Knowledge audits help organizations identify their knowledge-based assets and develop strategies to manage them.

1. The views expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Asian
Development Bank (ADB) or its Board of Governors or the governments they represent. By making any designation of or reference to a
particular territory or geographic area, or by using the term "country" in this document, ADB does not intend to make any judgments as to the
legal or other status of any territory or area.
Auditing Knowledge
Olivier Serrat
2016

2. Consider This
What are an organization's knowledge needs?
What tacit and explicit knowledge assets does it have and where are they?
How does knowledge flow within the organization, formally and informally,
and to and from clients, audiences, and partners?
How is that knowledge identified, created, stored, shared, and used?
What obstacles are there to knowledge flows, meaning, to what extent do
people, processes, and technology support or hamper the movement of
knowledge in the organization?
What gaps and duplications exist in the organization's knowledge?

3. Define: Knowledge Audit
Knowledge
1. Facts, information, and skills acquired by a person through
experience or education; the theoretical or practical
understanding of a subject.
2. What is known in a particular field or in total; facts and
information.
3. Awareness or familiarity gained by experience of a fact or
situation.
A knowledge audit is an investigation of what an organization knows, mapped
against user and organizational needs: it pays attention to the what, where,
who, when, how and why of core knowledge activities, e.g., identification,
creation, storage, sharing, and use; it can span an organization or constituent
parts of it.

4. Why Conduct a Knowledge Audit?
Identify what knowledge is needed to reach an organization's goal and
support individual and group activities
Recognize the knowledge created and help assess its value and contribution
to organizational performance
Confirm that knowledge is being efficiently and effectively managed and
indicate where changes can be made
Identify intellectual assets and facilitate the creation of an intellectual asset
register
Distinguish pockets of knowledge that are not being used to advantage and
offer potential
Review the use of external knowledge and suggest ways to optimize that

5. Why Conduct a Knowledge Audit?
Assess the use and impact of knowledge products and services, how valuable
they are, and how they might be improved
Circumscribe knowledge flows and associated bottlenecks
Make out present and future knowledge gaps
Develop knowledge and social network maps of an organization
Supply data to support knowledge management initiatives
Pinpoint quick wins

6. Knowledge Audit Constituents
Identify knowledge needs
Draw up a knowledge
inventory
Analyze knowledge
flows
Create knowledge maps
Identify what tacit and explicit knowledge individuals,
groups, and the organization possess and what
knowledge they need to perform better.
Inventorize knowledge assets: (i) explicit—categories
and numbers of documents, databases, libraries,
intranets, etc.; (ii) tacit—staff directories, skill databases,
training programs, etc.
Investigate how knowledge moves from where it is to
where it is needed, revealing good and bad practices,
paying attention to people, processes, and technology.
Visualize the sources, flows, and sinks of knowledge in
an organization.

7. Knowledge Audit Methodology
Knowledge Audit
Methodology
Source: ADB. 2008. Auditing the
Lessons Architecture. Manila.
www.adb.org/publications/auditi
ng-lessons-architecture
There can be no blueprint to a
knowledge audit: the time it
takes to prepare and conduct one
depends on such parameters as
(i) the focus needed, e.g.
knowledge stocks and/or
knowledge flows); (ii) the size of
the target population, its
geographical location, and the
level of participation desired; (iii)
the resources available as well as
their capability; and (iv) the level
of detail required.

8. Indicative Knowledge Audit Time
Frame
Phase Activity Month 1 Month 2 Month 3 Month 4 Month 5
1 Knowledge Audit Preparations
Plan knowledge audit
Assimilate core knowledge activities
Delineate interface characteristics
Identify and liaise with key audiences
Select and design audit forms
2 Knowledge Audit Analysis
Identify knowledge needs
Draw up knowledge inventory
Analyze knowledge flows
Create knowledge maps
3 Knowledge Audit Review
Assess knowledge audit findings
Discuss knowledge audit
Close knowledge audit
4 Business Planning
Decide on knowledge management initiatives
Formulate business plans
Source: ADB. 2008. Auditing the Lessons Architecture. Manila.
www.adb.org/publications/auditing-lessons-architecture

9. Auditing the Lessons Architecture
Interface
Strategy
Development
Management
Techniques
Collaboration
Mechanisms
Knowledge
Sharing and
Learning
Knowledge
Capture and
Storage
OED–OED
    
OED–ADB
   
OED–DMCs
  
OED–IEC
  
ADB = Asian Development Bank, DMC = developing member country, IEC = international
evaluation community, OED = Operations Evaluation Department.
Source: ADB. 2008. Auditing the Lessons Architecture. Manila.
www.adb.org/publications/auditing-lessons-architecture

10. Further Reading
• ADB. 2008. Auditing the Lessons Architecture. Manila.
http://www.adb.org/publications/auditing-lessons-
architecture
• ――. 2008. Auditing Knowledge. Manila.
www.adb.org/publications/auditing-knowledge
• ――. 2009. Learning Lessons with Knowledge Audits. Manila.
www.adb.org/publications/learning-lessons-knowledge-
audits

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