The Knowing Organization: How Organizations Use Information to Construct Meaning, Create Knowledge, and Make Decisions

by Chun Wei Choo

Integrating new research and examples throughout, the second edition of The Knowing Organization links the broad areas of organizational behavior and information management. It looks at how organizations behave as information-seeking, information-creating, and information-using communities and introduces a unifying framework to show how organizations create meaning, knowledge, and action.

The book provides a model of how organizations use information strategically to adapt to external change and to foster internal growth. This model examines how people and groups within organizations use information to create an identity and a shared context for action and reflection; to develop new knowledge and new capabilities; and to make decisions that commit resources and capabilities to purposeful action. The second edition features new and expanded chapters on information failures, organizational learning, knowledge creation, and information-seeking behavior.

The Knowing Organization , Second Edition, is ideal for graduate courses in information science, organizational behavior, organizational communications, and management information systems.

Genres: Nonfiction

370 pages, Paperback

First published January 8, 1998

Reviews

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really interesting way to think about organizations

[Christopher · Rating 3 out of 5]

OK, like most of the books posted on this shelf, I'll admit to not having read this book cover-to-cover (I generally follow that standard for other books). I only ready the assigned chapters and I really wish the professor had saved me the money by just placing these three chapters on library reserve.

There's nothing wrong with Choo. It's a bit dense and the discussion of how information becomes knowledge feels a bit like a librarian playing around in a philosopher's playground. Eh, it was Masters-level reading. I retained information but lost my opinion once it hit the online class discussion board. I know I should care more, but I don't.

[Grant · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this in grad school, along with his earlier book, 'Web Work', which I think is also excellent. Choo's prose style is artful, especially for an academic textbook. The case studies are particularly lucid and informative, especially the one on the Space Shuttle Challenger Case. Much to learn here about information/knowledge management and pitfalls that can come to organizations for failing to understand these principles.

[acsisna sisna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Currently reading for a class on Information Management in Organizations taught by the University of Toronto Faculty of Information faculty member and author of this book Chun Wei Choo.