Games and simulations have been associated with learning for many years, both in academic as well as workplace settings. In looking at the use of games and simulations in knowledge management, a search revealed the following applications:
- Participating in a simulated organization to practice valuing and managing intangible assets (including knowledge) (Bontis & Girardi, 2000).
- Investigating “how co-ordination in…knowledge networks could be improved with the help of information and communication technologies (ICTs)” (Van Laere, De Vreede, G, & Sol, 2006, p. 558).
- Investigating “the effect of knowledge distribution and group structure on [a group’s] performance” (Rulke & Galaskiewicz, 2000, p. 612).
According to Bontis & Garardi (2000), two of the benefits realized from these simulations and games include being able to “rehearse novel approaches to management in a low risk learning environment” (p. 548) and to create mindset changes that improve receptivity to the importance and value of knowledge/intellectual capital in organizations.
According to Van Laere, De Vreede, G, & Sol (2006), games and simulations can help model and diagnose issues in knowledge sharing, uncovering the “qualitative issues in co-ordination [that] can help to improve our understanding of co-ordination and guide interventions in [improved] co-ordination” (p. 568).
According to Rulke & Galaskiewicz (2000), games and simulations can be used to demonstrate how knowledge distribution affects a group’s performance. In their study, Rulke & Galaskiewicz were able to demonstrate that “in general, groups that had broadly distributed knowledge, i.e., groups made up of members who had general knowledge, outperformed groups that had knowledge concentrated in different members, i.e., groups made up of members who had specialized or both specialized and general knowledge. However, the advantage that the former enjoyed over the latter disappeared when groups of specialists or mixed groups had decentralized network structures” (Abstract).
These three examples show how games and simulations can be used to facilitate experiential learning and produce empirical evidence of the value and impact of effective application of KM concepts.
References:
Bontis, N., & Girardi, J. (2000). Teachihng knowledge management and intellectual capital lessons: An empirical examination of the Tango simulation. International Journal of Technology Management, 20(5-8), 545-555.
Rulke, D. L., & Galaskiewicz, J. (2000). Distribution of knowledge, group network structure, and group performance. Management Science, 46(5), 612-625.
Van Laere, J., De Vreede, G, J., & Sol, H. G. (2006). A social simulation-game to explore future co-ordination in knowledge networks at the Amsterdam Police Force. Production Planning & Control, 17(6), 558-568.
- Robin
Copyright Robin Donnan 2008. All Rights Reserved.
http://www.perfassocinc.com
