KM is one of those disciplines that people find hard to grasp and use. KM is a lot of things, and there is no single standard definition of what it is, how it can be applied, or why to use it. Some think it is nothing but another management fad, others think it is just common sense stuff, others see it as a theoretical exercise, some see it as a tool, some see it as E-learning, some see it as a culture of collaboration, some see it as web 2.0, some see it as a technology solution, and I can go on and on. My perspective is that it is all of the above and more. So where am I going with this? I am at the point in which I am starting to believe that KM needs to get out of the way of itself. That probably makes little sense to you, so I will try to explain what I mean. KM is a lot of things, but one thing we may all agree on is that KM is an industry. There are KM certification courses, KM college courses and doctoral degree programs, KM books, KM magazines, KM conferences, KM software applications, KM tools and resources, KM consultants, Knowledge Managers, Chief Knowledge Officers, etc. Look at these headlines and see just how potentially big an industry KM is:
- AMR Research Finds Spending on Knowledge Management Will Hit $73B in 2007, Tuesday, September 25, 2007
- Global Enterprise Web 2.0 Market Forecast: 2007 To 2013 Expect $4.6 Billion In Spending By 2013 As Large Companies Embrace Web 2.0, Forester Research – (this report costs US $1999.00 by the way)
- Federal Knowledge Management Spending to Increase 29 Percent by 2009, Publication: Business Wire
KM is big business. That’s good. Organizations need KM practices, methodologies, tools, and expertise in order to better meet their organizational objectives. But there is also a downside to KM as an industry. The industry also brings confusion, hype, spin, expectations both achievable and unrealistic, failed implementations due to improper planning and preparation, over simplifications, and in some ways a bastardization of what KM is, what it is intended to do, and how and when it should be applied. A lot of money has been spent developing KM solutions, marketing and branding those solutions, and selling those solutions. Of course I’m going to prove to you that my product, service, methodology, or approach is best. I want you to buy my product or service over my competitors. I’m not trying to make the case that the KM industry is not necessary or that competition among KM vendors (and I include all aspects of the KM industry in this group) is a bad thing. I’m just pointing out that KM is a business, and business is about creating a market and need and ultimately about making money.
So what? We all know KM is a business and an industry. Look at IT, without hardware, software, strategy, governance and standards there wouldn’t be much use for technology. The so what to me is that KM isn’t a commodity; I can’t purchase KM. Oh yes you can some would argue. You can purchase a KM platform, application or tool. In my opinion that is only because some marketing guru labeled some technology as a “KM” solution. Now we go back to what is KM? Since there are so many definitions, for the heck of it I’ll just use the Wikipedia definition “Knowledge Management (KM) comprises a range of practices used in an organization to identify, create, represent, distribute and enable adoption of insights and experiences. Such insights and experiences comprise knowledge, either embodied in individuals or embedded in organizational processes or practice.” Back to my point, where do I purchase one of those? And so I go back to KM having to get out of the way of itself.
The result of KM practices is what matters or should matter to the organization. Not the fact that an organization is practicing KM or has a Knowledge Management Office, or a Chief Knowledge Officer, or even some KM champion. As I work with organizations on KM strategies and initiatives I have seen a pattern emerge that is now jumping out at me. As I work with people responsible for KM I find myself on a regular basis having the discussion about KM being the road, not the destination. It seems like I’ve said it a thousand times – “Don’t do KM for KM’s sake, do KM to achieve an organizational goal.” KM is not an end-state; it is a set of attitudes, behaviors, methodologies, approaches, initiatives, and technologies that enable an end-state. What could those end-states be? It may be to capture and retain knowledge to prevent knowledge loss during turnover, or to develop more effective processes to gain efficiencies to save time and money, or to spur new ideas and innovations to stay competitive, or to form communities of practices to help solve complex problems, or to organize information and expertise to make finding information easier, or to capturing lessons to learn from past experiences so mistakes are not repeated, or to capture work products so time is not spent recreating work, or to perform a knowledge assessment so knowledge gaps can be identified and filled in order to for an organization to meet its objectives. Yes, an organization can have a learning, sharing, or collaborative culture, that is a great goal to aspire to, but I think that is not the place KM programs should start. Why, because if we start there we tend to build KM empires, KM bureaucracies, KM departments, KM rules and regulations, and get trapped into doing KM for KM’s sake. I should know I’ve done it myself in the past. You get so caught up and excited in doing KM that you start building a KM department, and staff, and goals, and metrics, and then you realize that you are using KM to justify doing more KM instead of solving the business issue you set out to solve in the first place. I am not in anyway saying that KM does not need to be done both top down and bottom up. KM leadership is essential to KM success, but that leadership needs to come from the organization’s leaders not necessarily a CKO or other position unless that person is part of the leadership team. So now what?
Well, I’m nearing the point where I think KM “experts” need to sit where they will do the most good. Yes, an organization should have an overarching KM strategy and perhaps some leader or leadership committee who oversees all “KM” related activities to ensure congruence, but they should also have sub-strategies or initiatives or agendas that are specific for each management function or department (depending upon how the organization is structured). So, if preventing knowledge loss is important then KM should live in HR, and if more efficiency is important then KM should live in Operations, and if a knowledge repository is needed then it needs to be owned by the content owners and developed in conjunction with IT, so on and so forth. When I say “live in” I don’t mean that each department has its own KM shop. I mean, as an example, that HR professionals should learn KM skills (thus becoming the experts) and apply KM as it best fits there construct. Governance, standards, and the like are very important, that’s why I advocate for a leadership committee to oversee such things. But it doesn’t have to be a KM Steering Committee, it just needs to be a committee who ensures that organizational policies, procedures, and standards are congruent across the enterprise and that resources, investments, and expenditures are properly applied, tracked, measured, and monitored. Many organizations already have these committees in place.
There is no doubt in my mind that the impact of KM on an organization can be huge. Vast amounts of time, money, and resources can be saved. New ideas and innovations can propel an organization faster then ever before. Lives can be saved by sharing critical knowledge to the right group at the right time. We know this, but this can only happen if an organization can see KM for what it really is. If they can see the value of KM, not the hype or the spin, and if KM practices are embedded in their way of doing business, not layered on top of doing business. I am an advocate for getting KM out of the way of itself so that the impact and results it brings can shine through and be self evident. So move out the way KM, and let’s see what you’re really made of.
