Definition of knowledge work system

Answer 1

Knowledge Work and Office Automation System

Knowledge work systems (KWS) and office automation systems (OAS) serve the information needs at the knowledge level of the organization. Knowledge work systems aid knowledge workers, whereas office automation systems primary aid data workers (although they are also used extensively by knowledge workers).

In general, knowledge workers are people who hold formal university degrees and who are often members of a recognized profession, like engineers, doctors, lawyers, and science. Their jobs consist primarily of creating new information and knowledge. Knowledge work systems, such as scientific or engineering design workstations, promote the creation of new knowledge and ensure that new knowledge and technical expertise are properly integrated into the business. One example of a KWS is the computer-design system used by Odense Shipyards described in the Window on Management.

Data workers typically have less formal, advanced educational degrees and tend to process rather than create information. They consist primarily of secretaries, Accountants, filing clerks, or managers whose jobs are principally to use, manipulate, or disseminate information. Office automation systems are information technology applications designed to increase the productivity of data workers in the office by supporting the coordinate and communicating activities of the typical office, Office automation systems coordinate diverse information workers, geography units, and functional areas: The systems communicate with customers, suppliers, and other organizations outside the firm, and serve as a clearinghouse for information and knowledge flows.

Typical office automation handle and manage documents (through word processing, desktop publishing, and digital filing), scheduling (through electronic calendars), and communication (through electronic main, voice mail, or videoconferencing). Word processing refers to the software and hardware that creates, edits, formats, stores, and prints documents. Word processing system represent the single most common application of information technology to office work in part because producing documents is what offices are all about. Desktop publishingproduces professional publishing-quality documents by combining output from word processing software with design elements, graphics, and special layout features.

Knowledge workers, who create and produce knowledge, have traditionally utilized office automation technology as well. Now, however, they also have new technologies available to support their role in the firm. Powerful desktop computers called workstations with graphic, analytic, document management, and communications capabilities can pool together information from diverse perspectives and sources both inside and outside the firm. In the engineering field, knowledge work systems might use such tools to run thousands of calculations before designers are satisfied that a specific part is safe. Designers and drafting experts such as those at Odense Shipyards might want to use workstations with 3-D graphics software to visualize a model of a product more fully . Lawyers, in turn, may want to scan thousands of legal finding on their desktop before recommending a strategy.

The role of knowledge work and office automation systems in the firm cannot be underestimated. As the economy shifts from relying on manufactured goods to producing services, knowledge, and information, the productivity of individual firms and the entire economy will increasingly depend on knowledge-level systems. This is one reason knowledge-level systems have been the fastest-growing applications over the last decade and are likely to grow in the future. Knowledge-level systems also have become tied in more closely with the other systems in the firm.