Knowledge Worker Paper-Sheila - Essay Example

ry assets of organizations in recent decades, more so, because of the highly competitive nature of the business environment which constantly pushes businesses to engage in the development of strategies, tools and techniques to maximize efficiency. This paper addresses the key questions regarding the concept of knowledge workers and traces their development from a historical context. Moreover, the analysis also examines the functions of knowledge workers as a part of the wider organizational framework through the application of a comparison matrix.

For the purposes of understanding why organizational needs and requirements have been shaped in such a manner where the need to recruit knowledge workers has become so indispensible, it is important to identify a simultaneous rise in the significance of knowledge creation and accumulation in the organization. In current circumstances where competitive standings have prompted organizations to secure technologies and techniques to contribute towards the enhancement of their operations, the acquisition of knowledge remains a top priority.

As noted by Lewis (2004), organizational needs to advance the establishment of knowledge systems can be identified in the development of models and frameworks which support this need. For example, models such as transactive memory systems or TMS contribute towards the knowledge worker spectrum and represent the progress which has been achieved in this regard from the starting point. Additionally, the realm of knowledge acquisition and creation has thus far developed into a system whereby individuals do not essentially comprise of the system but in fact, ‘knowledge worker teams’ are being formed to cope with the rising demand for knowledge acquisition and creation across firms.

Moreover, it also important to identify how the development of the knowledge worker concept has began to integrate itself within the scope of human resource practices. This aspect coincides with the