2. “Successful companies of the 21st century
will be those who do the best jobs of
capturing, storing and leveraging what
their employees know.” ~ Lew Platt, CEO,
Hewlett Packard
2
3. Outline
What is Knowledge
Knowledge Perspectives
Knowledge Taxonomy
What is Knowledge Management
Knowledge Management Project Goals
Knowledge Management Processes
Knowledge Management Systems
Knowledge Management at Hewlett Packard
3
5. Information processed in the minds of
individuals.
Knowledge becomes effective information
once it is articulated and presented in the
form of text, graphics, words, or other
symbolic forms.
5
6. Knowledge Perspectives
A state of mind
An object
A process
A condition of having access to information
A capability
6
10. Knowledge Taxonomy
Tacit
o Cognitive (mental models)
o Technical (concrete know-how)
Explicit
o Articulated, codified, and communicated in symbolic
form and/or natural language (owner’s manual)
Individual
Collective (created and inherent in the group)
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14. Knowledge Management?
Knowledge management refers to the identifying and
leveraging of the collective knowledge in an organization
to help the organization compete.
14
20. Knowledge Management Systems (KMS)
A class of information systems applied to managing
organizational knowledge.
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21. KMS - Applications
The coding and sharing of best practices
The creation of corporate knowledge directories
The creation of knowledge networks
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22. Knowledge Management Goals
To make knowledge visible and show the role of knowledge
in an organization.
To develop a knowledge-intensive by encouraging and
aggregating behaviours such as knowledge sharing and
proactively seeking and offering knowledge.
To build knowledge infrastructure-not only a technical
system, but a web of connections among people given
space, time, tools, and encouragement to interact and
collaborate.
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23. KMS and Knowledge Application
Three mechanisms for integration of knowledge to create
organizational capability
o Directives
o Organizational routines
o Self-contained task teams
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25. Overview
$38 billion in 1996
112,000 employees
600 locations around the world
Markets
o Computers and peripheral equipment
o Test and measurement devices
o Electronic components
o Medical devices
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26. Organizational Context
Small, autonomous business uses
Management by walking around
Open office environment
Sharing, high-trust culture
Loyal, empowered people
Permission to experiment and fail
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32. Knowledge Management
HP Consulting
o 5,000 employees
Objectives
o To deliver more value to customers without increasing hours
worked.
o To bring more intellectual capital to solutions.
o To create an environment where everyone is enthusiastic about
sharing knowledge and leveraging the knowledge of others.
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33. KM – Organizational Readiness
Assessment of existing level of knowledge sharing, leverage,
and reuse.
Challenges
o Uncertainty about leadership commitment
o Reinvention of the wheel
o Practical ways to share
o Time
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34. KM – Four Step Change Model
1. Mobilization
o Familiarize the pilot teams with the business imperative and
objectives for knowledge management.
2. Vision
o Our vision is that our consultants feel and act as if they have
the entire organization at their fingertips when they consult
with customers. They know where to go to find information.
They are eager to share knowledge as well as leverage other’s
experience in order to deliver more value to customers…
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35. KM – Four Step Change Model
2. Vision
o Values
1. Leveraging other people’s knowledge, experience, and
deliverables is a desired behaviour.
2. Innovation is highly valued when both successes and
failures are shared.
3. Time spent increasing both one’s own and others’
knowledge and confidence is a highly valued activity.
4. Consultants who actively share their knowledge and draw
on the knowledge of others will dramatically increase their
worth.
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36. KM – Four Step Change Model
3. Design
o Design processes for sharing experiences and surfacing
knowledge for reuse.
4. Transition
o Introduce new knowledge processes, values, and behaviours.
o Two day workshop
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37. KM - Processes
Learning communities
o Informal groups that cross organizational boundaries and come
together to discuss best practices, issues, or skills that the
group wants to learn about.
o Provides an environment for consultants to connect with each
other, learn from each other, and experience the value of sharing
and reuse.
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38. KM - Processes
Project snapshots
o Sessions designed to collect lessons learned and collateral from
a project team that can be reused by future project team.
Knowledge mapping
o A process that identifies knowledge, skills, collateral, and tools
needed to sell or deliver a solution.
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39. KM - Processes
Results from learning communities session
o Reduction in delivery times while improving quality through
leveraging.
o Reusing and standardizing proposal and presentation materials
resulting in increased productivity.
o Sharing a wide range of tacit knowledge resulting in improved
know-how.
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40. KM – Information Technology
Standardized and fully automated desktop-computing
environment
Lotus Notes
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41. KM – Information Technology
Issues
o Information overload
o Supply >>> Absorption capacity
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43. KM – Information Technology
Lessons from organization-wide initiative
o Leadership must provide a foundation for change through
unequivocal support and motivation.
o Sponsors must be both evangelists and role models.
o Knowledge management begins with processes to share and
create knowledge and is sustained by a knowledge-friendly
culture.
o People are willing to share and reuse knowledge if they feel it is
desirable and expected behaviour.
o Technology is an enabler, not the driver.
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44. Conclusion
Knowledge: Information processed in the minds of
individuals.
Knowledge perspectives (state of mind, object, process,
access to information, capability)
Taxonomy (tacit vs. explicit; individual vs. collective)
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45. Conclusion
Knowledge management: identifying and leveraging of the
collective knowledge in an organization to help the
organization compete.
Knowledge management processes (creating,
storing/retrieving, tranferring, applying)
Knowledge management systems: A class of information
systems applied to managing organizational knowledge.
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46. Conclusion
HP had a transfer problem between organizational units
They fixed it with I.T. and organizational change
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47. References
1. Alavi, M., & Leidner, D. E. (2001). Review: Knowledge management and knowledge management
systems: Conceptual foundations and research issues. MIS Quarterly, , 107-136.
2. Martiny, M. (1998). Knowledge management at HP consulting. Organizational Dynamics, 27(2), 71-
77. doi:10.1016/S0090-2616(98)90025-0
3. Sieloff, C. G. (1999). "if only HP knew what HP knows": The roots of knowledge management at
hewlett-packard. Journal of Knowledge Management, 3(1), 47-53.
doi:10.1108/13673279910259385
4. Davenport, T. if only HP knew what HP knows…. Retrieved from
http://www.providersedge.com/docs/km_articles/if_only_hp_knew_what_hp_knows.pdf
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