Nonaka sees ongoing knowledge creation as the source of continuous innovation and continuous innovation as the source of sustained competitive advantage.

designing as a form of learning

Curiously, the converse is also true. We might characterize learning as a form of designing. That is, the process of observing, reflecting, and making (and iterating those steps) may aid learning.

Maurício Manhães [2], who wrote, “Design and innovation are both knowledge creation processes” [3].

SECI stands for socialization, externalization, combination, internalization—a model of knowledge creation proposed by Ikujiro Nonaka [5].

something more—to new knowledge. Thus, we might characterize desi

“Tacit knowledge is personal, context-specific, and therefore hard to formalize and communicate. Explicit or codified knowledge, on the other hand, refers to knowledge that is transmittable in formal, systematic language” [9]. Tacit knowledge tends to be specific to a context (available in a particular time and place), practical, routine, and procedural. Explicit knowledge can transcend a specific context (and is transferable to other times and places) and tends to be rationalizing, theoretical, and declarative.

The analysis-synthesis bridge model describes a four-step design process. It begins with 1. directly observing a current situation, 2. reflecting on observations of the current situation to create a model representing essential elements, 3. reflecting on the model of the current situation to create a second model representing essential elements of an improved situation, and 4. instantiating the second model in a physical form or prototype.