Implementing Corporate Portals for
Knowledge Management:
key lessons
E.M Lyon
Prof. Dr. José Cláudio C. Terra
Lyon, February, 2006

Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 0 – Strategic Intention –
New Paradigm!!!! Aha!!
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Who will benefit?
Who are among the key
segments that will benefit
from the portal?
Legal, marketing, CFO,
Suppliers top management
Call center
Product Development
Clients
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Who will benefit?
AUDIENCES QUANTITATIVE QUALITATIVE NOTES
BENEFITS BENEFITS
Top   
Management
Product   
Development
Finance   
HR   
Suppliers   
Clients   
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 1 – Make sure the KM initiative is tied to
strategic goals
 It is important to identify the sources of
intellectual capital and start there
 It is necessary to include the “knowledge
dimension” in the strategic plan. Typical questions?
What kind of K should be developed alone or in
collaboration?
What should be acquired externally?
What kind of K should shared (Leveraged)?
What kind of K should be protected/preserved?
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 2 – Focus on Key processes and Core
Competencies are complementary approaches
 Which processes are most critical?
 Which categories of Knowledge are most important
in the firm’s strategic processes?
 Are they mostly tacit or explicit?
 Which topics and competencies require a pro-
active, deliberate organizational effort to foster
knowledge sharing and collective learning?
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
Analysis of Organizational Processes from
a Knowledge Perspective
I. Strategic Value of Knowledge in the process
II. Undisputed, clear opportunities for KM
III. Level of knowledge protection
IV. Internal sources of knowledge
V. External sources of knowledge
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 3 – A Good Taxonomy is very important
enabler of knowledge sharing
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 3 – A Good Taxonomy is very important
enabler of knowledge sharing
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 3 – A Good Taxonomy is very important
enabler of knowledge sharing
• Categories
• Metadata
• Navigation & search
• governance
• Automatic and manual strategies
• Content migration
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 4 – Information Policy
 Is everything confidential until proven
otherwise? Or everything is accessible until
proven otherwise?
 Who can publish?
 What kind of information needs to be pre-
approved?
 What kind of information can be shared with
clients, partners and suppliers?
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
It is difficult for large, global organizations
to remain competitive in industries that
demand rapid cycles of knowledge
creation, diffusion and usage, without
highly advanced digital collaboration tools.
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 5 – IT tools (corporate portals) will be
increasingly important and in some cases mandatory
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
Presentation Layer Personalization
Presentation Layer - Personalization
Search Engine
Search Engine
Web Applications
Applications
Document amd Workflow
Connectors
Management Systems
Content Management
Desktop Applications
Collaboration Tools
EAI
Systems
Financial Syst.
Bus. Intellig.
DATA
HR Systems
WEB
Legacy
CRM
ERP
Highly Nature of Digital Highly
Unstructured - Tacit Information Structured - Explicit
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Portals = Processes + Business Intelligence
“My workspace”
Portals = Internal and External Collaboration
• My Personal Spaces
Portals = Personalization + Customization • My Teams
• My Projects
Portals = Content + Applications + Services
• My Communities
Portals = Categorized Search (Advanced) • My Processes
• My Unit
Portals = Links + Search • My Organization
• My Interests
Sites, Intranets e Extranets
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 6 – Focus of Content Management should
be in the process, not in the technology
 Quality is more important than quantity
 Put in place a capture process that is simple,
friendly and distributed
 Develop a content strategy before any coding
 “Knowledge brokers”, moderators and
content owners is key
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 7 – Focus on the relevance
During Content Creation Use: Filters & Validation
 Details about the authors
 Filters, Agents &
 Pre-validation Categorization
 Details about the information  Customization and
- Summary Personalization
- Key-words  Role of Moderators
- Categorization  Validation (Feedback from
users; Volume of access and
- Life-cycle Life-cycle)
 Design standardization
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 7 – KM initiatives are large “Change
Management” projects
 “IAN, Intellectual Asset Network” - Context Integration
 “GXC” or Global Exchange Network – Bain & Company
 “ELVIS” or Eli Lilly Virtual Information Systems – Eli Lilly
 Sharenet – Siemens
 PeopleNet – Texaco
 Eureka – Xerox
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
 Multidisciplinary teams working together not only to
develop the infrastructure, but also to publicize, train and
motivate people throughout the organizations
 Focus on early-adopters
 Significant internal communication, including:
 Posters
 Newsletters
 Communication booths
 Local training sessions and gatherings (with the
presence of senior management)
 E-mail communications
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 8- New members need special attention: from
invitation to introduction
Key role of
local offices
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 9 - Lead by example and make sure critical mass is
developed rapidly
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 10 - Participants need to develop an online identity
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 11 – KM leads to new metrics
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 11 – KM requires/leads to new metrics
 Users’ perspective is evaluated frequently
 Mechanisms for evaluating individual,
department, office contributions to the growth of
intellectual capital is put in place
 The demand, flow and use of content and
knowledge objects are measured in order to better
understand the organization and the business
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 11 - Recognize levels of participation and develop a
reputation system
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 11 - Monitor activity and satisfaction level
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 11 - Monitor activity and satisfaction level
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
Key Inputs KM System Expected
Outputs
Quality of Content
& Applications Impact on Work
Ease of Use
Level of Contribution
And Commitment Impact on Connections
Formal KM processes Impact on Learning
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 12 - Promote special online and offline events and
celebrate success!
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 12 - Promote special online and offline events and
celebrate success!
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 12 - Promote special online and offline events and
celebrate success!
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 13 – KM demands a Colaborative
Organizational Culture
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 13 – KM demands a Colaborative
Organizational Culture
 Colaborative attitude is important for hiring and
promotion
 Time is invested in the transmission of values,
culture and the development of personal networks
(particularly in the first weeks of work of new
employees)
 Colaborative attitudes are formally recognized
 Physical spaces foster communications and reduce
evidence of hierarchy and status
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 13 – KM demands a Colaborative
Organizational Culture
 Transparency
 Be seen as trustworthy
 Examples of knowledge sharing
 Reputation
 Respect of personal life
 Noble goals and objectives
 Fostering of personal contact
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 14 – Think BIG, with a long-term perspective,
BUT start small, strategically and show results
quickly
 Where is the sweet spot?
 Where are my allies?
 Where KM helps clients?
 Divulge the results and sucess cases in
frequently and in multiple ways!!!
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Implementing a Corporate Portal with a
Focus on KM: Key Lessons Learned
# 15 – KM demands work in many dimensions
 Strategy
 Technology
Which ones are most
 Processes important?
 People
 Organization
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Final
Considerations
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Final Considerations
Paradox
Knowledge can not be managed
Knowledge resides in people’s heads
KM is not a project
 KM means focusing the managment process in the
knowledge variable. It requires a new perspective, new
processess and tools!!!
 Coherence and Persistence are big challenges!
 KM may lead a firm to rethink its organization and
business model
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Thank You!
Dr. José Cláudio Terra
jcterra@terraforum.com.br
www.terraforum.com.br
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