Pattern based task management has been proposed as a promising approach to work experience reuse in knowledge intensive work environments. While initial work has focused on the conceptualization and development of a generic framework, the process and user interaction of the task pattern lifecycle has not been addressed. In this paper, we introduce task copy augmented by Abstraction Services as a novel approach to facilitate task pattern creation and maintenance in a semi-automatic fashion. Also, we develop the architecture to demonstrate the underlying ideas by leveraging the advantage of semantic technologies.

The concept of knowledge worker has been around for fifty years and many information and communication technologies have been implemented in order to support this type of work. Workplaces have changed substantially, but information is scarce about how actual knowledge workers handle knowledge in their workplaces. This paper presents the results of a joint study of knowledge workers’ workplaces in five organisations representing a diverse sample in terms of size, sector and technology intensity. The results suggest that a number of person types with predominant ways of handling knowledge can be favourably used for designing supportive tools and infrastructures.

Authors: Ernie Ong, Uwe V. Riss, Olaf Grebner, Ying Du

Abstract: Despite the growing importance of knowledge work in today’s organizations, its
support by means of ICT tools is still rather limited. Recent trends in semantic technologies
provide novel approaches for an effective solution to these challenges in terms of semanticbased
task management. However, task management involves the complex interplay of
information and work activities. Thus a semantic task management framework is needed which
supports an adaptable semantic foundation, to meet the challenges of knowledge work, via a set
of task services on the desktop. To this end, we propose the Nepomuk Semantic Task
Management Framework (STMF) as platform for a task-oriented ecosystem for desktop
applications.

Keywords: knowledge work, task management, social semantic desktop

Categories: : H.5.3, K.8.0, M.5

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Authors: Sabrina Bresciani and Martin J. Eppler

Abstract: In recent years the visualization of knowledge has been gaining wider attention:
visualization is said to enhance human capabilities for knowledge intense activities such as
decision making and strategic thinking. However, this is a recent field and still widely
unexplored. Thus far, the advantages of knowledge visualization have been investigated mainly
through anecdotal evidence and qualitative studies. In this paper, we propose an experimental
approach to further comprehend the role of visualization in fostering knowledge sharing. We
plan to compare the elicitation and evaluation processes of groups who are provided (1) with an
optimal visual support, (2) with a sub-optimal visual support, and (3) without any visualization.
The goal of our research is to apply the experimental approach – widely used in studying GSS
(Group Support System) but seldom used in knowledge management – to shed light on the role
of visualization for knowledge-intensive tasks in groups. We report first preliminary results of
an experiment with 56 MBA students and also outline the limitations of our approach.

Keywords: knowledge visualization, collaborative visualization, Group Support Systems,
knowledge work, knowledge sharing

Categories: H.4.3, H.5.3, J.5, M.0

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A Report on a Systems Theory Based Approach to Identify Options
for Higher Knowledge Work Productivity and its Applications in
Business and Public Management

Autors: Sebastian Eschenbach and Bettina Schauer

Abstract: The established methods used for measuring labour productivity originally
designed for the manufacturing sector do not fit the specific characteristics of knowledge
work. We therefore propose a more appropriate understanding of the driving forces behind
knowledge work productivity, focussing on process quality instead of result quantity. In a three
step potential analysis, we assess (1) the knowledge intensity and then (2) current levels of
knowledge work productivity with regard to typical intellectual activities such as information
processing, communication, decision making, and learning, as well as organizational
adaptability. The quality of knowledge work can be increased if the handling of information,
communication and knowledge during these activities occurs in a systematically organised way
instead of arbitrarily. Results of the analysis are then used to (3) propose both short and
medium term action plans for more productive knowledge work.

Keywords: knowledge work, knowledge work productivity, labour productivity

Categories: M.9

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Authors: Sabrina Bresciani and Martin J. Eppler

Abstract: Diagrams are often conceived as static representations. In this paper, by contrast,
we explore how conceptual graphic representations can be used as communicative devices for
knowledge-intense activities in groups. We do so by reviewing and extending existing
cognitive and communicative dimensions and criteria. The aim of our research is to formalize
the description of diagrams used in management discussions, analyzing their communicative
and collaborative functions in order to better use them in knowledge creation and sharing in
teams. We start with reviewing and merging the literature on cognitive and communicative
dimensions and the literature on boundary objects, as well as information visualization, in order
to compile the most relevant dimensions for knowledge creation and sharing in team. Thus, we
cluster those dimensions obtaining eight macro-dimensions. We propose a formal analysis of
diagrams which can be used as a tool for selecting and modifying appropriate visualizations for
different knowledge-intensive activities in teams. An application example illustrates this
approach.

Keywords: diagram, communicative dimensions, cognitive dimensions, visualization,
knowledge visualization, knowledge work

Categories: H.4.3, H.5.3, J.5

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