What is Knowledge Management?

Knowledge Management is a new buzzword in today’s ever-changing environment. Knowledge Management refers to new and innovative ways to capture employee’s knowledge, best practices, current procedures and how to do certain things while still holding a specific position. Organizations fear that they will lose its competitive advantage through turnovers of key employees and retraining a new hire to perform at a peak is not only costly but also time-consuming. What if there was a possibility to speed up this process, take on a challenging position and perform at a high level with the help of a Knowledge Management System?

Well, first, there are two different types of knowledge – tactic and explicit. Tactic knowledge is developed through people interaction and trust. It is also believed to be complex to identify and manage, while explicit knowledge is “easily identified and managed through information and communication technology.” Process driven organizations can easily support employees’ knowledge needs through information systems but organization that are heavily project driven may experience some challenges because of dependency on information and communication technology. Organizations can approach the management of their knowledge transfer mechanisms by one of two distinct approaches; codified and personalized. A Codified approach is technology driven to support and manage knowledge, while a Personalized approach is team driven by developing knowledge flow charts and maps. Depending on the organizational complexity, prioritizing knowledge management is often difficult because everything seems to matter. Therefore, an organization should consider looking at knowledge management strategy from the outcome perspective (short and long-term benefits, advantages, gains, etc.) instead of technology.

I think because organizations are facing market challenges and growing pressures to generate high returns on investment (ROI) and bottom-line profits, many organizations will turn around and look to Knowledge Management systems to address these challenges. Knowledge Management system will help them not only capture knowledge but also increase productivity and reduce training cost.

In the years ahead of us as we try to get out of the economic crisis it will be critical for any organization to encourage more dialogue and better interaction between internal staff and clients to bridge the gabs and become more profitable. But you can’t become profitable if you don’t posses product or process knowledge. So, is Knowledge Management System a viable solution? Perhaps because I think that cost-effective opportunities exist to capture knowledge and one possibility is through the use of Virtual Teams. Virtual Teams usually consist of cross-functional experts and those experts might be able to find out where a particular item of information or knowledge within the firm is or who knows what I need to know in order to complete the project most effectively and efficiently. However, there are many questions around Knowledge Management including:

1. How do you determine the best strategy to capture knowledge?
2. What is Knowledge Management and why is knowledge important?
3. How does a Knowledge Management System work?
4. How effective are Knowledge Management Systems?
5. Are Knowledge Management Systems the same as Learning Management Systems?
6. Who uses Knowledge Management Systems and why?

What is your opinion on this? Your thoughts and ideas are welcome!

Leading Virtual Teams

In the Leading Virtual Teams article, Malhotra, Majchrzak, and Rosen define specific challenges and opportunities with regard to virtual teams. It is believed that in order for a virtual team to be most successful, management must exercise the following six best practices:
1. Establish and maintain trust through the use of communication technology
2. Ensure diversity in the team in understood, appreciated, and leveraged
3. Manage virtual work-cycle and meetings
4. Monitor team progress through the use of technology
5. Enhance external visibility of the team and its members, and
6. Ensure individuals benefit from participating in virtual teams

What would you say is a virtual team? Virtual teams are groups of members or individuals who work in geographically dispersed locations that communicate and complete their work through electronic means such as the web, e-mail, and phone – communication technology. Teleworking is one example of being a part of a virtual team. However, Teleworking is not the only mean of virtual teams. In most cases, virtual teams consist of cross functional members with complementary knowledge, skills, abilities and commitment to work towards common goals yet present unique leadership challenges. Those challenges are briefly mentioned above (1-6) but they can be easily overcome by scheduling weekly phone or video conferences (even in person meetings); focusing on quality of work and outcomes rather then presence in the office; developing meaningful assignments to leverage and maximize everyone’s capabilities and interaction; and finally, recognize members for outstanding achievements despite being away from the office.

“Synchronizing the efforts of a geographically, culturally, and technically diverse virtual team does not happen magically…first priority is to build the kinds of working relationships where team members will freely share knowledge, leverage members’ collective expertise, anticipate each others’ actions, and feel confident that all team members are making a full-fledged contribution to the team’s success.”

Most recently, in one of my previous jobs, I was given the opportunity to occasionally telework. While the opportunity existed to telework more frequently, I was limited to only one day per week. Often, I wondered what the reason might be because it clearly wasn’t due to lack of time or work management, interaction with my supervisor, or work quality. Other members in the department remained puzzled too, but soon we realized that it was due to the lack of trust; supervisor’s discomfort to use communication technology; inability to establish performance goals and manage clear expectations. Today, I wonder how effective those members would have been had the teleworked more than just one day had there been more trust, effective use of technology for communication, or clearer expectations…

Six IT Decisions Your IT People Shouldn’t Make

Jeanne Ross and Peter Weill describe the six IT decisions that your IT people should not make because they will incapacitate your organization while seeking to reach the highest potential by implementing various information technologies. IT investments most successfully generate returns that are as much as 40% higher than those of their competitors. This is significant if you intent to remain successful in the market.

Well, it is interesting when you hear many executives complain about their investment into technology, yet they were the ones who approved the RFP and project initiation then implementation. It is also interesting when you hear executive complain because they cannot realize the difference it makes in their organization despite the successful implementation and high ratio for return on investment. Anyway, I think it has to do with the fact which way they look at technology and how they align it with their corporate strategy. Of course you may not see the immediate value if you are seeking a short-term solution but if you are seeking a long-term solution, it may not generate the ROI immediately but it will in a long run.

Should you rather implement short-term solutions or long-term solutions? I remember being on a project that involved either developing or purchasing IT software that would enable the nine districts of the organization to place orders for highway and road signs while allowing to better manage expenditures, production cost and inventory. Money wasn’t the major concern; however, the executive sponsor wanted this project to be the top priority for the IT people but the prioritization process had already taken place a few months prior and the budgeting had been established. It created a lot of hassle and somewhat a small conflict between the IT director and the OD director which business processes should receive our IT dollars. One thing I do remember is that during the planning session, IT never posed questions related to decision-making.

The Competitive Advantage of X-Teams

Managerial buy-in and support will set the tone for success or failure of a team. The five key success factors of X-Teams are external activity, extensive ties, expandable structures, flexible membership and internal mechanisms, but team “flexibility” is the second most common reason why initiatives fail.

Teams are usually inwardly oriented and need to focus more on the bigger picture because internal and external factors (technology, demand, resources, money) will influence the success or failure. Teams need to ask more questions; work on the short-term and long-term vision; be more flexible to the changes and obtain leadership support. The external activities play a major role in the X-Team’s ability to go above and beyond to obtain resources. Having a strong working relationship with the project sponsor will enable your team to plan your activities better and coordinate the tasks accordingly. However, before you can do that you will have to establish and maintain a good relationship with the sponsor and/or organizational leadership. It is also important to understand when to cross the boundary to obtain additional resources.

Having a strong understanding of how the business is run is another key to success because team member may be asked to leave one group and join another. As a project leader it is important to quickly act and shift your resources or recruit another team player. Access to valuable information and decentralized decision-making approach is needed. Also imagine if everything was going well so far and then all of the sudden you reach a dead-end because you are not able to put the pieces together. Having team members that are able to bring outside resources to support the team is of high importance. Therefore, team flexibility and being able to adapt to rapid changes is very important.

Does employee fear exist in organizations that have X-Teams? I am asking this question because I have the feeling that X-Teams might be viewed as a “treat” to certain individuals within an organization because they are able to accomplish things faster, better and more cost effective. It could create the fear of potential job loss (layoffs).

A few years ago, I held a job as Change Management Consultant helping an organization manage change and implement activities that will enable them to operate more effectively and efficiently. My success was pending on the team I selected to help me plan and implement key projects. For the most parts, I used the same key ideas explored in this article to organize a highly effective team. This team helped me get the buy-in and on-going support from the leadership and we were able to implement two projects that saved the organization a lot of money. Had this team not been able to obtain the leadership support, all this time and effort in planning would have been for nothing and we would have failed miserably. However, at the same time, there was a lot of fear within the organization. Many employees viewed our “Change Management Team” as a team that was in the process of streamlining the business operation to cut positions because new business approach (programs, processes and technology) were introduced and didn’t require nearly as many employees as we had at that time. The end result: a couple of years later the team was demolished.

Putting the Enterprise into the Enterprise System

What systems should companies use to manage all of their company components of operation? It is suggested that Enterprise Systems are the best because it is a “custom of the shelf” product that fits all your needs – from finances, HR, and operations down to logistics, sales, and marketing. It is fully customizable and easily integrated saving companies millions while enabling them to operate more strategic.

The demand for an integrated Enterprise System was fairly low. In 1992, the demand shifted through the rapid technological advances and the increased use of technology (mainly Internet). In order to maintain a competitive advantage in a rapidly changing environment, companies were looking for systems that will enable them to operate more effectively and efficiently, especially in the HR field of operation. Germany’s SAP vendor became the fastest growing software company in the world. Its sharpest competitors include the U.S. based companies PeopleSoft and Oracle. The new terminology the emerged from Enterprise Systems is Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP). The article also suggests that you need to be very careful when looking for an enterprise system because you have to be able to first align the company’s strategy, organization and culture with this new system in order to be successful. If you can’t do that then this new system will be very costly while serving very little purpose for an organization. Sometimes we need to be reminded that an Enterprise System is not really just software but rather a new way of conducting business because we will have to change and adapt to a new processes. Additionally, Enterprise Systems shall enable an organization to be more effective and efficient; however, the risks such as time and cost associated with them are just as great.
My personal view on an integrated Enterprise System (and I hope I don’t offend anyone) is that I believe it is a waste of money. Back in the ‘60s, ‘70s, or ’80, it might have been a wonderful application; however, nowadays, technology is changing every 3-6 months. Additionally, pending on the market you are serving and how much competition you have (external factors) you may find yourself in a very challenging situation like Dell, Mobile Europe, FoxMeyer, etc. How do you supposed to keep up with it? Do you supposed to upgrade your system every 6-12 months? What’s the cost associated with that?

My current employer has a mainframe-based system that was developed and implemented in the ‘60s. Last month, the Board approved a new contract with a vendor to develop and implement a new mainframe-based system. The project development has started and the implementation will take place over the next 5-6 years. Well, I have a serious problem with that because it is a $46.5 million project and over the next 5-6 years the demand will have shifted drastically forcing them to rethink the way they are currently conducting the business. There will be an increased need to further streamline the operation so this newly developed and implemented mainframe-based system will be outdated once again...

OD through the use of Competencies

Today, we live in a fast-past, highly driven business environment. It is no secret that success of any organization is driven by those individuals with innovation, great leadership, knowledge, skills, and abilities that align well with business goals and needs. In order to reach the maximum potential, it is important for an organization to determine what is important to them, what they value most, and how to best position themselves to compete against their sharpest competitors.

Positioning your organization to be faster, better and cheaper sounds great but could your organization or business unit still benefit from higher productivity or efficiency? Are you looking to improve things like team effectiveness, quality, or customer service? Organizational effectiveness can be achieved through a simple process called “Competency Integration.”

In recent years, topics on emerging issues such as workforce shortage, employee performance, managing change, succession planning, etc. have troubled many employers across various industries. How do we develop the internal capabilities to most efficiently and effectively execute organizational goals?

A strategic organization would use competencies to measure characteristics of an individual that are related to superior performance on the job. Measurable characteristics include technical know-how (knowledge, skills, and abilities) as well as other attributes such as individual characteristics (positive attitude, adaptability, accountability, etc.) that contribute to a person’s overall success. In an employee’s mind, success is defined when the work they perform is meaningful, experiential, engaging, and appreciative by the organization and senior leadership. Then they will find the value of their contributions to the organization, their personal and professional growth. When you sum up all these elements, then you have a satisfied employee, low turnover, and higher productivity and profitability.

Additionally, competencies can be a critical component of career paths that help individuals match their technical know-how as well as individual characteristics and behaviors with short and long-term goals in order to reach personal and professional fulfillment. The competencies also provide employees with a basis for discussions about performance management and expectations with their supervisor. On the hand, there are benefits to the employer. Successful implementation of competencies in different programs and processes will benefit your organization in a long run. The competencies provide the organization with information to make strategic business decisions. A clear understanding of the value of competencies will assists your organization in hiring individuals, whose skills and individual characteristics successfully match the requirements of the job, minimizing costly hiring mistakes and turnover. The competencies also enable your organization to forecast the types of skills and characteristics needed to meet future business needs. Linking competencies to business strategy is a key success factor. They will appear throughout many HR programs and processes for a higher efficiency and organizational effectiveness including change management, talent and leadership development.

Ask yourself, what are the critical skills of the future? How do we ensure people possess them or can develop them in relevant ways so that they can step into key leadership roles? Using competencies means consistency. Competencies provide a common language though which we can more easily identify, discuss, and develop the skills needed for the future. Using competencies, we are better positioned to align the people processes within the organization and compete for new markets generating higher ROI and bottom line profits.