PHRED Glossary
Definitions These are definitions of terms for PHRED Solutions systems. They are not meant to be applied universally. PHRED welcomes your perspective on these definitions of terms.
Aligning objectives
The Objective Generation and Alignment software graphically displays the relationships between objectives, goals and missions throughout the organization.
PHRED utilizes three coaching methods:
Structured Questioning
The software acts as a coach by asking questions to guide the user's reasoning processes. The techniques are based upon Dr. Albert Ellis' theories and Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy.Online coaching
Each page has a coaching function that provides guidance in nswering the questions. When appropriate, the coaching includes examples and alternative versions of the questions.Live Coaches
Users are able to contact a designated subject matter or process coach with questions or comments. Live coaches can intervene efficiently because they are able to examine reasoning used so far, eliminating unnecessary background discovery. The reasoning is reviewed online either before or during a coaching session.
Collaboration and Cooperation
PHRED's tools facilitate collaboration and foster cooperation in two principal ways:
Method of Transfer
People reason and express themselves differently. We have techniques that facilitate the transfer of ideas and overcome a great deal of naturally occurring miscommunication.Pride and Recognition
Because the system tracks input and progress, contributions can be recognized by peers and management.
Communities of Practice
Communities of Practice are structured communities centered on core objectives or organizational functions. Communities are divided into conferences to discuss issues from different perspectives. PHRED hosts threaded discussion groups and storage of discussions in a database for later retrieval or analysis.
Communities of Interest
Communities of Interest are unstructured communities, which enable exchange of innovation and ideas. They can be formal or ad hoc groups with similar interests or concerns across organizational boundaries. As discussion takes place, tacit knowledge, in the form of conversations, is gathered and stored for later access.
Communities of Expertise
Communities of Expertise are an electronic yellow pages of who's who and their skills. This may evolve into an identified faculty of experts or Sensei in particular disciplines.
Communication Infrastructure
PHRED provides an effective way to communicate independent of geography, shift and acquaintance.
Explicit Knowledge
Explicit Knowledge is information in written or electronic form. intranet An organization's internal structure of web.
Knowledge Repository
A database storing knowledge expressed through process and reasoning tools and threaded discussions.
Knowledge Management
We believe true Knowledge Management is eliciting and sharing the experience and intelligence of everyone working in a particular process.
Knowledge Worker
A Knowledge Worker is anyone in the organization who uses their brain at some point during the day to accomplish their tasks. We specifically include shop floor workers whose tacit knowledge is often part of the backbone of the organization.
PHRED's technology enables an organization to learn from itself. If you are interested in this on a broader basis contact: The Society for Organizational Learning @sol-ne.org
Organizational Pulse Points
Organizational Pulse Points are indicators of organization health. This can include problem-solving behavior and threaded discussion topics.
Positive Intention
W. Edwards Demming said, "No one goes to work to do a bad job." He meant that people have positive intention in their actions. PHRED's reasoning structures bring out that positive intention and make it part of the problem-solving and Objective Generation and Alignment process.
Reasoning Processes
Question strings are embedded in processes to elicit reasoning. For example in the problem-solving, after establishing direct cause, the question "Why is that?" is asked. The answer elicits the reasoning that created the direct cause. The question "Why is that?" is then asked repeatedly, in reference to the previous answer, until root cause is found.
Sensei
A Sensei combines the skills of an expert, a teacher and someone revered for their organizational and subject matter knowledge and wisdom.
Tacit Knowledge
The knowledge that is in people's heads, their experience.
Tacit Knowledge Elicitation
The ED in PHRED stands for Elicitation Device. We use question strings to elicit (draw out), the knowledge that exists within the heads of the users. PHRED's elicitation techniques draw out experiential knowledge in a way that is comprehensible and can be shared with others.
Well Formed Objective
An Objective that has been precisely defined, and thought out using a rigorous reasoning process.
Yellow Pages
An online directory of who's who, and their skills.
