Strategic Performance and Knowledge Measurement

Measurement has generally considered integral part of strategic management: it is assumed that, to plan the goals of a strategy, we need a method to measure some strategic performances that define the success itself of the strategy, and makes it possible to control its implementation. So, when it comes to knowledge strategies, we may say that we need a way to measure strategic performances related to knowledge. In other words, we need some measurement system that can applied to KM and knowledge. How to measure knowledge has attracted the interest of scholars since more than two decades. Many techniques have been proposed but they are still far from becoming an established practice. They are very heterogeneous, are based on different foundations, and often derive from techniques formerly developed for other goals. A rationale to treat the problem still lacks, which is critical for both practice and research. The chapter attempts to give some order to this issue, which is still much debated in the KM and IC literature. Especially, the theoretical and methodological soundness of the various measurement techniques is questioned. By examining the extant literature, we will illustrate the state-of-the-art of knowledge measurement and the related implications for KM research and practice. We will analyze some classifications of the various measurement methods that have been proposed in the literature, and discuss their differences, point of strength and weakness. Also, their soundness from the point of view of a theory of measurement will be examined. Implications for research and practice are summarized in the conclusion.