21st Century Business

Chapter 2. Waves of Learning, Waves of Best Practices

	The essence of knowledge is, having it, to apply it; not having it, to confess your ignorance.
	--Confucius

Expanded overt reliance on knowledge and skills believed to enhance competitive advantages represents one of the most important transformations in the operations of corporations during the past half century. There has also been an enormous increase in the availability and use of data (information), but this trend should not be confused with knowledge, which is the insight and understanding that comes from having data, experience, and organized ways of analyzing information. As organizations became larger and more complex in structure, managers acquired vast quantities of information ...