KM – Technology, tools, techniques

KM – technology, tools, techniques Keith De La Rue Thursday, 29 April 2010

Overview Brief history of KM techniques Tools and technologies Case study scenario and group exercise Keeping content up to date Dealing with knowledge hoarding Using multiple media

A brief history Technology or people?

The knowledge age? The knowledge economy - Drucker, 1992 IT focus – 1997 survey: Intranets Data warehousing Knowledge repositories Decision-support tools Collaboration groupware Large projects Focus on explicit knowledge

The emergence of people "Knowledge can only ever be volunteered ; it cannot be conscripted " David Snowden People focus: Communities of Practice Expertise location Collaboration Narrative techniques More focus on tacit knowledge

The social dimension “ We are moving away from content and collection, and moving to context and connection.” Michel Bauwens Importance of engaging people Social media not in conflict with KM But may conflict with the IT-centric view Today’s organisations are complex New approaches are needed

Tools & Technologies What goes into the toolbox

What is a KM technology? Goal is an informed audience Content, communication, learning Tools can include: Meetings, face-to-face training Telephones, iPhones, BlackBerries Email Bulletin boards, newsletters Techniques can include approaches and methods

Knowledge repository Content management Provides structure – metadata & indexes Search – text and keywords Access by both contributors and audience Governance & workflow Version management Currency Lotus, SharePoint…

The Intranet Organisation-Wide Web Like the WWW, may just be online brochures A platform to support multiple media Enterprise search Needs to be managed to be successful Development standards, templates Distributed publishing Ownership Usability

Portals A way to bring together multiple sites Provides structure and focus Links, pull-downs, buttons, tabs Can include feature articles, newsletters May allow personal customisation Role-based defaults

Blogs We b log = a diary on steroids Can include text, images, multimedia Originally a single author, personal diary Can be shared authorship; dialogue through comments Chronological organisation; more permanent Edited anywhere, online Cheap – open source or commercial WordPress, Movable Type, Typepad Provides tagging, RSS feed

Podcasting A pre-recorded audio program or message Allows portability, time-shifting Caters to different learning styles So what’s new? Simple software and devices Anyone can produce RSS feeds

Videocasting YouTube and the “home video” revolution http://www.youtube.com/user/plambe

Wikis An online reference source, edited by users "Wiki-wiki" = "hurry quick" (Hawaiian) Quick to set-up, and supports rapid development Good for experts to build a body of knowledge Easy online editing Includes author comments and discussion Readily-available software Media Wiki, Confluence Rapid self-healing and reliability “Wisdom of crowds”

Microblogging “ If only most companies realised the treasure trove of expertise and information that their employees would be able to access if they encouraged the use of such services” Shane Goldberg, Telstra Twitter, Yammer “What are you working on?” Maintaining a network, mentoring Shared note-taking, expertise

Online communities Facebook, LinkedIn, Ning Shared applications Directory, expertise location Deloitte has over 17,000 members Promoting events

Case Study scenario Dealing with the Ivory Tower

The environment Business Sales Force Business Customers Product & Marketing Teams Hundreds of Products Hundreds – On the road and desk-based Thousands Specialist Sales KM Team

The contributors Product Managers, Marketers, SMEs Increasingly time-poor The “Ivory Tower” syndrome Knowledge “hoarding”… Interested mostly in products and solutions Want to provide lots of detail! More accountable for costs than sales Not usually hired as communicators Focus only on own product

The audience Sales staff, Sales Specialists, Technical Sales Large customers: face-to-face, on the road Smaller customer: by phone, desk-based Sales specialists need more technical detail Increasingly time-poor Not hired as researchers Need to know how to sell solutions Focus on customer needs Income at risk, based on sales and revenue

The challenge What tools and techniques apply to this scenario? KM Method Cards From Straits Knowledge, Singapore

KM Method Cards 25 39 16 http://www.straitsknowledge.com/store

The exercise Four groups Approaches (cards 01-25) Methods I (cards 26-43) Methods II (cards 44-64) Tools (cards 65-80) Each group: Deal out cards Each person choose one or two cards and explain Group select 3-4 cards and present

Building the toolkit Accountability, behaviour and engagement

The KM approach Product, service and solution “know-how” Build a standard toolkit and activity program Different media to suit different audience needs Content , communications and training in one The iStore On-line document library Sales KnowHow Bulletin Weekly web-based newsletter Knowledge Bites Web and audio conference briefing

The iStore Everything sales staff need to know – in one place Documents for internal & external use Multimedia content Standard document templates Provide sales information in predictable format Also stored on iStore Lotus Notes/Domino database Web browser access for all Hand-held device access Secure Admin access

iStore scope 3,300 entries 90% documents – others link or text only 270 contributors… 370 products, services & solutions Average over 60,000 hits per month Multiple indexes and search Every entry accessible by any index Anonymous reader access Subscription for weekly updates

Contributor accountability Self-service Contributors load and own all content Every entry must have one accountable owner Manage entry status, currency and validity Draft, Published, To be deleted Guides and training provided Including eLearning modules Control hand-over as required… Job changes Extended leave

Regular reviews All entries have a 90-day timer “Entry last updated” date displayed Auto review reminder emails to contributor Two weeks’ notice, one week reminder Update, republish or delete Automatic archive at 90 days Contributor advised Entry visible, but attachment not accessible Entries may be deleted if archived > 2 weeks

Extended currency management Attachment currency critical Separate “file last uploaded” date tracked Attachment age checked at each review If attached file more than six months old: Contributor asked to confirm content review Confirmation logged & copy sent to manager If attached file more than twelve months old: Monthly scorecard sent via senior management 27% reduced to 7% over 12 months

Sales input and awareness The audience as part of currency management All entries have feedback form Messages go to contributor Available for archived entries Identity automatically captured through single sign-on All entries have “five-star” rating Messages logged on Admin interface…

Administration Monitor entry status on Admin interface Provide reporting Monitor email failures and responses Identify and follow up staff movements Intervene as required Identify issues Phone calls to recalcitrants Provide training and help

Dealing with knowledge hoarding Tearing down the Ivory Tower

Starting out Start with defined scope A “Knowledge points” system Built into KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) Rewards and Recognition program Include branding, non-monetary rewards Public recognition Must reward only correct behaviour Become part of standard business Need to drive accountability

Extending the scope “Middle-out” approach Started small, but management support critical Original culture became accepted Even with organisational changes Continually emphasise audience needs Sales staff need up-to-date information “Is that on the iStore?” Build into standard Product Launch process

Keep it simple – and standardised Make it as easy as possible to share knowledge Simple web form Contributor selects meta-data All key meta-data mandatory With some optional extras Ensure clarity in classifications Single product name, but optional additional names Single document type, following template Entry title automatically assembled

Building a contributor community Need to Know – quarterly email newsletter Brief, focus on key issues and system updates Report “Top 10” contributors Also update via other media Contributor statistics access Help, guides and training provided Use of dedicated emailbox – “! iStore” Risk of complacency Phone calls, alternative approaches

Using multiple media Applying Social Media principles

Be afraid! A completely open system Anyone can create, update or change Open access to all No log-in required But identity captured and audit trail kept Risk of incorrect information? Never eventuated Trust a critical element The heart of Web/Enterprise 2.0 Trust has been consistently honoured

Sales KnowHow Bulletin Weekly web-based newsletter Latest news on products and campaigns Notice emailed to target audience Only read items of interest Front page has 50-word summary Click through layers to detail Suits time-poor audience

Knowledge Bites Weekly audio and web conference Two 10-minute “bites”, with Q&A Introduced and managed by KM team Presentations delivered by SMEs Slide pack loaded to iStore Audio edited and loaded to iStore Enhanced subscription service Provides ‘podcasting’ Suits time-poor audience

Other tools iKnowItAll Quiz Online interactive quiz Fun learning, suits desk-based staff Scripted audio and video (ProductStream) Online Suits desk-based staff Audio CDs (iRadio) For on-the-road staff Replaced by Knowledge Bites audio

Choosing the media Ignore traditional distinctions Content , communications and training End result is an informed audience Build media to meet audience needs Use available technology Get new technology as required Go outside the firewall if necessary! Use “safe-fail” experiments

System review & refresh Change determined by audience Regular review program Review of entire toolkit Surveys, Focus Groups, Projects, Reviews Qualitative and quantitative measures Team strategy workshops Feed back results Communicate changes

Summary Build a broad-based toolkit Make it "the way we do things around here“ Know the business and meet the needs Know your audience and contributors And how they operate Manage currency and accuracy Address accountability, behaviour and engagement Exercise trust, and make it as easy as possible Human issues come before technology!

Thank You! [email_address] 0418 51 7676 Blog: http://acknowledgeconsulting.com/ Twitter: @kdelarue

KM – Technology, tools, techniques

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