What is it?
Knowledge mapping is about sense making.The emphasis is on exploration, discovery and identifying opportunities. It transforms complex information and relationships into a coherent structure that is easily understood.
The dissemination of all types of knowledge plays a vital role in the creation of wealth and wellbeing. However, rather like an underground river, the knowledge and expertise of individuals, groups or agencies often remain untapped,
creating gaps between what is known and the effective application of that knowledge.
There are two important elements to this concept:
- The maps themselves – some maps are social network charts, some are yellow pages while others are simply a matrix showing knowledge assets and their relationships. The maps may have a hierarchical, concentric, or chaotic design. Whichever way it is presented, it is a powerful communication tool.
- The method used to create the maps - The process brings key players onto the same page by identifying and correcting different interpretations of the same data or information.
A knowledge map acts as a “snapshot in time”. It helps organisations, alliances and partnerships understand what knowledge they have, where it is housed, how that knowledge flows, where it doubles up and gaps occur.
Why should we map?
- Reveal both tacit and explicit knowledge held within teams and organisations
- Make the macrostructure of a body of information more salient
- Identify knowledge gaps which create barriers to achieving objectives
- Help people with nil or limited prior knowledge have better recall of new information
- Promote more productive interaction with peers in a co-operative work environment
Examples of our work
Due to non-disclosure agreements, many projects are inaccessible to third parties.
DESKTOP RESEARCH
Desktop research is a systematic analysis of relevant information pertaining to your query. Wisdom Exchange analyse public record information and some subscription based databases to provide an easily understood summary.
Desktop research is a secondary research process. It involves the accessing of information from published and at times unpublished sources. We the following areas:
- Health
- Tourism
- Community Development
- Local History and Heritage
- Social Services
When is desktop research appropriate?
As a method of investigation that involves use of predominantly freely-available online sites and documentation, desktop research can be used to gain an overview of a current or topical issue.
It may be used prior to conducting market research, or other quantitative or qualitative research, to identify key issues, inform research questions, or in some cases to select potential research subjects. Desktop research is particularly relevant in situations where:
- academic research literature on the topic is limited
- the most recent and relevant material is likely to be published by
government or commercial organisations
- reference to trends in very rapidly moving fields of study is required,
e.g. ICT, government policy or business analysis
- collation of publicly available but unstructured information is required
and where it is held across diverse organisations
Source: Pru Mitchell, me.edu.au
What are the advantages of desktop research over other forms of research?
- It can be less expensive and less time consuming than original research
- It takes advantage of documentation and research already undertaken, and should add to that body of knowledge on completion
- It is particularly suitable to online publication as most of the sources will be website links which can be hyperlinked, but it can also be produced as a printed report
Source: Pru Mitchell, me.edu.au
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