Knowledge management(KM)
Utilizing Knowledge accumulated in an organization is a strategic way to acquire the competitive edge for an organization. Knowledge in organizations can be categorized into types : EXplicit or Tacit knowledge .Explicit Knowledge is easily captured and managed .Tacit knowledge is highly personal , available within the individual and difficult to manage.
90% of the knowledge accumulated in an organisation is tacit knowledge. Capturing the tacit knowledge of experienced individuals and getting them to share it ‘collectively’ is a daunting task for any organization.
Knowledge management and competencies assessment framework: Douflo et al. (2004); Nyame- Asiamah (2009) and Al-Zhrani (2010) suggested that knowledge in an organisation can be used to determine what knowledge can be capitalized. Therefore, explicit knowledge can be handled through knowledge management using KM tools such as document management, while the tacit knowledge require some formalization.
Recent research by Jackson and Webster (2007) offers some useful possibilities in addressing some of the problems of capturing tacit knowledge. They suggest using a combination of elicitation and mapping methodologies like “…business process modeling, the soft systems methodology, causal cognitive mapping and brainstorming…” to capture tacit, role-related and relationship knowledge from staff in organisations.
Methods to capture organizational Knowledge
· to elicit the most usable knowledge from an individual, its better to interview people face to face than ask them to summarize their own experiences.
· the sharing of knowledge can be accelerated using various communication media
· Skills of the interviewer is more significant when it comes to capturing the knowledge from an individual
In a corporate environment, a good interview of this knowledge person would provide a complete and honest presentation of information. Only by asking questions can the knowledge seeker drill down to the specifics of what the other knows and make this knowledge more appicable to their needs,
A growing number of corporations such as IBM and BASF, understand this and have hired outside journalists to interview their people to understand how they make certain decisions which led to a successful or unsuccessful outcome.
Also, the use of video and incorporating it into Knowledge Management is been implemented in many companies. At IBM GLOBAL services , after a sales deal the tories are the way we communicate complex ideas" , These stories are transferred to CDROM and sent to others dealing with the same clients. Cross selling went up dramatically.
Implementation of procedures like these needs to be standardised across all offices in an international firm. Ideally a person or team in each office would hold the responsibility for ensuring that knowledge is contributed in an equal manner especially involving the quality of materials pit into a global system . However, it will not work unless there is a leader to champion, control and maintain the standard, and create rewards and/or penalties. Allowing local staff to take part in their piece od the Knowledge management program will promote buy in a nd good will among the various offices.
The Final answer - Hire the best people and encourage them to talk . the key to successful knowledge capture and dissemination is to find the person who best knows a particular subject within your organisation, interview them on video , have prepared questions to run your interview, and promote natural answers by asking open questions.
Take that knowledge and create a contextual compelling story using text and videoand store all of it , especially all contact information, ina database with a good retrieval engine and search capabilities.