CAPÍTULO IV: MARCO PROPOSITIVO
4.2 MERCADEO Y COMERCIALIZACIÓN DEL PLAN DE NEGOCIOS
4.2.14 Impuestos, mecanismos
During the development of a product, many processes take place that shape, create and add value to a product (see figure 22 on p.30). The processes that take place during product development need an environment or product development context to operate within. Moreover, an environment or setting is needed that facilitates the creation and sharing of knowledge. Thus, a foundation is sought that brings together the people that are involved in and execute these product development processes. The Japanese concept of ‘ba’ adopted and elaborated on by Nonaka and Konno (Nonaka and Konno 1998) provides this foundation. As explained and depicted in figure 23 on p.32, information cannot be transformed into knowledge without a context. Ba serves as the context for individual and collective knowledge creation. Ba can be described as a “shared space for emerging relationships” (Nonaka and Konno 1998) in which knowledge is created, shared and utilized. This “shared space” does not need to be physical; although it can be a physical space such as an office, it can also be a virtual space such as a teleconference, and even a mental space such as shared experiences, or any combination of the above (Nonaka and Konno 1998). Ba might be confused with regular human interaction, however, ba differentiates itself from regular human interaction by providing a context for knowledge creation. The main difference between regular interaction and ba is that knowledge resides in ba. This means that knowledge can only be created in ba when individuals that participate in ba interact either among each other or with their environment (Nonaka, Toyama et al. 2000). To describe the interactions that take place in ba, four types of ba are defined: originating ba, which is characterized by individual, face- to-face conversations; dialoguing ba, characterized by collective, face-to-face conversations;
systemizing ba, identified by collective, virtual interactions; and exercising ba, identified by individual, virtual interactions (Nonaka, Toyama et al. 2000). See Figure 29.
Figure 29: Four Types of Ba (Nonaka, Toyama et al. 2000)
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The four types of ba each facilitate different interactions through different media. Firstly, originating ba is the ba in which the process of knowledge creation is initiated. It is the place where individuals share their emotions, feelings, mental models and experiences. This sharing of tacit knowledge can only be accomplished through face-to-face interaction, as this type of interaction is the only type of interaction in which the full spectrum of physical senses and psycho-emotional reactions can be captured (Nonaka, Toyama et al. 2000). In contrast to originating ba, dialoguing or interacting ba is the ba where individuals’ mental models and experiences are converted into common terms and concepts. Dialogue among individuals is key, as it is the main enabler for this conversion (Nonaka and Konno 1998). Nonaka et al. add that “selecting individuals with the right mix of specific knowledge and capabilities is the key to managing knowledge creation in dialoguing ba” (Nonaka, Toyama et al. 2000). Systemizing or cyber ba is the ba where new knowledge (such as knowledge emanated from dialoguing ba) is fused with existing knowledge. Information technology enhances this conversion process by offering a virtual collaborative environment for the creation of systemizing ba (Nonaka and Konno 1998, Nonaka, Toyama et al. 2000). Lastly, exercising ba is the ba where new knowledge, communicated through virtual media, is embodied. This conversion is stimulated by focused training on routinized actions and the use of formal knowledge in real life or simulated applications (Nonaka and Konno 1998).When individuals that participate in ba interact among each other or with their environment, new tacit and/or explicit knowledge is generated. When this knowledge is shared, i.e. it is separated from the ba it is created in, it turns into information which can then be communicated and disseminated
independently from that ba (Nonaka and Konno 1998). The information and knowledge that is generated in each ba can then be used in decision-making processes. See figure 30. Information and knowledge that are generated in the product development context (consisting of different ba) are shared in the form of information and/or this information is stored and managed by an information management system. Through the decision-making process, information is transformed from one state to an altered state of that same information (see chapter 2.3.3). When this transformation and its effects are monitored and evaluated, knowledge can be obtained and converted to become new knowledge. This also emphasizes the pivotal importance of decision-making in product development. Apart from the SECI process explained in the following paragraph, decision-making is believed to be the only process that transforms information into knowledge. Although a lot of knowledge is created in a product development context, this knowledge, when it is extracted from its context, can only be shared in the form of information (because knowledge is context-specific, removing it from the context it is created in automatically turns it into information).
Figure 30 illustrates the flow of information within an information-based product development context. In different ba, information and knowledge are created by organizational members by performing development activities regarding the research and development and realization of a product. This information and knowledge is stored by an information management system in the form of information, and this information is subsequently reused by individuals that need information in order to make decisions or perform other development activities. This information is then transformed through decision-making (see chapter 2.3.3) and potentially turns into knowledge. This knowledge can then be stored in the information management system in the form of information, or it can then be embodied by organizational members and used in daily product development activities. Moreover, it can be converted to create new knowledge (see chapter 4.2.2). In this way, decision-making also enriches the organizational knowledge base (see chapter 5.2). The conversion of knowledge is explained in the following paragraph.
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Figure 30: Flow of information and knowledge generated by PD activitiesPrototype
Test
Empathise
Define
Ideate
ThinkingDesignBuild
Measure
Learn
LeanRealiza�on
Use
Disposal
R&D
Life CycleProductduc�onIntro-
Growth
Maturity/
Stabiliza�on
Product Life Cycle StagesIterate
Problem
Informa�on
Decision
Ac�on
Monitoring
& Evalua�on
Create/
Capture
Use
Store &
Retrieve
Destroy/
Preserve
Informa�onTransforma�on Informa�onLife Cycle
Agile