Knowledge Management Benchmarks

Author Chase, Journal of Knowledge Management Sept 1997

"In its simplest form KM is about encouraging people to share knowledge and ideas to create value added products and services"

Org approaches to KM include

• operate in new chalenging environments
• Evolve new structures
• Mobilize and reward and develop people
• prioritize challenges CRM, shared values,

Dorothy Leonard

• To innovate requires processes designed from to enable employees to act creativley and make decisions
• problem is to xfer tacit knowledge into org capabilities

Many orgs have underaken km initiatives under the headings of

• cust-focused knowledge
• inteelctual asset mgt
• innovation and knowledge creation
• transferring knowledge and best practice

BP Virtual Teamwork Project to encourage entreprenuerialism

• help BP know what it knows
• learn what it needs to learn
• use knowledge effectively - interpret

• was a holistic approach key drivers people process and technology - interpret and apply knowledge - tacit to become explicit - change behaviour
• used electronics whiteboards, scanners, VC linked to gether thru intranets
• one business saved $4.5m constructing an oil field for an investment of $500k

Other lesson

• just do it and learm
• provide support to change behaviors
• provide quality products and sevices
• make them business change projects not IT projects

Glaxo

• building a learning org by leaveraging our knowledge
• equip execs to realize full potential
• debate and share learning
• reinforce best practice
• Used intranet Execnet

ICL

• Awareness and communication
• Cafe VIK info service (real cafe)
• KM consortium

Nokia

• to move from a hierarchical structure to a network org structure
• Objectives
  • global efficiency
  • learning across org boundaries
  • local flexibility and responsiveness

• to create a ceative org requires
  • tacit knowledge
  • networking
  • values and trust
  • motivation commitment
  • rewards for sharing
  • focus on process

Lessons learned

• taking small steps and integrating them
• not falling in to the trap that KM is advanced form of IT
• address the human aspects of work activities and rewards

UK Post Office

• Reaching islands
• Linking information
• Sharing the vision
• Getting the technology right
• Bring in partners

Zenaca

• do it with teams rather than to them
• identify key workers
• user perf mgt to underpin cultural changes
• recognize communities of interest

• not all shared info adds value
• focus on key business decisions
• build an info map
• Technology is an enabler
  • comon architecture and standards

Intellectual Capital " IC is a portfolio of organized information (knowledge) which can be leveraged into wealth creation processes and activities"

Some see IC as creating value others see it as extracting value. The forst concentrates on are nowledge is created and transformed and the others on creating I assets and property for intangibles

Skandia

• to create long trm sustainable growth in shareholder value by nuturing IC. The difference between share value and book value

The skandia knowledge navigator shows the co's eveloving IC not in rations but focus - customer, process, humans (present)renewal and development (future)

Dow Chemical Focus on extraction - exploitation of patents

• Current, future and no buisness interest of patents

Skandia has tried to develop an external IC index and measure strategic impact of IC decline or growth, categories of IC and comparison between orgs