Staying in the Know Harvard Case Solution & Analysis

Recent corporate disasters, for example, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill debacle of BP along with the Libor rate-fixing scandal in the City of London have a common thread. The troubles simmered below the CEO's radar, and by the time the problems were shown, a lot of the damage had been done. As business environments and organizations become more complex, how are executives supposed to keep tabs on what opponents and workers are doing? Although many management experts have presumed that better information systems and much more data are the most promising way forward, authors Davide Nicolini, Maja Korica and Keith Ruddle are skeptical. Rather, they say, the means for senior executives to "stay in the know" is by assembling and keeping what they call a "private knowledge infrastructure." And while information technologies may be part of the personal knowledge infrastructure, the writers say technology is simply one of the parts. For analyzing the challenges of utilizing info and knowledge to keep on top, as settings, the authors note, health care organizations sit in the crossroads between the public and private sectors and are expected to satisfy with multiple, often competing, demands. At times authors argue to answer a straightforward question: How did the CEOs understand what they needed to understand to be able to work at their jobs? While the significance of informational functions to executives is well established, the writers take the thought a step further, claiming that supervisors -and especially senior executives - are only as great at getting and interpreting advice that is essential as their private knowledge infrastructures. Occasionally, the writers argue straightforward things such as speaking to networking or customers with board members are more significant than using advanced tools that are new, provided they are done and with some intent. Choosing when particular elements of a private knowledge infrastructure are suitable depends on the situation. Understanding passing one's private knowledge infrastructure and, when needed, should be routine for executives. The article examines how this may be done.

Staying in the Know case study solution

This is just an excerpt. This case is about LEADERSHIP & MANAGING PEOPLE

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