Deck 10: Managing Knowledge and Learning

Question 1

An example of Nonaka's (2001)explicit-explicit knowledge creation could be two organizations discussing how they can share knowledge about their products,services,or processes to create new ones.Nonaka refers to this process as ______.

A)socialization
B)internalization
C)articulation
D)combination

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Nonaka (2001)and others applied Polanyi's concept of explicit and tacit knowledge but adapted it for management.How does Nonaka conceptualize the concept of tacit knowledge?

A)the formalized,accessible knowledge that can be thought,communicated and shared
B)the process of learning,forgetting and memorizing what we do and say
C)the underlying personal beliefs,values,and prescriptions that individuals take for granted
D)the knowledge that comes with learning how to do things

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Nonaka (2001)and others applied Polanyi's concept of explicit and tacit knowledge but adapted it for management.How does Nonaka conceptualize the concept of explicit knowledge?

A)the underlying personal beliefs,values,and prescriptions that individuals take for granted
B)the process of learning,forgetting and memorizing what we do and say
C)the formalized,accessible knowledge that can be thought,communicated and shared
D)the knowledge that comes with learning how to do things

Answer 3

C

Question 4

In chapter 10 of your textbook,which one of the following is defined as the creation,dissemination,and transformation of knowledge?

A)communication
B)learning
C)knowledge management
D)teaching

Question 5

Starbuck's (1983)story of the failed calculator manufacturer 'Facit' is an example of ______.

A)how organizational learning can actually be a negative thing for organizations because it makes it do things that it shouldn't
B)how existing knowledge can block the creation of new,and important knowledge
C)how even though technological change happens rapidly,if you are great at what you do,then keep doing it and let the rest take care of itself
D)how calculators are really stupid,boring products

Question 6

A manager listens to his boss telling him of a time he tried to implement change and failed because he did not involve his employees.The manager thinks to himself 'when I implement change I'm going to involve my employees in the decision!' This scenario is an example of Fulop and Rifkin's (1999)concept of ______.

A)learning by doing
B)stories
C)copycatting
D)popular accounts

Question 7

Chapter 10 of your textbook argues that ______ focuses on the existing resources within an organization,whereas ______ focuses on the dynamic development of these resources.

A)knowledge management;learning
B)learning;knowledge management
C)management;leadership
D)knowing;learning

Question 8

A manager tries to implement change without involving his employees and it is a big disaster.He thinks,'next time I'm going to involve my employees in the decision!' This scenario is an example of Fulop and Rifkin's (1999)concept of ______.

A)learning by doing
B)stories
C)stupidity
D)popular accounts

Question 9

According to Polanyi (1983)the knowledge you actually use as you do things,like ride a bike or read a book,is referred to as ______.

A)explicit knowledge
B)tacit knowledge
C)know how
D)procedural knowledge

Question 10

An example of Nonaka's (2001)tacit-explicit knowledge creation could be the organization codifying and writing up procedural and training manuals in order to train new employees.Nonaka refers to this process as ______.

A)socialization
B)internalization
C)articulation
D)combination

Question 11

Which management 'guru' implied that the difference between successful and unsuccessful companies is their ability to learn?

A)Edgar Schein
B)Karl Weick
C)Peter Senge
D)Max Weber

Question 12

According to your textbook,aside from lack of interest,what is the biggest enemy of learning?

A)memory
B)forgetting
C)knowledge
D)ignorance

Question 13

Which one of the following is NOT one of Fulop and Rifkin's (1999)three sources of knowledge identified in your textbook?

A)learning by doing
B)stories
C)playing
D)popular accounts

Question 14

An example of Nonaka's (2001)explicit-tacit knowledge creation could be a manager losing patience with a graduate trainee,who is overwhelmed by his new job,yet the manager was just like the graduate trainee when she started 12 months ago - she forgets that the knowledge she has now was not always there.Nonaka refers to this process as ______.

A)socialization
B)internalization
C)articulation
D)combination

Question 15

According to your textbook,when does organizational learning occur?

A)when the organization becomes more intelligent
B)when everyone in the organization remembers and can recite all the established rules,policies and procedures
C)when there is a change in an organizations culture such as changes in routines,processes,practices,and stories
D)Organizations cannot learn,this is a tricky question.

Question 16

Nonaka (2001)introduced four basic types of knowledge creation: tacit-tacit;tacit-explicit;explicit-tacit;and explicit-explicit.An example of tacit-tacit knowledge creation would be people having a cigarette outside the workplace and informally sharing stories and information about the organization.Nonaka refers to this process as ______.

A)socialization
B)internalization
C)articulation
D)combination

Question 17

A manager attends a really overpriced management seminar on 'how to implement change management' by the latest management gurus 'Clegg,Kornberger and Pitsis'.The manager thinks to himself,'That seminar was great;I learned so much that I'm going to apply it to my work'.This scenario is an example of Fulop and Rifkin's (1999)concept of ______.

A)learning by doing
B)stories
C)money-makers
D)popular accounts

Question 18

According to Polanyi (1983)the knowledge you can actually talk about and reflect upon is referred to as ______.

A)explicit knowledge
B)tacit knowledge
C)know how
D)procedural knowledge

Question 19

In chapter 10 of your textbook,which one of the following is defined as the change in the existing state of knowledge?

A)communication
B)learning
C)knowledge management
D)memory

Question 20

Who coined the term 'we know more than we can tell'?

A)Ikujiro Nonaka
B)Michael Polanyi
C)Plato
D)Gandalf

Question 21

What do Levitt and March (1988)refer to as the process where an organization does something well,learns more about what they do until they become such experts that they can no longer see any limitations to their achievements?

A)the competency trap
B)the success trap
C)the money trap
D)the mouse trap

Question 22

Adapting the notion that learning is what happens when the old and the new clash and create tension,Weick and Westley (1999)identify three areas or metaphors where organizational learning can happen.Which of the following is NOT one of those?

A)humour
B)improvisation
C)games
D)small wins

Question 23

Chapter 10 of your textbook identifies three elements of competencies in a community of practice.These are a sense of joint enterprise,relationships of mutuality,and a shared repertoire.A person learning from,reinforcing,and adding to the culture of their community of practice is an example of ______.

A)sense of joint enterprise
B)relationships of mutuality
C)shared repertoire
D)none of these

Question 24

Weick and Westley (1999)identify three metaphors through which organizational learning can be fostered.One of those is ______,which involves changing things by encouraging people to play around with everyday patterns and to change them slightly.It is not a one-person show but rather a team event that relies upon the instant response,feelings,and feedback of others.

A)disorganization
B)improvisation
C)humour
D)small wins

Question 25

Wenger (1998)argued that it is not in the individual mind,departmental routines,or organizations that learning occurs but that learning is a process that occurs in social learning systems.He refers to this concept as ______.

A)systemic learning
B)communities of practice
C)communicated learning
D)social processes

Question 26

Weick and Westley (1999)identify three metaphors through which organizational learning can be fostered.One of those is ______,which involves testing the space between order and disorder.They happen spontaneously and allow comments and observations that would otherwise be socially unacceptable.

A)jesters
B)improvisation
C)humour
D)small wins

Question 27

Wenger (1998)argues there are three ways of managing boundaries in communities of practice: people,artefacts,and interaction.An organization creates focus groups where customers and sales staff discuss perceptions and expectation of products,sales and service quality.This is an example of using ______ as a way of managing boundaries.

A)artefacts
B)people
C)interaction
D)feedback

Question 28

Chapter 10 of your textbook identifies three elements of competencies in a community of practice.These are a sense of joint enterprise,relationships of mutuality,and a shared repertoire.The need for a person to understand and share what it is that their community is about,and how they can contribute to their community of practice,is an example of ______.

A)a sense of joint enterprise
B)relationships of mutuality
C)a shared repertoire
D)none of these

Question 29

Wenger (1998)argues there are three ways of managing boundaries in communities of practice.Which of the following is NOT one of the three?

A)people
B)artefacts
C)culture
D)interaction

Question 30

Chapter 10 of your textbook identifies three elements of competencies in a community of practice.These are a sense of joint enterprise,relationships of mutuality,and a shared repertoire.The need for a person to be perceived as a trusted member of the community and that he can trust members of his community of practice through interactions with one another is an example of ______.

A)sense of joint enterprise
B)relationships of mutuality
C)shared repertoire
D)all of these

Question 31

Why,according to your textbook,is trust in collaboration critical to learning?

A)because the organization can exploit more from its partner if the partner trusts them
B)because collaborations rely on trust to stay alive
C)because trust ensures learning occurs through an open and relaxed environment where ideas can grow and spread
D)because collaborations rely on trust to stay alive and because trust ensures learning occurs through an open and relaxed environment where ideas can grow and spread

Question 32

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of Levitt and March's (1988)conception of organizational learning?

A)Learning is an organization's adaptation to its environment.
B)Organizations learn by reinforcing what they know to the point that they become experts - then learning becomes an automatic seamless process.
C)Organizations learn by turning past experience into routines.
D)Learning is an organization's adaptation to its environment,and organizations learn by turning past experience into routines.

Question 33

A student discusses an issue in class with his fellow students and teacher;he then goes to the pub with his friends and he tells them about the discussion he had in class today,and they spend an hour or two discussing it again,this time with different perspectives and outcomes.All this is an example of learning through ______.

A)experience
B)communities of practice
C)talking
D)alcohol

Question 34

Argyris and Schön (1978)identified two types of organizational level learning.The process of optimizing skills and acquiring knowledge to resolve an organizational problem is called ______ learning.

A)single loop
B)double loop
C)triple loop
D)problem loop

Question 35

According to Weick and Westley (1999),organizing and learning are antithetical processes,for this reason,they say organizational learning is ______.

A)very important
B)an oxymoron
C)problematic
D)impossible

Question 36

Wenger (1998)argues there are three ways of managing boundaries in communities of practice: people,artefact,and interaction.Different people bound together because they identity themselves with a product - such as a surfer's identify with a surfboard.This is an example of using ______ as a way of managing boundaries.

A)artefacts
B)people
C)interaction
D)interest

Question 37

Tidd and his colleagues (2001)identified three key determinants of successful collaborative learning.Which of the following is NOT one of those?

A)Organizations must have an intent to learn and see the collaboration as a mutual opportunity to learn from one another,rather than an opportunity to steal ideas.
B)All parties involved must ensure transparency and openness in the flow of knowledge between members,if members are distrustful and closed,learning cannot take place.
C)All parties must ensure no member of the collaboration uses the knowledge learned to benefit their own organization.All learning must only occur within,and for,the collaboration.
D)All parties must have the capacity to learn,and adapt that learning into its parent organization,otherwise there is little point in pursuing the collaboration.

Question 38

Argyris and Schön (1978)identified two types of organizational level learning.The process of totally changing one's frame of reference that guides behaviour so that rather than acquiring knowledge,it requires rethinking as to whether the task is beneficial or not,is called ______ learning.

A)single loop
B)double loop
C)triple loop
D)loop the loop

Question 39

Who does your textbook claim were amongst the first researchers to focus on processes of organizational learning,introducing concepts like single and double loop learning?

A)Levitt and March
B)Argyris and Schön
C)Morgan and Bowyer
D)Marks and Spencer

Question 40

Wenger (1998)argues there are three ways of managing boundaries in communities of practice: people,artefact,and interaction.A director of a major organization is asked to sit on the board of a smaller organization.This is an example of using ______ as a way of managing boundaries.

A)artefacts
B)people
C)interaction
D)directors

Question 41

Foucault came up with three terms to delve into the core of why examinations are used to assess people.For example,during this examination,you are probably being watched and assessed,not just by the exam administrator but also your teacher - the exam is more akin to discipline than to learning.Foucault claimed this was the ______ mechanism of exams.

A)visibility
B)individuality
C)disciplinarian
D)case

Question 42

Describe and discuss the three key determinants of collaborative learning identified by Tidd and his colleagues (2001).In your answer be sure to provide clear examples of each.

Question 43

Weick and Westley (1999)identify three metaphors through which organizational learning can be fostered.One of those is ______,which involve changes that on face value appear slight but can have a big impact in terms of learning.

A)micro-learning
B)improvisation
C)humour
D)small wins

Question 44

Brunsson (1998)identifies two main benefits of non-learning organizations;one of those is ______,which refers to the idea that where a learning organization frantically tries to learn things in between the gaps of talk,action and decisions,the non-learning organization keeps doing its job,even when the information or resources are less than acceptable.

A)organizational discretion
B)tolerance of contradiction
C)paradox of learning
D)non-learning

Question 45

What are communities of practice?

Question 46

Doing things more cheaply,quickly,and efficiently through the routinization,standardization,and formalization of what is already known and done is referred to as ______.

A)imitation of knowledge
B)exploration of knowledge
C)exploitation of knowledge
D)formalization of knowledge

Question 47

Describe and discuss Nonaka's (1991)concept of tacit and explicit knowledge and their relationship to knowledge creation.

Question 48

Foucault argues exams like the one you are doing right now serve the three major power functions,which of the following is NOT one of those?

A)visibility
B)individuality
C)subservience
D)case

Question 49

Describe and provide clear examples of Argyris and Schön's (1978)concept of single loop and double loop learning.

Question 50

Foucault came up with three terms to delve into the core of why examinations are used.For example,in the exam you are probably not thinking about the people next to you yet you are being assessed as a group.Foucault claimed this was the ______ mechanism of exams.

A)visibility
B)individuality
C)group norms
D)case

Question 51

What popular assumptions does Brunsson (1998)question in relation to organizational learning?

A)that organizational learning leads to greater efficiency and performance
B)that all learning organizations eventually fail
C)that non-learning is dysfunctional
D)that organizational learning leads to greater efficiency and performance and that non-learning is dysfunctional

Question 52

Foucault came up with three terms to delve into the core of why examinations are used to assess people.For example,after this exam you will be dealt with as a number and with numbers (i.e.your student ID and your grade).You will be assessed,compared,and if necessary corrected.Foucault claimed this was the ______ mechanism of exams.

A)visibility
B)individuality
C)comparative
D)case

Question 53

While the concept of knowledge management is seen as novel and innovative,its practice of transforming employees' tacit knowledge into explicit knowledge owned by the company was the driving force behind the ideas of ______.

A)Elton Mayo
B)Max Weber
C)Fredrick Taylor
D)Mary Joe Hatch

Question 54

Brunsson (1998)identifies two main benefits of non-learning organizations;one of those is ______,which refers to the idea that non-learning organizations are more able to deal with uncertainty than learning ones because they are not constantly realigning themselves to the ever-changing objectives which come with learning.

A)organizational discretion
B)tolerance of contradiction
C)paradox of learning
D)non-learning