The Neglected Loop in Knowledge Management of Research Centers and Institutes

The concept of documentation in management and particularly, in project management, is different from the concept of this term from knowledge management perspective. What considered in this research is knowledge management perspective and the neglected loop of knowledge management at research centers and institutes in order to use experiences of heads and deputies at research centers and institutes. In documenting from the viewpoints of knowledge management, each decision, event, and effective activity the organization, which includes the explicit and implicit knowledge of the organization, has the value for documentation. Therefore, it includes assessment of the decisions and actions taken and, through the gathered knowledge and information it will provide a suitable basis for assessing these actions. Also, if we consider research centers and institutes as a center with financial and human resources, including faculty, staff and students in which knowledge sharing and dissemination are addressed, two important issues get attention. First, the capital role of the research centers and institutes that are well-defined and of interest for community and the state. Because research centers and institutes are considered as institutions for the production, improvement and development of knowledge in different fields, and in our country, due to existence of various research centers and institutes, this mission has been considered and every year, a huge amount of money is spent on trial and error for decision-making by directors and managers of research centers and institutes. Second, knowledge management process consists of producing or collecting and identifying knowledge, categorizing, storing and documenting knowledge, distributing and disseminating knowledge and applying knowledge, which is one of the main missions of universities and research centers and institutes. This study shows that the process of documenting of management experiences follows a three-step process including: planning of documentation, implementation of documentation, monitoring, control, and sharing.