Blog 7.1: Explicit vs Tacit Knowledge

Knowledge plays a key role in an organization as it can be a real competitive advantage. However, not all information is valuable. People must determine what information qualifies as intellectual and knowledge-based assets. In general, intellectual, and knowledge-based assets fall into two categories: explicit or tactic (Baltzan, p. 253).

Tacit knowledge is the knowledge that is contained in people’s heads (Baltzan, p. 253). It is known to be more personal, normally involves shared learning, and can only be transmitted through training or experiences. Tacit knowledge is known to be more physical which relates to a specific practical context. On the other hand, Explicit Knowledge consists of anything that can be documented, archived, and codified (Baltzan, p. 253). It is known to be more straightforward to express making it effortless to pass along to others.

As an Operations Supervisor, I oversee property operations and retail within the gaming industry.

The Gaming industry is able to deliver so many examples of explicit knowledge. A few include a Code of Conduct, standard operating procedures, and employee handbooks. A code of conduct serves as a guideline for employees regarding their behavior and actions. While the standard operating procedure is a document that provides step-by-step instructions, including instructions on the actions to take should there be a fire emergency. The Employee handbook is provided to employees during the orientation process as an ongoing development that outlines job-related information for the employee. The handbook provides then new hires with information on scheduling and how to check their working days online through the virtual roster website provided.

Besides explicit knowledge in the gaming industry, there are also so many examples of tacit knowledge. Being in a leadership role myself when a new hire needs to be mentored is something that I jump on the opportunity of so that I may show them what they are capable of achieving. With that said I have been in operations for 9 years where I have learned that things are prone to breaking. A great example includes parking gates at the casino, where customers are just ramming the gates as they are fed up with losing too much or they really don’t want to pay the fine. These gates are not able to get fixed till I arrive at work the following day. I have shown multiple people within my organization and department including my boss what steps to take in order to get the gates operational however it seems that I am the only one that really knows how to truly fix the gates. I am able to innovate new ways how to fix the gate hardware. There are times that I have to bend, cut and hammer the gates back into shape so that the gates can be operational and so that we are not losing revenue. I know that it can be a difficult skill to learn as not many are mechanically inclined and it’s a skill that takes practice and patients to master.

I believe that the casino is very effective in capturing tacit knowledge as it includes hands-on training and coaching. All personnel is to prioritize teamwork in order to encourage collaboration and communication. A great test that the casino did to encourage collaboration and communication was anyone going through the interview process had to stand up and sing a song, should anyone not stand they were automatically pulled from the interview and would not proceed to the next step. I found this to be a useful tool as not only did break the ice for so many future employees but it also proved how important collaboration and communication can be within any organization.

References

Baltzan, P. (2021). In Business Driven Technologies . New York : McGraw Hill LLC.

Advertisement

Blog 6.1: Digital Darwinism

Slack was originally developed as communication tool between developers and employees for a gaming company, and as the gaming company went bankrupt it was then later repolished as communication platform for organizations. Slack’s vision was to make business professionals more productive by being less busy consequently making Slack a disruptive technology.

According to the book Disruptive Technology is defined as a new way of doing things that initially does not meet the needs of existing customers (Baltzan, 2021). Disruptive Technologies tend to open new markets and destroy old ones. While on the other hand Sustaining Technology produces an improved product that customers are eager to buy (Baltzan, 2021), such as a new iPhone being released into the market. Personally, I see Disruptive technology as innovative technology that make product and services more accessible and affordable for their customers as in Slack’s case and their “freemium” product where users are able to use the product for free before deciding to upgrade. Fortunately for Slack it didn’t fall victim to Digital Darwinism.

Digital Darwinism “implies that organizations that cannot adapt to the new demands placed on them for surviving in the information age are doomed to extinction” (Baltzan, p. 227). In my personal opinion this is a live or die by innovation which can be seen as Survival of the Fittest as the technology is evolving faster than some companies ability to adapt.

During the early 2000’s there was a wave of Digital Darwinism that was just starting to occur. It was when cellphones were just starting to boom in popularity which caused many to replace their personal landline, and it eventually caused AT&T to get rid of all phone booths around the nation. Others include digital music and streaming such as Spotify that are replacing CDs and Album download sales for musicians.

One of the biggest form of Digital Darwinism was seen when Netflix fist came into the market. At that time many were able to rent DVD’s from places such as Blockbuster. However, Netflix changed the game when it was first launched as it allowed users to stream multiple movies for a monthly price while at blockbuster customers had to pay a fee for each movie that they wished to watch. Netflix was seen as a disruptive innovation that ultimate caused blockbuster to go out of business.

Currently, one of the biggest disruptive innovation that I can think of is Airbnb. Airbnb can be considered as the number one enemy by hotels all over the world. It allows users to search for vacation homes while providing them with a cheaper price than a hotel. Airbnb gives users the ability to search for all of the amenities that they desire and offers accommodations that differ from traditional hotel rooms (Roach, 2018). However, I believe that Airbnb has had a positive impact on the hotel world as it has increased room availability, which would result in reduced prices for the consumer and hopefully many are taking advantage of the lower prices when traveling.

All in all it is crucial for business to adapt with the times in order to continue to thrive for after all its not the strongest nor the most intelligent but that one that is most responsive to change that survives.

References

Baltzan, P. (2021). In Business Driven Technologies . New York : McGraw Hill LLC.

Roach, J. C. (2018, May ). U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics . Retrieved from How Airbnb has affected the hotel industry: https://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2018/beyond-bls/how-airbnb-has-affected-the-hotel-industry.htm#:~:text=Airbnb%20has%20increased%20room%20availability,higher%20prices%20for%20the%20consumer.

Blog 3.1: Zillow

Zillow is an online platform that allows users to access, anonymously and free of charge, the kind of tools and information previously reserved for real estate professionals (Baltzan, p. 127). Recognized as a Zestimate, Zillow’s database provides users with home appraisals for each property by recalculating home valuations so that it can provide historical graphs over time.

Zillow source of data is comprised of logical collection from various databases where it uses a data-mining feature to identify trends across property valuations. This feature allows the company to see the accuracy of the Zestimate values are over time.

Business Intelligence

Besides the Zestimate, Zillow created the industry’s first search by monthly payment. This feature provides users with the ability to find homes that are for sale and rent based on an affordable monthly payment. In addition, it enables the user of the platform to filter and search by criteria such as the number of bedrooms and bathrooms. Therefore, depending on the individuals specification and their monthly budget, users are able to easily find their essential house.

As Zillow’s traffic continued to grow, the online platform revolutionized the way that Americans shop for mortgages. Zillow introduced a Mortgage Marketplace that enables borrowers with the ability to get a custom loan quote from lenders without providing personal information, such as names, addresses, phone numbers, and Social Security (Baltzan, p. 127). Thus, leaving behind the headache of unwanted attention from brokers competing for business while also providing Zillow with a strategic advantage over its competitors such as LendingTree.com and Lowermybills.com as it does not charge for leads. However, this new feature enables Borrowers with the ability to reveal their identities only after making the decision and contacting the lender of their choice.

Collecting Data

A Data Mart is a subset or division of a data warehouse. Individuals that are searching on Zillow will want to use a data mart due to the sole fact that a data mart is limited to a single focus. Data Marts consist more of a functional focus which enables the user to access a faster analysis of specialized designs.

On the other hand, a Data Lake is more of storage repository that holds vast amounts of data in its original format until the business needs it (Baltzan, p. 119). As for Zillow, the use of a data lake will allow the AI platform to hold huge amounts of raw data from sources that are outside of the company’s operation system. Therefore, having the data in a pool provides Zillow with the ability to analyze and obtain the data giving it the ability to make more informed decisions.

Dirty Data

Dirty Data is erroneous or flawed data (Baltzan, p. 120). Zillow provides users with information pertaining to the real estate market as it gathers and analyze data. This collection of data might contain, incomplete, inaccurate, inconsistent, and even duplicates information which can be misleading in making a business decision. Dirty Data can ruin the reputation and reliability of a website like Zillow.

In the case of Zillow, should the website experience dirty data, it would be a disaster, as it would lose all credibility with the American population. Due to the sole fact that it would provide its users with the wrong information pertaining to the estimate of a particular real estate. Thus, it would cause users to make purchases based on flawed or incorrect data which will ultimately lead to its demise. However, in order to prevent this catastrophe, Zillow should be data cleansing or scrubbing in order to weed out and to fix the inconsistencies within its information.

References

Baltzan, P. (2021). Business Driven Technology. New York : McGraw-Hill Education .

Daud, F. (2020, January 22). Building a Data Streaming Platform - How Zillow Sends Data to its Data Lake. Retrieved from Zillow: https://www.zillow.com/tech/building-a-data-streaming-platform/

Blog 2.1: The Government and Your OSP

As technology continues to develop rapidly, people in society are more reliant than ever before on computers and technology to perform daily tasks. Currently, most of us are carrying a computer in the palm of our hands, and with technology endlessly improving so are the opportunities for hackers to use malware to tap into corporate or personal records. “Malware, or malicious software, is any piece of software that was written with the intent of doing harm to data, devices or to people” (Jason Firch, 2022). Malware comes in many forms, but the most common types consists of viruses, trojans, ransomware, and spyware. Hackers use Malware that is normally deployed through phishing emails to attack and attempt to retrieve sensitive information by manipulating people or by grabbing their attention to click on links or attachments within the email. These Hackers fall into three categories known as White Hat, Gray Hat, and Black Hat Hackers. White Hat Hackers are given consent by the organization to test the security system which will allow them to identify and fix any vulnerabilities. Gary Hat Hackers normally just exploit security weaknesses with the use of illegal methods without malicious intent. They are not provided with consent to breach an organization’s security. On the other hand, Black Hat Hackers are known to be the cybercriminals who illegally pry into a system with malicious intent to exploit and infiltrate networks for monetary gain or simply just for fun.

Total Amount of Malware

According to the data depicted in chart above, we can interpret that the total amount of Malware attacks has continued to drastically increase. The data provides a clear indication that since 2008 around the time that smart phones became mainstream, we can see the number of Malware attacks continuing to grow to present day with the expectation of the attacks to keep escalating. However, there are multiple steps that organizations can take in order to diminish or prevent malware attacks. These steps include the development of a Security Policy, implementing Security Awareness Training, using Multi-Factor Authentication with Complex Passwords, using Anti-Malware programs, and performing routine vulnerability assessments.

As computers provide easy access to data this provides authorities with the capabilities to take surveillance to a new level. Authorities are known for utilizing methods of observations in order to track people’s actions without their knowledge. This includes monitoring employees, to either prevent embezzlement or to ensure that they are working to their maximum ability. Thus, questioning the unethical behavior of an organization and an individual’s right to privacy. A great example is Google, which tracks and records a persons every move including their search history along with scanning every email that an individual sends or receives (O’Sullivan, S. 2022).

As an individual of society, it is unethical for any type of organization to impede, and or intrude upon an individual’s privacy by monitoring them without their consent or knowledge. However, should the individual be a menace to society and is therefore disturbing the peace or causing harm to others, many can argue that it is ethical for the government to monitor and surveillance the individual. As they say “If you haven’t done anything wrong, you have nothing to fear” and although this many deem the surveillance to be legal, I don’t see it as ethical for we are all entitled to privacy.     

References

Jason Firch, M. B. A. (2022, October 24). 9 common types of malware (and how to prevent them). PurpleSec. Retrieved January 19, 2023, from https://purplesec.us/common-malware-types/#:~:text=Malware%2C%20or%20malicious%20software%2C%20is,rebooting%2C%20or%20starting%20unknown%20processes.

Malware statistics & trends report: AV-TEST. AV. (n.d.). Retrieved January 19, 2023, from https://www.av-test.org/en/statistics/malware/

Shea, S. (2019, October 21). 6 different types of hackers, from Black Hat to red hat: TechTarget. Security. Retrieved January 19, 2023, from https://www.techtarget.com/searchsecurity/answer/What-is-red-and-white-hat-hacking

O’Sullivan, S. (2022, June 17). 8 ways Google constantly invades your privacy – and how to fix it. Komando.com. Retrieved January 19, 2023, from https://www.komando.com/security-privacy/ways-google-invades-your-privacy/804545/

Case Study: Manipulating Data to Find Your Version of the Truth

In order for data to be considered as useful information it must first be interpreted correctly, then a person can transform that data into knowledge. Although this sounds simple, if mistakes should occur, this can result in useless information. In this case it is always best to use vast amounts of data over a period of time in order to consider the information valid. When it comes to measuring the economy of a nation there are several statistical methods that are used to track economic growth. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) are two of the productivity metrics that gauge economic potential.

“Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is the total monetary or market value of all the finished goods and services produced within a country’s borders in a specific time period.” (Fernando, 2022) In general GDP provides a snapshot of a countries economy and its growth rate activity. On the other hand, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) “measures labor market activity, working conditions, price changes, and productivity in the U.S. economy to support public and private decision making.” (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)

According to the data above we can interpret that the labor output and the hours worked are effected by a countries GDP. The data provides a clear indication that there was a drastic decline in output and labor hours worked during the 2^nd quarter of 2020 as the pandemic (covid-19) took place and the world was forced to shut down. However, during the 3^rd quarter of 2020, as pandemic restrictions started to ease, and as businesses were reopening, we can see that the labor output and the hours worked in the United States soared. This meaning that people were able to find jobs and help recover the economy along with the GDP.

With that said, there are multiple issues when one is attempting to measure the economy as nothing is ever perfect. One of the issues is that GDP is not able to account for all of the production in the economy. For example, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) leaves out some of the data when pertaining to the economy, such as a person growing fruits and vegetables in their back yard, or a person earning an income based solely on cash tips such as a Valet driver, or the unlawful sale of illegal drugs. Therefore, making the data impossible to obtain and making that much harder when attempting to measure the economy.

As a manager, it is crucial to understand and interpret all economic and business reports as they are powerful tools that can inform or guide you on strategic decisions. Many businesses rely on the economy as a source of information that can influence everything but as stated above nothing is ever perfect. Thus, it is important to grasp an understanding of all economic and business reports in order to formulate your own notion when pertaining to the business.

References

Fernando, J. (2022, November 3). Gross domestic product (GDP): Formula and how to use it. Investopedia. Retrieved January 14, 2023, from https://www.investopedia.com/terms/g/gdp.asp

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (n.d.). What we do. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved January 14, 2023, from https://www.bls.gov/bls/infohome.htm

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (n.d.). Nonfarm business productivity down 1.3 percent from third quarter 2021 to third quarter 2022. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved January 14, 2023, from https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2022/nonfarm-business-productivity-down-1-3-percent-from-third-quarter-2021-to-third-quarter-2022.htm