
• Knowledge Ecosystems and National Security
• March, James G. A Primer on Decision-Making. (1994)
• March, James G. The Pursuit of Organizational Intelligence. (1998)
• Simulation-Based Engineering of Complex Systems
• The Research Laboratory: Silicon Valley's Knowledge Ecosystem
• Towards an Integrated Knowledge Ecosystem: A Research Strategy
• W3C Ontology Working Group: Knowledge Ecosystem Task Force Proposal
• What Is a Knowledge Ecosystem?