L.S. Ganesh

Bio: L.S. Ganesh is an academic researcher from Indian Institute of Technology Madras. The author has contributed to research in topics: Sustainability & Lean Six Sigma. The author has an hindex of 22, co-authored 56 publications receiving 2224 citations. Previous affiliations of L.S. Ganesh include Indian Institutes of Technology & National University of Educational Planning and Administration.

Research on knowledge transfer in organizations: a morphology

Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present and describe a morphology of the research literature on knowledge transfer in organizations.Design/methodology/approach – This morphology, which is a comprehensive framework characterizing the knowledge transfer literature in terms of dimensions and options, was developed by an extensive scanning of the pertinent literature.Findings – Eight dimensions were found suitable to characterize the knowledge transfer research literature. Corresponding to each dimension, two to six options were found.Research limitations/implications – The morphology demonstrates the extensiveness and variety of knowledge transfer research. To academics, the morphology can serve as a map of the knowledge transfer territory. Using the morphology, researchers can easily assess how an existing study fits in with the entire body of knowledge transfer research. Secondly, they can discern areas that have received less attention in comparison to others and thus identify gaps they may wish...

Energy resource allocation incorporating qualitative and quantitative criteria: An integrated model using goal programming and AHP

Abstract: Energy resource allocation presents a multi-criteria decision making problem with the criteria being quantitative and/or qualitative. Solving such a problem requires an integrated approach. In this paper, an integrated model using goal programming and the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) has been developed for energy resource allocation. It incorporates nine quantitative and three qualitative criteria. The model has been applied to the household sector of Madras, India. A detailed sensitivity analysis has also been carried out. Three additional scenarios have been developed. Use of the model suggested: natural gas, fuelwood and solar thermal for cooking; biogas and electricity generated from fuelwood for water pumping; and all decentralized electricity generation technologies for lighting and operating household appliances. Grid electricity was perferred only for lighting.

Modelling and assessment of critical risks in BOT road projects

Abstract: Over the years, many private sector participation (PSP) models have been evolved for infrastructure procurement and the Build‐Operate‐Transfer (BOT) model is one of the most common approaches used for the same. Private infrastructure projects under BOT arrangement have a complex risk profile and to a considerable extent, the success of any BOT project is influenced by the degree to which various project risks are managed. The major steps involved in risk management of a project are risk identification, risk assessment and the processes of prioritization and response to the risks. The conventional risk assessment approaches may not be effective in privatized infrastructure projects because of the fact that, they have very long project lifecycle with many country and sector specific risk factors. The assessment of complex risks is often a difficult task when past data on similar risks are not available. In this research, a risk probability and impact assessment framework based on fuzzy‐fault tree and the De...

Out of the Crisis

Abstract: According to W. Edwards Deming, American companies require nothing less than a transformation of management style and of governmental relations with industry. In Out of the Crisis, originally published in 1982, Deming offers a theory of management based on his famous 14 Points for Management. Management's failure to plan for the future, he claims, brings about loss of market, which brings about loss of jobs. Management must be judged not only by the quarterly dividend, but by innovative plans to stay in business, protect investment, ensure future dividends, and provide more jobs through improved product and service. In simple, direct language, he explains the principles of management transformation and how to apply them.

The knowledge-creating company : how Japanese companies create the dynamics of innovation

Abstract: How has Japan become a major economic power, a world leader in the automotive and electronics industries? What is the secret of their success? The consensus has been that, though the Japanese are not particularly innovative, they are exceptionally skilful at imitation, at improving products that already exist. But now two leading Japanese business experts, Ikujiro Nonaka and Hiro Takeuchi, turn this conventional wisdom on its head: Japanese firms are successful, they contend, precisely because they are innovative, because they create new knowledge and use it to produce successful products and technologies. Examining case studies drawn from such firms as Honda, Canon, Matsushita, NEC, 3M, GE, and the U.S. Marines, this book reveals how Japanese companies translate tacit to explicit knowledge and use it to produce new processes, products, and services.

The knowledge-creating company

Abstract: How have Japanese companies become world leaders in the automotive and electronics industries, among others? What is the secret of their success? Two leading Japanese business experts, Ikujiro Nonaka and Hirotaka Takeuchi, are the first to tie the success of Japanese companies to their ability to create new knowledge and use it to produce successful products and technologies. In The Knowledge-Creating Company, Nonaka and Takeuchi provide an inside look at how Japanese companies go about creating this new knowledge organizationally. The authors point out that there are two types of knowledge: explicit knowledge, contained in manuals and procedures, and tacit knowledge, learned only by experience, and communicated only indirectly, through metaphor and analogy. U.S. managers focus on explicit knowledge. The Japanese, on the other hand, focus on tacit knowledge. And this, the authors argue, is the key to their success--the Japanese have learned how to transform tacit into explicit knowledge. To explain how this is done--and illuminate Japanese business practices as they do so--the authors range from Greek philosophy to Zen Buddhism, from classical economists to modern management gurus, illustrating the theory of organizational knowledge creation with case studies drawn from such firms as Honda, Canon, Matsushita, NEC, Nissan, 3M, GE, and even the U.S. Marines. For instance, using Matsushita's development of the Home Bakery (the world's first fully automated bread-baking machine for home use), they show how tacit knowledge can be converted to explicit knowledge: when the designers couldn't perfect the dough kneading mechanism, a software programmer apprenticed herself withthe master baker at Osaka International Hotel, gained a tacit understanding of kneading, and then conveyed this information to the engineers. In addition, the authors show that, to create knowledge, the best management style is neither top-down nor bottom-up, but rather what they call "middle-up-down," in which the middle managers form a bridge between the ideals of top management and the chaotic realities of the frontline. As we make the turn into the 21st century, a new society is emerging. Peter Drucker calls it the "knowledge society," one that is drastically different from the "industrial society," and one in which acquiring and applying knowledge will become key competitive factors. Nonaka and Takeuchi go a step further, arguing that creating knowledge will become the key to sustaining a competitive advantage in the future. Because the competitive environment and customer preferences changes constantly, knowledge perishes quickly. With The Knowledge-Creating Company, managers have at their fingertips years of insight from Japanese firms that reveal how to create knowledge continuously, and how to exploit it to make successful new products, services, and systems.