Tacit, Explicit, and Cultural Knowledge in Demand Planning

Abstract

Demand planning consists in a set of steps which evolves two main types of knowledge: tacit and explicit. It is under these types of knowledge that the present article was developed. It aimed at relating the concept of demand planning with knowledge management, but delimited to its tacit, explicit, and cultural knowledge components. An exploratory research was done with five companies. Therefore, the study was characterized as multicases and evolded enterviews, observations, and documents analysis. The analysis was made by content analysis. The results evidenced the presence of a set of components related to the three types of knowledge in demand planning like: information technology tools, professional experience, collective interation, social relations, and a corporative view, which leads the company´ business.