Knowledge Work As Craft Work
This article makes the distinction between Knowledge Work as a final crafted product vs. the true essence and goal of knowledge work as being the creation of new results. The article states that
"Standardization and reproducibility have been the watchwords of the industrial economy. Shouldn't they also be the watchwords for the knowledge economy?
I think this is an interesting distinction to make, and not something I necessarily agree with. If I am performing work that is new to me (and I am attaining knowledge I would otherwise be deprived of), and if this knowledge is not "new and unique," in the broader spectrum of the world, then is this not knowledge work?
Feel free to check out this article and provide your thoughts.
http://www.mcgeesmusings.net/stories/2002/03/21/KnowledgeWorkAsCraft.html
Comments
Ben,
This is indeed a very interesting article. Thank you for pointing it out.
Your question is also quite interesting. It often comes up when talking about innovation too. If something is new to me, but not to others (of whom I am unaware) is it an innovation? Different folks answer the question differently--it may be more philosophical than real in some ways.
For me, I think that any time I am working with someone and we come up with a novel way of both thinking about and doing something--either a new direction for a business or a new process, maybe large, maybe small--it is an innovation for that particular business.
So think you are right in looking at what is knowledge work for you as an individual. Not only do you come up with something new for you, but you are also refining your knowledge work skills each time you do it.
We don't get a whole lot of huge breakthroughs in one career, but we build a huge bank of skills and experiences that provide the background for the next challenge. And sometimes the next challenge is the one that is the big breakthrough, the something entirely new.
Sarah
Posted by: Sarah Dennison | April 26, 2006 3:04 PM