Information vs. Knowledge:  Prospects for a Capable Population in the 21st Century

 

Chuck Lanigan

 

For Presentation and Discussion 7:30 PM, September 12th 2006, Unitarian Church  Shadyside, corner of Ellsworth and Morewood, Pittsburgh PA.

 

Overview:


Over thirty years ago Peter Drucker coined the phrase knowledge worker to describe employees who add value to organizations by interpreting and synthesizing information to create new ways to define and solve problems. The phrase is used often nowadays in the context of the global knowledge economy. In her 1988 book In the Age of the Smart Machine Shoshana Zuboff described a shift in the tasks that workers perform from acting on materials and with people to primarily interacting with, interpreting and communicating information in a meaningful fashion. More recently, writers such as the late Neil Postman have written about how information technology and mass media have changed the type and quality of discourse in our society

Companies and organizations are reaching a point of diminishing returns from their investment in information technology and computing tools. As the debacle surrounding Hurricane Katrina and other recent events show, the benefits offered by information and related technologies often end up being betrayed by the failure of human decision-making, critical-thinking and communication. Recent articles in CIO Magazine and other publications point to a lack of appropriate skills in the emerging workforce for knowledge work.

 

Several years ago as a representative on a panel sponsored by Catalyst Connection of Southwestern Pennsylvania, I insisted that proper preparation for workers and students coming out of school included more than technical proficiency in the latest technology du jour. For this I was labeled the "humanities guy". It’s a label I wore proudly.


For September 12th I would like to present some background and observations based on my academic interests and industry experience on this topic and discuss the following with the group.

  • How has the nature of work evolved from the industrial revolution to the present knowledge economy? 
  • What do we mean by the global knowledge economy and knowledge workers? Who are the main participants and beneficiaries in this type of work?
  • What types of intellectual and other tasks do knowledge workers perform?
  • How do we (and do we not) equip workers and citizens with the skills to participate successfully and mindfully a society characterized more and more by electronic means of communication and the collection and sharing of information?
  • What are the real benefits, implications and liabilities of the Internet and related technology (e.g., virtual networking sites such as MySpace and blogs) in promoting the sharing of knowledge and understanding across and within organizations, cultures and subcultures?


About the Presenter:


Chuck Lanigan has worked as a knowledge management consultant for over eight years developing workflow and collaborative computing applications. He earned his Master’s Degree in Instructional Design & Technology from the University of Pittsburgh with a focus on literacy, critical thinking and computer-mediated work. His experience includes serving on the IT Workforce Education board at Catalyst Connection of Western Pennsylvania and teaching at the University of Pittsburgh College of Business Administration (CBA), Katz Business School Center for Executive Education (CEE), Penn State University Outreach and Carnegie Mellon University. He has made presentations on collaboration and knowledge-sharing to the Pittsburgh chapter of the Project Management Institute (PMI), the Pittsburgh Technology Council and the Pennsylvania Technical Assistance Program (PENNTAP). He is currently working on a book on collaboration and knowledge-sharing in the workplace

 

Web Site:  http://waysofknowing.home.comcast.net

 

Some Related Reading:

 

Books

 

Drucker, Peter, The Age of Social Transformation, The Atlantic Monthly, 1994
Postman, Neil, Building a Bridge to the 18th Century; How the Past Can Improve Our Future, Vintage Books, 1999
Resnick, L., Education and Learning to Think, 1987
Zuboff, Shoshana, In the Age of the Smart Machine: The Future of Work and Power, Basic Books, 1988

Presenter's Web Site:

 

Comparative Benchmarking of IT and Knowledge Worker Skills (PDF of whitepaper written for the IT Workforce Education board)

Education and Training for Knowledge Workers (Text of 2002 presentation to CMU Professional Writing students in PDF format)

PRKMC Panel Discussion Topic: Knowledge Worker Skills and Proficiencies (Presentation notes in HTML)

Students Need More Than Gadgets to Succeed (Opinion piece in HTML)

 

Other  Related Sites:

 

Link to article on blogs in the Financial Times

Link to article on blogs in the Economist

 

Charlotte's WebPage (An excellent cautionary essay on computer-mediated experience in the classroom by Lowell Monke in Orion Magazine)

Developing a Capable Population  at the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures & Commerce in the UK