Knowledge Facts and Forecasts
Knowledge Management in Flux
Although "knowledge" generates on average more than 50 % of total added value, according to Germanys Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology, intellectual capital is often not utilized. A survey conducted by auditing firm KPMG revealed that 78 % of participating companies believe that they lose business because they make insufficient use of internal knowledge. Thats hardly surprising, given that companies on average invest less than 2 % of their earnings in knowledge management (KM). One reason for this is that return on investment is difficult to quantify. Thats because knowledge must be improved before the advantagesbetter products, closeness to the customer and higher innovative capacitycan be realized.
For 500 companies in Germany that participated in a study by the Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research, the most important reason for KM is the internal dissemination and integration of knowledge. The second most compelling reason cited was concern over "brain drain"the loss of knowledge that results when employees leave. Over 95 % of the surveyed companies use the Internet as an information source, though strategies for the management of external knowledge are not the norm. For every sector, the study shows a clear correlation between KM activities and innovative capacity. And in an online survey conducted by the Institute for e-Management, companies unanimously reported that they view intranet development as a positive factor, although only one in three companies is systematically introducing an intranet. According to KPMG, the application of KM has changed considerably:
- In 1998 companies were mainly interested in technical solutions for storing information and making it accessible. KM was not yet integrated into everyday work activities.
- Some two years later the first unequivocal successes were enjoyed by companies practicing KM, even though errors were made in its implementation.
- Almost all respondents in the 2002/2003 study rated KM as a strategic advantage. Companies are concentrating particularly on establishing communities of practice, competence centers, information portals and document databases. In addition to making KM more professional, the agenda for the future includes the incorporation of customers, suppliers and partners.
Knowledge management is now also important for small and medium-sized companies, as another KPMG study shows. Nearly one third of the respondents have already introduced KM. "Because information can be communicated faster in smaller companies, they achieve a great deal with a small investment," explains Peter Heisig, head of the Knowledge Management Competence Center at the Fraunhofer Institute IPK in Berlin. "Like quality management, knowledge management will become a kind of builders kit providing a variety of methods and tools," maintains Heisig, who is collaborating on a guide to good practices in knowledge management for the European Committee for Standardization.
Dörte Otten
Obstacles to the Introduction of KM
Companies expect synergy effects and added value from knowledge management. KM may be difficult to introduce, however, if strategies and resources are in short supply
Why Companies Introduce KM
Knowledge Management Toolbox
The German Association for Personnel Management specifies over 90 KM tools, including:
- An electronic "whos who" for finding sought-after experts quickly,
- Lessons-learnt processes for the exchange of experiences on successes and failures,
- Mentoring to facilitate contact between new employees and experienced co-workers,
- Networks of experts,
- Corporate universities for cross-border and multigroup continuing education