Originating in management consultancy, Knowledge Management has had many definitions over the years, but the general idea is around the oversight and management of all knowledge creation, connection, sharing and finding within an organisation, to name just four.
As you can probably already tell, it's a broad and sweeping principle, and as such, it's something that requires a comprehensive understanding to implement it in a way that's properly targeted and effective. Otherwise, it simply remains as that abstract concept - just another buzzword only HR departments truly understand.
What is a knowledge management strategy?
Knowledge, knowledge management programs, and by extension, the strategies that follow, can be broken down into several core aspects, of which we've touched on four already. These fundamental components all help create knowledge management strategies that deliver value to stakeholders. After all, having organisational knowledge is brilliant, but if it doesn't ultimately contribute toward a greater return on investment (ROI), then it counts for very little.
Broadly speaking, knowledge management processes will fall into one of the following categories:
Sourcing/finding knowledge
Clearly, you can't have a robust, knowledge management platform or system in place if there's no knowledge to manage. Having effective tools at your disposal to source information, trawl through existing content, mine new knowledge and data, and expand your network of connections, is a key part of any knowledge management process.
The acquisition of information is a vital part of knowledge management, but even more important than that is the acquisition of high-quality information and knowledge. Learning and development departments must look to procure the best possible enterprise learning resources on the budget available to them.
The best examples of knowledge management are where teams understand that "not all knowledge is created equal", and that spending a little more time getting the knowledge acquisition phase right will lead to results that are a lot greater down the line.
Sharing information
A successful knowledge management program is one that improves organisational learning through the reduction of knowledge gaps and the focus on collective knowledge and knowledge retention. Being able to easily share information is a crucial part of that knowledge discovery process.
How easy is it for employees to share knowledge with one another? Whether that be one individual delivering information to another individual, or one executive communicating with an entire department, whether that be implicit knowledge or explicit.
Platforms that facilitate the sharing of knowledge have become more sophisticated in recent years, with the best examples (such as Nuclino and Papyrs) enabling employees to easily upload and catalogue content in an intuitive, easy-to-find way, as well as the ability to securely send content and notify others within the organisation when a piece of content or knowledge could be of use.
Not only that, however, but a good information-sharing platform will also look to facilitate an easier transfer of knowledge like offering employees the chance to book mentoring sessions and one-on-one training, and to schedule larger seminar-style presentations so that that harder-to-codify information gets passed on to other employees more easily (the importance of which we'll come to in the capturing data section).
Managing knowledge
As the name suggests, this aspect of knowledge management involves how information is handled (or managed) over time, in terms of its styling, formatting and the way it's structured. The goal here is to ensure that any and all information and knowledge gathered and retained by an organisation is worth holding on to.
Oversaturation
Businesses have always been tasked with dealing with lots of knowledge - it's part and parcel of the professional world. However, in today's digital age, organisations are accruing new knowledge at an ever-quickening pace, and if a company doesn't take pains to properly manage the existing knowledge already at its disposal, then things can quickly become oversaturated.
Obsolescence
The times we're living in don't just risk an overly-swollen knowledge dump if knowledge organisation is not properly managed, they also risk that pile of knowledge becoming obsolete. To manage knowledge effectively, HR departments must regularly look at which resources are still relevant and useful, and delete or archive those that have become outdated.
Access
The 'management' component of knowledge management systems also handles who can access content, ensuring that the right content is available to the right people within an organisation (and no one has access to something they shouldn’t).
The Knowledge Management Process is Now Quicker and Smarter
In previous years, the content management systems tranche of knowledge management was among the more challenging. The risk of content duplication, security issues, and information obsolescence all led to a process that was both slow and laborious.
However, with the advent of ever-more complex content and document management systems (like Confluence, monday.com and M-Files), teams have been able to accelerate knowledge management, while ensuring that both accuracy and integrity are retained.
Capturing data
Data capture is undoubtedly one of the most fundamental parts of effective knowledge management. It relates to the ways in which implicit knowledge is translated to explicit knowledge; the means by which information can be codified and centralised.
In practical terms, this can be how easily complex information can be uploaded to an organisation's IT infrastructure, through to the ease with which professionals are able to articulate the most implicit elements of their knowledge base.
The latter can be encouraged by developing a knowledge-sharing culture, social interactions between more established professionals and up-and-coming talent, and by implementing a knowledge-sharing system that makes it easier for employees to do exactly that - share their knowledge.
The Risk Posed By a Lack of Knowledge Transfer
The danger of tacit knowledge not being codified in a more concrete manner is that it risks the development of knowledge silos; this decentralised approach towards knowledge management within a company isn't an issue... until it is. That's to say, whilst the professional with said knowledge is employed by your company, there's no problem.
Should they move on, however? They take that knowledge with them, and your company is left high and dry. Your company trades in intellectual capital, and if that's hoarded by a few select individuals, rather than in easy access throughout the organisation, then you may have a problem.
What are the benefits of knowledge management?
The benefits of a proficient knowledge management system are many and varied. Incorporating knowledge management more effectively into the overall organisational culture enables companies to act with greater agility, foster innovation, and increase customer satisfaction. The more knowledgeable a company's employees, the greater the value consistently presented to customers and clients.
Not only that, however, but knowledge management practices also mitigate inefficiencies, preventing professionals from spending hours on a task that ought only take minutes. There's nothing more frustrating than expending effort creating a report, only to find that it's already been done by another employee, because the ability to share information/keep others informed on the progress of content, simply wasn't there.
Back in the 1930s, industrial engineer Alfred Morgenstern came up with the phrase "work smarter not harder", and one could argue that, at its most fundamental, that's what the implementation of knowledge management tools and a knowledge management team can help achieve.
Final thoughts on knowledge management systems
Knowledge management is far more than just the process of an organisation collating its content and piling it into one place. It's about smarter procurement, more nuanced management, the regular updating of knowledge storage, and sharing knowledge more intuitively. It's about improving organisational efficiency through a greater overall knowledge base.
And ultimately, it's about propelling the entire company forward - and that can only ever be a good thing.
Interested in implementing a knowledge management strategy? Get in touch with our team.
