What is Collaborative Systems

Within the last 10 years we have witnessed the appearance and consolidation of a brand- new discipline, that of knowledge management (KM), which has the organization and organizational environment as its primary focus. This discipline seeks to design systems and strategies to make it possible to systematically take advantage of the knowledge generated by and within an organization. Within the current economic situation characterized by extreme competitiveness and market globalization, the correct application of knowledge management offers an important competitive advantage in the business world, one capable of ensuring a company’s ongoing survival and operation. This article seeks to present a brief analysis of this new discipline and, at the same time, offer a useful conceptual framework as a tool for orientation to the literature of the field. In order to accomplish this, first we shall tackle the historical context of the discipline and describe the two main schools which have dominated the theoretical outlook of knowledge management ever since its inception, as well as their evolution. Secondly we shall compile an outline of the fundamental concepts upon which KM is based, and we shall introduce a detailed working definition of knowledge management. Last of all, we shall consider the methodological and pragmatic aspects involved in developing an effective KM program or system within an organization.