Creating a Knowledge Map for the Intranet of Dell Inc - Case Study Example

Creating a Knowledge Map for the Intranet of Dell Inc. 2009 Part I: Developing a Concept Map for Dell Inc. Strategy of the Company Dell Inc., founded in 1984 as Dell Computers in the United States, has been the pioneer in direct selling model and is now the largest selling computer manufacturer in the world. By this business model, Dell can sell customer-configured computers directly to the customers. The customer interface is enhanced by sending servicing personnel at the site, which could be the customer’s home. This is a unique model since all other computer manufacturers sell through retailers hence have no direct interaction with customers. Most of Dell’s orders are generated online and over the phone. Therefore, the website of the company is extremely busy with online sales having grown to $50mn a day by 2000. Over the years, the company has also been taking orders through the telephone and kiosks that the company has opened at various retail locations so that customers can also get a look and feel of the product. The notebook computer has been the flagship product of the company while at the same time desktop computers, servers and printers have been developed as cost and technological complexities have been minimized. The direct selling model and the cost minimization strategies have been based by a very strong and intricate supply chain management through which the company sets in motion the entire product chain only after the customer places the order and pays for the product. The manufacturing process of the company is spread across the world with production sites located in Texas as well as in Ireland, to take care of the European and the Middle Eastern market, as Malaysia to handle customers in Asia (www.dell.com). This build-to-order strategy that has replaced the build-to-stock strategy of the competition requires a complicated knowledge flow across the organization. Inventory and supply chain management needs to be highly mechanized so that information about customer order and configuration is immediately conveyed across the production chain and orders are put across to the vendors of components. Concept Map for Dell Inc. Concept maps have been used since its first formulation by Novak (1977) to represent knowledge flows. These are two-dimensional representations of concepts that are interrelated with each other. Typically used in the domain of education, in order to develop a constructionist mode of learning that enable collaborative learning, it has also been used for the purpose of developing internet websites to make searching for information easier (Carvalho et al, n.d). This would particularly be useful for Dell Inc. since there are various levels of interaction that occur through the product chain between customers, the marketing division, the supply chain, the vendors, dispatch division and the service division. For the purpose of web searches, it is increasingly being used to develop systematic flow of information, knowledge sharing and browsing. It is possible to develop a concept map to enable employees, vendors and customers of Dell to search and receive information systematically. When a user clicks on a particular part of the map, a mobile agent moves through the server to search, filter, rank and bring the information to the user (Carvalho et al, n.d). The concept map for Dell Inc is presented below. Part II: a) Comparison of the Concept map with the Navigation hierarchy In the above concept map, the company’s internet website and the intranet are integrated so that the staff, vendors and customers can retrieve information of their requirement from the same platform. Customers place orders on the internet site and the information is picked up by the marketing division instantly. The intranet site is then activated as orders are placed for components according to the order configuration. The order information is also communicated instantly down the supply chain and to the final assemblers, quality testing, logistics and service divisions. Employees of each of these divisions can retrieve information on the order status on a real-time basis. In the present internet website of Dell, the navigation flows in different hierarchies according to home, small and medium business, public sector and large business. Customer interaction is at various levels for each of the segments. Within each of the segments, customers can configure different product ranges. The retrieval mechanism of the supply chain is not integrated with the website. Hence, following the concept map as presented above would enable a smoother flow of order taking, delivery of configured products and customer service. At each stage, groups can preserve and manage knowledge regarding customer requirements, supply chain bottlenecks, quality standard issues and logistic problems. b) Compare and Contrast of Concept Maps and Topic Maps Concept maps have been mostly used in collaborative learning as well as for other purposes like planning, management and organizational purposes. Strategy maps like the one developed for Dell Inc are used for the purpose of planning and implementation (Sranford, 2003 cited in Proctor and Kim-Phuong, ). This is typically done in the group context by which problem solving and decision making involves group consensus. Multi-disciplinary teams can be supported on the use of technology through the use of concept maps. Creating knowledge maps through concept maps lead to knowledge preservation and knowledge management. In knowledge-based organizations, concept maps can effectively be used to code tacit and explicit knowledge. Tacit knowledge are those that exist in an organization in the form of employment and problem solving skills while explicit knowledge exists in instruction manuals, products brochures, manufacturing blueprints and so on (Nonaka and Taneuchi, 1996). Concept maps can represent the tacit knowledge by which subjective parameters are demonstrated by objective parameters. The intranet website, or the interactive technology that is based on the concept map, optimizes the knowledge by reducing its tacit dimension (Polanyi, 1996) although Dunford (2000, cited in Johannesen, 2001) claims that technology has been able to codify tacit or explicit knowledge only partially. In contrast to concept maps, topic maps are defined as “a class of objects we refer to as knowledge webs. A knowledge web is an interconnected web of ideas that conveys in skeletal form not only a set of ideas but also how those ideas are organized and interrelated” (Fisher, Wandersee and Moody, 2007 cited in Garrido, 2008). Like concept maps, topic maps can be used for the purpose of knowledge management and dissemination within an organization (Carnot, Dunn and Canas, 2001, cited in Garrido, 2008). Both have been developed for and extensively used for the purpose of e-learning but have also been used in other domains like decision-making and planning in organizations. While topic maps have concrete rules to apply interoperability, concept maps are not rule-bound. Topic maps enable contextual-based searches, customized views, information views and deeper understanding of the domain knowledge. Users are provided with a friendly learning environment in which the choice and perspective of the learning environment is customized. A concept map can have an information overload making the retrieval mechanism very complex. Through the topic map, the information is individualized through the use of multiple media, cultural needs, intellectual stages, assessment and differential intelligence. However, here the user adopts a passive role since technology provides with all the alternate visual experiences. On the other hand, concept maps requires the user to acquire knowledge through active participation hence there is more likelihood of the knowledge management process becoming more intense at successive stages of mapping (Kolas, n.d). Thus, both concept maps and topic maps have been used extensively for the purpose of information retrieval and sharing. These allow for conceptualizing an area or gap that requires attention by providing an overview of the general impression of the process (Millard et al, 2005). In the case of decision-making and problem-solving, the concept map can be used to detect areas that require attention. For example, Dell’s business process can be demonstrated as a concept map so that the problem areas in the order-taking, supply chain, logistics and servicing can be identified. Such visualization is essential to make the build-to-order process smooth and free of defects. Works Cited Carvalho, Marco et al (n.d). Enhancing Web Searches from Concept Map-Based Knowledge Models, http://www.ihmc.us/users/acanas/Publications/EnhancedWebSearches/Enhancing%20Web%20Searches%20from%20Concept%20Map-based%20Knowledge%20Models.pdf Novak, J D (1977). A Theory of Education. Cornell University Press Nonaka, I and Takeuchi H (1995). The Knowledge Creating Company. Oxford University Press Polanyi, M (1966). The Tacit Dimension. Routledge and Kegan Paul Ltd, London Johanessen JA et al (2001). Mismanagement of Tacit Knowledge: The Importance of Tacit Knowledge, the danger of information technology and what to do about it. International Journal of Information Management, Vol 21 No 1 Proctor, R W and Kim-Phoung, L Vu (2005). Handbook of Human Factors in Web Design, Routledge Carnot, M J, Dunn B and Canas, A J (2001). Concept Maps vs Web Pages for Informational Searching and browsing, www.ihmc.us/users/acanas/Publications/CMapsVSWebPages.htm Fisher, K M, Wandersee, J H and Moody D (2000). Mapping Biology Knowledge, Kluwer Academic Garrido, Piedad (2004). Topic Maps: An Alternative or Complementary to Concept Maps? http://cmc.ihmc.us/papers/cmc2004-226.pdf Kolas, Line (n.d). Topic Maps in E-Learning: An Ontology Ensuring an Active Student Role as Producer, http://crpit.com/confpapers/CRPITV88Eremin.pdf Millard, D E et al (2005). Mapping the e-learning Assessment Domain: Concept Maps for Orientation and Navigation. http://eprints.ecs.soton.ac.uk/11553/1/elearn2005millard.pdf Read More