Knowledge Leadership: Innovating our Future

Prof.Dr.Aung Tun Thet

Knowledge

• Hot topic• Intellectual capital • ‘Hidden assets' • Value creation

New Economic World Order

• Intellectual not financial capital• Profound changes in managing most precious

resource - human talent

Management Concepts

• Evolving • From Leading (and being led) • To Navigation and networking • Not traditional command-and-control

Modern Management

• Beyond information technology• Not fear speed of change• Embrace learning

Effective Management

• Not having most knowledge• Knowing how to use it

Leadership

• More art than science• Return-on-leadership (ROL)• Innovation competence• Measure performance

Knowledge Economy

• Focus upon and manage knowledge - individual and collective

• Multiplier effect • More shared more grow• New style of leadership behaviour

Knowledge Economy

• Agricultural, industrial and information age: linear, competitive, market-share oriented management

• Intangible variables: intellectual capital, alliances/partnering, and global communications - both human and technical

Leadership Differ in Knowledge Economy

Today

• Connections made between isolated elements• Innovation fostered by information gathered from

new connections

Today

• Insights gained from other disciplines or places• Active, collegial networks • Fluid, open boundaries• Innovation from circles of exchange• Information not accumulated or stored but created

21st Century Leadership

• More vision and visibility• Not learned behaviours• Behaviours demonstrate impact

21st Century

• Knowledge obsolesce accelerate• ‘Digital Divide’ - gap between “haves” and “have

nots”• Human (vs. information or technology) agenda place

emphasis on all people and all cultures

21st Century

• Real-time learning critical • Yesterday’s leaders focus on ‘leading’ • Tomorrow’s leaders local, national, regional and

international statesmen (and women)• Effectively balance economics, education and

environment

Seven Cs of Knowledge Leadership

7 Cs

1. Context

2. Competence

3. Culture

4. Communities

5. Conversations and Common Language

6. Communications

7. Coaching

1. Context

• New Human Capital orientation • Performance metrics dynamic • Measure intangibles• Organizational structures networked • Self-managing knowledge workers

1. Context

• Processes transcend organization boundaries• Link all stakeholders into strategic innovation

system• Information technology for knowledge processing

1. Context

• Vision • “Although the urgent business of everyday life is

important, • it is not as important as the future.”

1. Context

• Leaders inspire passion • Ensure teams stability• Maintain focus and balance• Lead by example, walk-the-talk, and understand

‘whole’• Leverage talents

2. Competence

• 35 organized into following categories: • Direction Setting• Change Leadership• Critical Thinking• Organizational Development and Diversity • Work-Life (Personal/Organization) Balance• Quality, Knowledge and Innovation

Leadership

• Impossible to teach• Learn, experience and supported

Five-step learning process

• Step One - Competency Profile • Step Two - Learning Plan• Step Three - Learning Process• Step Four - Re-entry Planning• Step Five - Measurement of Impact

3. Culture

• Values - explicit and implicit • Trust - accountability, integrity, honesty and ethics • Communications - human and technical • Vision - sense of direction, uniqueness, or

aspirations

3. Culture

• Knowledge valued• Engender change, innovation, openness and trust• People recognized and rewarded for knowledge

contribution

3. Culture

• Effective knowledge creation • Flexible, networked organizational structures• Multiple teams• Intensive and purposeful networking• Knowledge-sharing - job rotation, learning events,

effective teaming and comprehensive technology infrastructure

4. Communities

• Convergence of functional perspectives• Common agenda

4. Communities

• HR professionals develop relevant performance measures and use information technology

• Chief Information Officers understand organization structure, motivations of people and cross-boundary processes

4. Communities

• Quality experts building training infrastructures for transfer of knowledge and best practices

• R&D managers involved in business development and reducing cycle time with increased customer interaction

• Finance professionals expand audit capabilities to influence business strategy

4. Communities

• Respect for alternative paradigms• Value created in organization interfaces – “white

space” • Connections between individuals, organizations,

companies

4. Communities

• Communities of Practice - quality circles and networked organizations

• Harness creativity • Promote cross-fertilization for prosperous innovation

4. Communities

• Peers• Common sense of purpose• Natural connections• Ideas originate exchanged• Result in marketable products and services

4. Communities

• Innovation bond diverse constituencies• Knowledge and intellectual capital mechanisms build

synergy• Essence of sustainable organizations• Economies of future

4. Communities

• Leaders collaborate and contribute to success of one another

• Not zero-sum game!

5. Conversations and Common Language

• Innovation language• Heritage, purpose, mission and strategy • Connections made among internal and external

constituencies• Purposeful conversations• Art of structured conversation and dialogue

5. Conversations and Common Language

• Learning and improvement two sides of same coin• Quest for effective learning • Understand and leverage diversity of knowledge,

skills, experiences• ‘Network of conversations’

6. Communications

• Leverage technology• Not always technical• “You do not get a second chance,• to make a first impression” • Simple but not simplistic

6. Communications

• Integrated to leverage human capital• External messages consistent with internal culture,

values and vision• Branding, ethics, direction, success stories, etc. -

conveyed skilfully and on regular basis

6. Communications

• Knowledge-type advertising campaigns: • “Knowledge is powerful medicine” • “Understanding comes with Time”• “Old tradition, new thinking”

6. Communications

• Marketing products and services• Present timely image to external stakeholders • Motivational tool for employees

6. Communications

• Federal Express “The World on Time” • Simple, memorable, substantive and visceral• Right words in right context

6. Communications

• Learning process • Dissemination tool• Tapping into customer knowledge • Distributed learning network of expertise• Intelligence service • Business development• Listening

7. Coaching

• Guided relationship process • Both responsible• Process forward looking, change-oriented and

developmental• Enable success, productivity, revenue growth and

stakeholder value

7. Coaching

• ‘Being’ than ‘Doing’ • Trust, support and shared values• Ability to see contexts not supplying content• Affirms person• Clarify choices• Catalyst for achieving both individual and

organizational purposes

7. Coaching

• Connects inner person (confidence, values, purpose)• With external leadership (articulating vision,

reaching targets, and achieving goals)• Opposite of judging and need for control

7. Coaching

• Effective leaders do not have all the answers• Healthy curiosity• Sense of direction• Standards of excellence • Genuinely value others• ‘Know what the others know’

7. Coaching

• Constantly learning (Kaizen)• Experiment with new ideas • Not afraid to make mistakes• Facilitating process • Navigate through uncharted territory

7. Coaching

• On-the-job learning• Guide own innovation process

Conclusion

New Millennium

• Leadership carry forward not resemble past• Future leadership novel skill-set

Knowledge Leaders

• Understand nature of complex context• Competencies based in experience • Know relationship between:• Motivation (Psychology) of individual• Culture (Sociology) of organization• Value heritage (Anthropology)

7 Cs

1. Context

2. Competence

3. Culture

4. Communities

5. Conversations and Common Language

6. Communications

7. Coaching

Thank You!