Using an Agent Based Recommender System to Support Competence Management

Abstract

There are several ways that organizations can support knowledge management (KM). Some are cognitive while others focus more on collaboration in communities. There are also a number of ways to design systems to support KM, but few of these deal with the tacit dimension of knowledge and competence. As several researchers have criticized existing KM systems for being too limited, this study focuses on a different approach, i.e. a technique that thus far had not been used for KM purposes. More specifically, we examined how an agent-based recommender system could be used as a KM system, focusing on competence in use. Based on an extensive literature research, this case study was performed at the Volvo Corporation, where our unit of analysis was designed as a portal on the corporate intranet. The study included an evaluation of the system Volvo Information Portal (VIP). This evaluation was founded on how the VIP system could support the organizational level as well as the individual co-worker. The main results of this study are: First, several fields of application, i.e. how VIP can be used to support competence management. Secondly, a number of design implications, i.e. improvements that would enhance VIP in this aspect.