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Let’s begin by determining the difference between a KM Program and a KM Project. In many of my Knowledge Management (KM) engagements, organizations look to initiate KM through a specific initiative or project. Once that project is concluded many of these organizations believe that their KM involvement is done and they move on to the next initiative. In order to have a sustainable KM presence at an organization we must move from the tactical approach of a KM project to that of a strategic approach of a KM Program.

First generation KM, nicknamed the tool era, was crawling with technology solutions.  Many years later we are still looking hard at technology and we seem to be heading towards a new generation nicknamed the Sharepoint era.

The heart is a fascinating organ. It pulsates throughout the body, and you want the pulse because that means you are alive; The heart does the body work! The same applies to your business. VTMs are the bodies that do the work for your business and product success.

Through our years of designing, developing, and implementing knowledge and information management technologies, we’ve consistently regarded user understanding and buy-in as key criteria for success. The change management profession aims to reduce the purported 70% failure rate on large projects by concentrating on the people side of change. Change professionals focus on communications, training, and stakeholder engagement activities for projects ranging from the rollout of a new document management system to a new records retention process to a corporate reorganization.

Knowledge Management is becoming more important as organizations continue to grow and face numerous challenges. As Wiig stated, “Competitiveness in the new world is directly dependent not only on the value and sophistication of the knowledge assets but also on how well they are renewed and utilized to conduct competent work” (Wiig 1999).

Introduction

In Part 1 of this article I explored the opportunity for professional service firms to apply process management practices to their services and internal support processes to drive improvements in cost and service. In Part 2 I will discuss the key role that Knowledge Management could play in helping to realise this opportunity.

A key role for Knowledge Management

Professional Service firms are facing a number of major competitive challenges including price-down pressures from clients, accelerated by the 2008 financial crash, deregulation in some markets (such as the UK and Australian legal sectors), increasing competition from lower cost economies (such as IT services from India) and new internet-enabled business models (such as Freelancer.com in IT and design services, Crunch.co.uk in accountancy and RocketLawyer.com in legal services).

During a time of budget cuts you might be called upon to explain why Knowledge Management shouldn’t be axed.  What do you say?

Across the spectrum of the Knowledge and Information Management services offered by Enterprise Knowledge, one of the common themes of late has been the design and development of knowledge bases for helps desks and call centers.  We’ve all heard the phrase that content is king, recognizing that knowledge and information management systems are only as good as the information within them.  This is especially true for knowledge bases, where getting quick access to a complete set of meaningful “answers” is directly related to customer satisfaction and end user service.

       If you ask 100 Knowledge Management experts how to effectively implement and practice KM, you really do get close to 100 different answers.  I believe this is because there isn’t one right answer.   I believe that we should consider that before we go into looking at maturity models and k-strategies that we must attend to and address how people in our organization feel and how we engage with each other.