![[PHOTO] Light streaming through a key hole illuminating an old iron key.](../images/ph_findings.jpg)
Employees and teams constantly amass a wealth of knowledge about core competencies, efficiency and productivity, processes, sales, production, R & D, markets and other elements critical to profitability. Then they move to a new job or leave the company, and that knowledge is usually lost. Today, government agencies and private companies are designing knowledge management systems that capture, codify, and disseminate the accumulated wisdom throughout the organization so that it can be put to use again.
With a knowledge management database, someone in Kuala Lumpur, for example, can say, "I've got a tough problem here; I wonder if anyone else in the company has solved it?" then look it up, find a solution in a New York branch, modify it for the geographic situation and apply it locally.
It sounds wonderful-if the system is designed so that employees actually use it.
Interviewer: How do you create a system to manage knowledge at work?
Kevin W: Four elements are needed for a knowledge-management workplace:
Interviewer: Why do employees sometimes resist using such a system?
Kevin W: Unfortunately, some knowledge management practitioners shoot themselves in the foot. 55% of employees recently reported that their workloads increased in the past 12 months and that there are no plans to hire substantial numbers of new people. Knowledge management designers don't always understand that employees with increased workloads expect something in return for the effort they put into learning how to use the system.
Interviewer: And your recommendation is?
Kevin W: Strategically, encourage a work culture where managers willingly share resources and think long term. Tactically, design the system so that people can easily get what they want and need, and show them the benefits. E-mail is time-consuming and sometimes a pain, but we all use it every day because it offers clear value. If employees receive clear value from knowledge management tools, they will invest their time in the system. We all expect reciprocity at work; it's just the way we humans behave.
Interviewer: How does one ignite the reciprocity?
Kevin W: Leveraging organizational intellectual capital means discover who in the workforce is looking for solutions the knowledge management system can offer, and then determine the specific rewards they seek. Those who value new relationships look to the promise of new bonds through collaboration and knowledge exchange. Others like to stockpile information and see the system as a way of obtaining knowledge in exchange for offering what they know. Still others like to provide information and solutions for other people. Put employees in the center of the system, know what people want, and make sure the system gives them clear value.