Managing Knowledge and Information Systems

Case Study

TPM Tools Ltd. (TPMT) is a 10-year old company based in the UK that exports high-quality, specialised hand tools (e.g. special wrenches, tile cutters, frame saws, etc.) to English- speaking countries in Africa. TPMT has 6 full-time workers in the UK, including three owner-directors, and usually has up to 4 part-time workers whom it employs depending on the level of active business orders, i.e. how many orders it must satisfy in a given time period and how complicated the orders are to fulfil.

The tools to be exported are of high value, which makes them attractive to thieves. The tools can also be heavy, which results in high shipping costs and complicated arrangements, and are often for cutting hard materials, which can result in the tools being classed as dangerous .

TPMT uses agents in 10 of the 15 countries it operates in. The agents are supposed to look after TPMT’s interests in their region. For the five countries with no agent, TPMT makes arrangements to engage with agents as and when they are needed. As well as looking after deliveries and maintaining some stock belonging to TPMT, their agents tell TPMT what the state of the market is and whether customers are satisfied. Unfortunately, information provided by agents is often contradicted when they get direct feedback from customers via email or letter, or on the rare occasions, when directors visit Africa.

TPMT sources most of its tools from 7 regular suppliers. TPMT employees spend most of their time dealing with enquiries from suppliers, customers in Africa, and agents by phone, email and fax. The directors are committed to delivering exactly what customers order, on time, for the agreed price, aiming for customers to return to place future orders. However, directors often find it difficult to get employees to maintain good relationships with customers and agents or to go ‘above and beyond’.

The full-time workers who are not directors typically work for the company for only two years, showing little commitment to the company and leaving after they become skilled in the business sector for other opportunities. This means that there is usually at least one full-time worker who is learning the business; sometimes one or more of the part-time workers have worked casually for TPMT before.

TPMT is too small to support a sales or customer relationship team in any country other than the UK, although the Directors are considering whether more frequent overseas trips might build sales and customer relations.

Task

You are a management consultant that has been assigned to work for TPMT to help develop systems to manage and support knowledge sharing within the organisation to improve business performance. One of the business owners has recently read an article on companies using Web 2.0 technologies to support knowledge management and is keen for you to explore this avenue. She has asked you to produce a briefing document on whether web 2.0 could be used effectively to help address some of the problems the company is facing. Your document should:
1. Identify one of the key Knowledge Management (KM) business problems facing TPMT from the case study. For the problem that you have identified justify why the problem should be addressed to improve business performance.

2. Provide an overview of the characteristics of web 2.0 technologies

3. Identify three of the benefits and three of the challenges of applying web 2.0 technologies to address the type of KM problem you have identified in part 1 of the question. You should use a balance of examples from both practical business situations and academic papers to support your argument and clearly identify connections between KM and use of Web 2.0.

4. Based on your findings in the first three parts of the question, suggest possible options for how the organisation could apply web based tools and knowledge management practices to address the problem you have identified in part 1 of the question. You should take into consideration the following points

• The size of the company, minimal budget, stakeholders and the company operations.

• How the web based tools could be integrated with knowledge management practices

• Clearly state any reasoned assumptions you have made as part of your proposal such as integration with existing systems or approximate costs or budget.