Knowledge Management and E-Learning

The rapidly growing demand for online courses and supporting technology has resulted in a plethora of structural and functional changes and challenges for universities and colleges. These changes have led many distance education providers to recognize the value of understanding the fundamental concepts of both e-learning and knowledge management (KM)—including the e-learning economic model and how to change the current culture of delivery system providers.

Supplying a complete examination of the synergy between KM and e-learning, Knowledge Management and E-Learning begins by considering KM practices, techniques, and methodologies in e-learning. These chapters explain how knowledge capture, retention, transfer, and sharing can help enhance the e-learning experience.

Edited and written by leading authorities in the fields of knowledge management and e-learning, the book contains international case studies that illustrate the applications of KM to e-learning in businesses, government agencies, and universities in the United States, Canada, Mexico, United Kingdom, Europe, and Asia. The text is divided into four parts:

1. Setting the Stage
2. Methodologies and Techniques
3. Case Studies and Applications
4. Industry Perspectives

This groundbreaking reference discusses the use of digital media engagement and social media to enhance the e-learning experience through the ability to share knowledge among various communities and individuals. It details key KM and social networking methodologies, trends, and technologies. The text concludes with a summary of current and emerging trends by those at the forefront of this rapidly evolving field.

About the Editors

Dr. Jay Liebowitz is the Orkand Endowed Chair of Management and Technology in the Graduate School of Management and Technology at the University of Maryland University College (UMUC). He previously served as a professor in the Carey Business School at Johns Hopkins University. He was recently ranked one of the top 10 knowledge management researchers/practitioners out of 11,000 worldwide. At Johns Hopkins University, he was the founding Program Director for the graduate Certificate in Competitive Intelligence and the Capstone Director of the MS-Information and Telecommunications Systems for Business Program, where he engaged over 30 organizations in industry, government, and not-for-profits in capstone projects.

Prior to joining Hopkins, Dr. Liebowitz was the first Knowledge Management Officer at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. Before NASA, Dr. Liebowitz was the Robert W. Deutsch Distinguished Professor of Information Systems at the University of Maryland-Baltimore County, Professor of Management Science at George Washington University, and Chair of Artificial Intelligence at the U.S. Army War College.

Dr. Liebowitz is the founder and editor-in-chief of Expert Systems with Applications, an international journal, which had about 1,600 paper downloads per day worldwide last year. He is a Fulbright Scholar, IEEE-USA Federal Communications Commission Executive Fellow, and Computer Educator of the Year (International Association for Computer Information Systems).

He has published over 40 books and a myriad of journal articles on knowledge management, intelligent systems, and IT management. His most recent books are Knowledge Retention: Strategies and Solutions (Taylor & Francis, 2009) and Knowledge Management in Public Health (Taylor & Francis, 2010). He has lectured and consulted worldwide.

Michael S. Frank, PhD, serves as Vice Provost and Dean of the University of Maryland University College’s Graduate School of Management and Technology. His service with the graduate school includes chairing the Information Technology Systems department and General Management Programs department.

Before coming to the graduate school, Dr. Frank held executive level positions in the private and public sector for many years. As an executive vice president for a large Maryland financial institution, he supervised several hundred people, drafted strategic and business plans, oversaw reorganizations and staffing, and controlled approximately one billion dollars in assets. Prior to that he was the human resource director of one of Maryland’s largest jurisdictions, where he directed all human resource and collective bargaining activities for over four thousand employees.

Dr. Frank is the recipient of numerous official commendations, a leadership award, UMUC’s highest teaching excellence award (the Drazek Award), and several professional awards, including a Professional Writers Award from the International Personnel Management Association, and a Sustained Outstanding Quality Award from the National Capital Area’s Management Association. His teaching, research, publication, and consulting interests reside in the fields of human resource management, organization theory, technology issues, and e-learning.