BUILDING A KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT PROGRAM: INITIAL CONCERNSKnowledge Management

LIS 880

• Mastering Organizational Knowledge Flow: How to Make Knowledge Sharing Work, Frank Leistner

• Chapters 1-3 are covered• Reinforces some elements of the course we have already

discussed • Provides a foundation for building a program framework

The Books Approach • Human Approach vs. Technological Approach• Knowledge vs. Information vs. Data• The book focuses more on the humans in the KM process

and this is where the primary challenges will lie• Leistner coins the term Managing “Knowledge Flow”

Initial Work in Developing a Program• Planning and building a blueprint• Needs Assessment and needs gathering• Establish a baseline• Technologies involved• Sustainability

Planning Phase Considerations• Budget• Sustainability • Stakeholder Support• Do they know what it is?• Launching the Program

Other Considerations• Project or Initiative

• Project has a definite start and stop• Initiative = Long term and indefinite

• Where will program sit?• Education• HR• It’s Own Department

Who Should Sit at the Table?• HR – Human Resources• CIO – Chief Information Officer• CFO – Chief Financial Officer• Head of Internal Communication• Head of Marketing

Tools to Begin Building KM Program• Knowledge Audits• Knowledge Inventories• Knowledge Maps

Knowledge Audits• Audits of knowledge held within organization• Usually gathered by survey• Seek a professional in survey development or purchase a

validated survey• Audit can be directed and focused• See Liebowitz survey example

Knowledge Inventories• Representation of what you have collected• Usually a tabular display or a spreadsheet• Can vary depending on the focus of your audit tool• Not a “Content Audit”

Knowledge Maps• Very similar to an inventory and sometimes the same

thing• Different types of maps and different approaches• Essentially give you an overview of the knowledge you

have or don’t have within an organization

Wrapping it Up• Think about the initial planning process• Get the right blueprint for your organization• You must plan in order to develop a cohesive and

sustainable program• Take some time and look over the survey developed by

Jay Liebowitz• In the weeks to come: More insight into the steps you can

take to put your program into place