ABSTRACT
Knowledge management has passed through a number of evolutionary stages since its first appearance. Initially the focus was on IT systems created to store, index, and make available an organization’s existing documentation. However, knowledge management is now a great deal more than simple document management. Creating massive databases of raw information, while of some utility, will rarely be sufficient to ensure an organization actively shares its knowledge assets. There are perhaps four further elements to modern knowledge management:
The identification of key know-how, and the creation of summaries designed to increase its visibility. This activity should rarely seek to capture detail, but simply describe the capability, its applications, and contact points. These capability summaries can be stored and shared on a central database. The formation of communities, in targeted areas, that are encouraged to share both problems and solutions across normal organizational structures. Tacit knowledge can be codified and captured if this is necessary to facilitate its sharing or preservation. However, it is important to recognize that most tacit knowledge cannot be effectively captured, and therefore this option should be pursued with care. Maintaining an overview, often captured as a knowledge map, not only of an organization’s knowledge base, but also its strengths and weaknesses.
