The Psychology of Quality and More

How Knowledge Management Systems Fail and Succeed

~ David Straker ~

-- How knowledge systems fail -- How knowledge systems succeed --

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How knowledge systems succeed

Knowledge systems succeed, perhaps unsurprisingly, when they give their customers what they want, meet broader company goals and are reasonably easy to manage and maintain.

 Customer-driven

First of all, a knowledge system must meet the needs of the people who use it. This means spending time understanding the various purposes for which the system is used. As in any commercial system, the customer is the ultimate arbiter of quality.

Customer needs include the type of knowledge available, the format in which it is placed and the system by which this information is accessed. This system may include both the knowledge and ‘meta-knowledge’ – i.e. information about the knowledge to help customers quickly and easily find the knowledge they need for a particular situation.

Knowledge  customers can include sales people, developers and coal-face consultants. Although all have similar interests, they differ in the detail of knowledge they need and the most useful format for them.

Push and pull

Typically, a combination of push and pull is required with knowledge users. Knowledge push provides information to users on what information is available. As well as email and other information provision, it can include education sessions (of varying formats) whereby they can increase understanding in areas of interest and gain an appreciation of new topics.

The ‘Not Invented Here’ syndrome and the allure of Doing It Yourself can override the rational approach of using what is available. The project and overall management system should push consultants to make appropriate use of ‘standard materials’ (intellectual engagement is an additional consideration that is not covered here).

Pull is created through the provision of real value. When people see the knowledge system as useful and critical to their jobs then pull will increase.

 Supply-side management

People who have knowledge that needs to be entered into the knowledge system must be motivated to provide this knowledge. This means the people motivation and management systems must be oriented towards achieving this goal. It also means projects and other knowledge-creating processes include mandatory elements whereby knowledge is extracted from experiences and fed back to the knowledge system.

A common and effective solution for supply management is to have dedicated resource. Although this may include IT management, the major value is in having someone who has sufficient expertise to understand well the knowledge topics and who can add value, for example in creating and formatting the knowledge that will be used.

Evolutionary development

Effective knowledge systems seldom start out big, especially not in the technological sense. They start with an understanding of need and available knowledge, then grow and evolve as the focus of needs moves and explicit knowledge increases.

IT systems can start as simple hyperlinked webs, later developing database access and search capabilities as needed. Knowledge can start with what is available with reformatting, rewriting and custom generation according to short-term requirements and longer-term plans.

Occasionally, as when companies grow, the organising system requires overhaul and re-building. These are always points of risk where a balance must be found between an inadequate revision of the current system and the temptation to dive into the ‘big bang’ ultimate system.

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