Knowledge Management: Do You Really Need It?

The knowledge that we have within a corporation is valuable to internal employees to ensure that they are able to do their jobs as accurately and efficiently as possible, and our customers are requesting more and more information to enable them to use our products correctly. For years this knowledge resided in peoples’ heads and in volumes of paper. Now that information is being moved onto the Internet/intranets and extranets.

Rockley, Ann. Rockley Bulletin (1998). Articles>Knowledge Management

Knowledge Management: Managing your Company's Most Valuable Asset  

Many companies are using knowledge management to stay competitive in today's economy. One of the primary premises of knowledge management is that an individual's knowledge can be captured and converted into group or organization-avaliable knowledge. This gives an organization a sustainable advantage in what their employees know and what they do with what they know. There are several tools available to aid in knowledge management but before these tools can be implemented, a company must first understand the principles of knowledge management.

Vorhes, Jamie Marie. STC Proceedings (1999). Articles>Knowledge Management

Knowledge Management: Refining Roles in Scientific Communication

Libraries historically have been identified with the functions of storage and retrieval. In recent years, they have expanded their role to include information transfer and the creation of the networked, digital library for information access and dissemination. More recently, the William H. Welch Medical Library (WML) of the Johns Hopkins University (JHU) has been exploring strategies to integrate the library more fully into the scholarly and scientific communication process. The result is a new role we call knowledge management.

Lucier, Richard E. University of California San Francisco (1990). Articles>Knowledge Management>Scientific Communication

Knowledge Management: The Collaboration Thread

Knowledge management is a thick web of themes from a variety of professional disciplines. The field is populated with people who resonate with the ideas first articulated by Larry Prusak and Tom Davenport, Tom Stewart, Carla O'Dell and others. "Getting the right information to the right people at the right time." Isn't that what information architecture and the information sciences are all about? "Leveraging the intellectual capital of the organization." Isn't that HR turf? "Harvest and refine reusable intellectual artifacts." Hello? Are there any technical writers out there? "It's about connecting people with people and supporting them with technology." Does anybody know that research in computer-supported cooperative work began in 1984?

Anklam, Patti. ASIST (2002). Articles>Knowledge Management>Collaboration

Knowledge Networks and Communities of Practice  

Knowledge and learning have become the new strategic imperative of organizations. Recent surveys by The Conference Board and the American Management Association show that at least one-half of U.S. companies, and up to 72% of overseas firms, have some kind of knowledge management initiative underway. Other studies put the figure closer to 80% for global corporations. Chief Knowledge Officers and Chief Learning Officers are popping up everywhere. These strategic knowledge initiatives are ushering in a rich array of opportunities for applying OD expertise. This article will first describe the new logic driving interest in knowledge management and then focus on how OD practitioners can participate in that strategic conversation, and support knowledge creation and sharing through building communities of practice.

Allee, Verna. OD Practitioner (2000). Articles>Knowledge Management>Organizations

Knowledge Roles in the Workplace: an Example from HVAC

The following paper discusses my experiences with knowledge management at a large pharmaceutical company. I will begin with a brief description of the operation of my department. Then I will go into some detail about the knowledge market at my job. I will continue with a discussion on knowledge mapping and finally the importance of a common language.

STC NJIT Student Chapter (2005). Articles>Knowledge Management>Case Studies>Biomedical

Knowledge Transfer Strategies  

Discusses training strategies for companies struggling with reorganization and the departure of knowledgeable employees.

Magnan, Raymond. Intercom (2001). Articles>Knowledge Management

Knowledge-Based Systems

Introduces you to the theory and practice of engineering expert knowledge into system designs (also referred to as intelligent communication and software). To overcome the limitations of human processing capabilities, the technology industry must increasingly move from a model of providing support, training and documentation in forms external to the system, to a model where this information is seamlessly integrated in the larger system design. Early examples of knowledge-based subsystems include wizards, agents and expert system support. In this course, you gain an understanding of the very nature of expert knowledge, its value to the expert, and the way in which the expert constructs this knowledge. You also learn to develop strategies for collecting and organizing knowledge from experts, and ways to integrate expert knowledge in system designs.

Carliner, Saul. Bentley College (2002). Academic>Courses>Knowledge Management

Law in Order

One law firm strives to transform scattered file cabinets into an online knowledge-management system.

Mitchell, Meg. CIO Magazine (2000). Articles>Knowledge Management>Case Studies

Learning to Do Knowledge Work in Systems of Distributed Cognition    

Within work sites that engage in knowledge work, newcomers have particular difficulty acquiring knowledge because knowledge keeps changing. Newcomers have to assimilate currently accepted knowledge while remaining open to learning and even generating new knowledge. Such acquisition and generation of communal knowledge are examples of distributed cognition. In workplaces engaging in knowledge work (where knowledge is the primary product), distributed cognition aims at a less stable goal than the one that Hutchins describes for ship navigation. A study of six summer interns in an engineering development center shows that, for them and their more experienced colleagues, learning did not precede activity but rather was the means by which they remained attuned to activity and able to function. Cognition was distributed not only among people but also among people and their tools. Communication tools were particularly important because communication was the means by which the system functioned as a unified whole.

Winsor, Dorothy A. Journal of Business and Technical Communication (2001). Articles>Workplace>Knowledge Management

Lessons from the Novartis InfoWeb: Creating a Successful Knowledge Management System  

Discussion of a global knowledge management system created in Lotus Notes for Novartis Consumer Health.

Quesenbery, Whitney. WQusability (1999). Articles>Knowledge Management>Usability

Managing Codified Knowledge

To remain competitive, organizations must efficiently and effectively create, locate, capture, and share their organization’s knowledge and expertise. This increasingly requires making the organization's knowledge explicit and recording it for easier distribution and reuse. This article provides a framework for configuring a firm’s organizational and technical resources and capabilities to leverage its codified knowledge. This knowledge management architecture is illustrated with examples of two companies that are successfully competing based on their ability to manage their explicit knowledge. The lessons these companies have learned from their implementation experiences are summarized.

Zack, Michael H. Sloan Management Review (1999). Articles>Knowledge Management

Managing Email Content—Challenges and Benefits  

As more organizations embrace e-mail as their primary method of communication, most overlook the fact that e-mail contains evidence of business decisions, actions and transactions.

Abaza, Bisher. KMworld (2001). Articles>Knowledge Management>Email

Managing Information in a Manufacturing Environment: A Case Study in Knowledge Management  

The authors were invited to evaluate the communication and information flow in a large manufacturing company that wanted to implement a knowledge management effort. They studied sample documents, analyzed communication processes, conducted two site visits, and produced a detailed report on their analysis of the communication flow. The paper covers how to conduct a site visit, how to structure on-site interviews, how to collect data, and how to analyze the data using well-established techniques and tools for communication optimization. We believe the results of our analyses are generalizable to other technical communicators involved in knowledge management efforts in manufacturing and industrial settings.

Grady, Helen M. and Marjorie T. Davis. STC Proceedings (2005). Articles>Knowledge Management>Case Studies

Managing Your Information

Large paper documents can be difficult to manage and control, but large online documents and huge volumes/suites of information can be a nightmare if you do not use management software from the beginning. There are many different types of ways you can approach managing your materials.

Rockley, Ann. Rockley Bulletin (1998). Articles>Knowledge Management>Content Management

Maximizing Corporate Bandwidth Utilization and User Satisfaction ... at the Same Time!  

We are drowning in a sea of information. The challenge is to learn to swim in that sea, rather than drown in it.

Warner, Scott. KMworld (2001). Articles>Knowledge Management>Content Management

The Meaning of Knowledge Management

We hear the term knowledge management bandied about. It sounds suspiciously like a trendy new phrase for what we used to call 'documentation.' In truth, knowledge management is more than documentation. It encompasses documentation, data management, library management, and information design. Knowledge management is increasingly important; as the amount of content has increased, the task of locating the information in the content has become more difficult. You see, information is different from content. And knowledge is something that derives from information.

HyperWrite (2004). Articles>Knowledge Management>Information Design>Content Management

Measuring Intellectual Assets

Twelve techniques used to value corporate intellectual assets.

Montague Institute Review (1997). Articles>Knowledge Management>Assessment

Methods of Knowledge Transfer: an Example from the Pharmaceutical Industry

Knowledge management plays a very critical role in the day-to-day operations of my organization. The transfer of knowledge is shared verbally through casual conversations, meetings, conference calls, brainstorming sessions, and voice mail. Written communication appears daily in the form of memos, sticky notes, and e-mail. Documents such as records, change control forms, policies and standard operating procedures must be retained by my company. These papers often contain business critical data that needs to be stored and referenced at a later time. In order to manage this extensive list of documents, there are several management systems implemented throughout the corporation. Areas such as Human Resources, Finance, Clinical Research and Content Management utilize these systems to support their business activities. As a content specialist in the Pharmaceutical industry, I am responsible for supporting some of these systems. Some of the content that I support can be considered simply data. This type of material includes image files, such as GIFs and JPEGs, javascripts and customized ASP or JAVA files. These files are not referenced by employees and are used to support the functionality of the management systems. The primary system used throughout the organization for managing content is Documentum.

Green, Eugene. STC NJIT Student Chapter (2005). Articles>Knowledge Management>Case Studies>Biomedical

Metrics for Knowledge Management and Content Management

Metrics are a concrete way of defining what a knowledge management or content management project will achieve, and whether it met those goals. In an environment of tight budgets and high expectations, metrics are an appropriate next step for an industry that prides itself on delivering big benefits. Defining metrics is not easy, however, and much study and further practical experience will be needed before implementing such measures becomes simple or commonplace. This article reviews the benefits of metrics, outlines some commonly used measures, and presents some practical tips and tricks. It is hoped that this article will further stimulate the current discussions on the use of metrics in the knowledge management and content management communities.

Robertson, James. Step Two (2003). Articles>Content Management>Knowledge Management

Multilingual Knowledge Management Empowers Global eBusiness  

With the penetration of Internet technologies into global business operations, employees at every level are collaborating across multiple geographies.

Sargent, Benjamin B. ZDNet (2001). Articles>Knowledge Management>Collaboration>Online

Navy Knowledge in Action: The Global Distance Support Center

While helping sailors at sea remain paramount, GDSC’s delivery of additional attributes demonstrated that knowledge could be used and reused to advantage. In a true knowledge organization, roles evolve and new knowledge customers may be served just as we did in the GDSC.

King, Kendall. STC NJIT Student Chapter (2005). Articles>Knowledge Management>Case Studies

Pandora's Portal

Is the portal a task-oriented platform for applications, e-services and cross-functional business process integration or a tool for enterprise-wide knowledge management? Is it a bottom-up enabler of communication and collaboration or a top-down channel for broadcasting official corporate propaganda? Inevitable consensus answer? It's all of these things and more, and the IT folks better be ready to support this exciting new paradigm!

Morville, Peter. Semantic Studios (2001). Articles>Knowledge Management>Intranets>Web Design

A Pattern Language Approach to Usability Knowledge Management    

Knowledge gained from usability testing is often applied merely to the immediate product under test and then forgotten--at least at an organizational level. This article describes a usability knowledge management system (KMS) based on principles of pattern language and use-case writing that offers a way to turn lessons learned from usability testing into organizational knowledge that can be leveraged across different projects and different design teams.

Hughes, Michael A. Journal of Usability Studies (2006). Articles>Usability>Knowledge Management>Language

A Polythematic Real-Time Synergistic Hybrid Data Telecommunication System for Scientific Research with Bidirectional Fuzzy Feedback Peer Review by Expert Referees    

Heterogeneous research environments, interests and locations do not necessarily coincide, thus hitherto the primary method of communication amongst researchers has been email. In this article a novel unified polythematic, real-time, synergistic, data telecommunication system is proposed with peer-reviewed, bidirectional fuzzy feedback for research scientists, to facilitate scientific information exchange via the extensible markup language (XML) on multiple scientific topics, e.g. in mathematics, physics, biology and chemistry.

Petratos, Panagiotis. Data Science Journal (2003). Articles>Knowledge Management>Scientific Communication>Collaboration