Capturing Knowledge

The key to making knowledge-management systems work is cultural

As a part of the implementation phase of your strategy, put in place a system to make the most of the valuable knowledge within your organization. The main function of this system is to capture important knowledge and store it in a form that you can easily access in the future. You can store it simply on paper or in files, or in electronic documents or knowledge-management software.

Tailor the system you use to the importance of the information you are storing. For example, firms for which knowledge is of great advantage, such as international law firms, often invest a considerable amount of money in bespoke knowledge - management systems; smaller firms can achieve good results with word-processing and spreadsheet software.

The key to making knowledge-management systems work is cultural -- you need to create an environment in which sharing knowledge is both encouraged and rewarded.

ACTION POINT: Encourage and reward the sharing of knowledge.