Title: The evolving community of knowledge practice: the Ken awakening

Authors: Debra M. Amidon

Addresses: Founder, ENTOVATION International, 2 Reading Avenue, Wilmington, MA 01887, USA

Abstract: The momentum of knowledge management has evolved rapidly. Enterprises are searching for management techniques which reap better results than what was yielded by quality, re-engineering and restructuring efforts. What has emerged is an international community of theorists and practitioners dedicated to shift the management orientation from one of accounting of financial assets to one of measuring and monitoring the intangible assets relevant in a knowledge economy. Indeed, innovation has been redefined according to the prosperous flow of knowledge. This paper traces the evolution of the movement, defines the elements of 5th Generation R&D, positions the material under the rubric of innovation strategy, illustrates some lead practitioners and outlines a prospectus for the future. ||Ken|| represents a cross-cultural term to capture this modern sense of perspective and range of vision.

Keywords: knowledge management; innovation strategy; intangible assets; ken; cross-cultural; community of practice.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTM.1998.002644

International Journal of Technology Management, 1998 Vol.16 No.1/2/3, pp.45-63

Published online: 26 Jun 2003 *

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