I was honored to be asked to speak for the 8th Annual Law Firm Chief Information & Technology Officers Forum in early February. The Forum was held in New York, and was connected with the annual LegalTech Conference. I was delighted to be with so many CIOs and CTOs working in the legal profession, and it was a great time for networking and meeting new friends and professional colleagues.
The subject of my presentation was “Take the Knowledge Strategy Lead at Your Firm: Ten Steps for Transitioning from CIO/CTO to Your Firm’s Knowledge Thought Leader.”
As often happens in these situations, I’m anxious to share my thoughts with clients, colleagues, and students. So moving beyond the legal profession, the “ten steps” presentation is now available in a more generic framework, which we’ve published as SMR’s next Special Report, Knowledge Strategy: Take Charge – Move Forward as the Knowledge Thought Leader in Your Organization. We think these ten steps will work in any organization and lead to better KD/KS management.
Here’s the summary:
Enterprise leaders now recognize that organizational success and organizational effectiveness relate directly to how well knowledge development and knowledge sharing (KD/KS) are managed.
Knowledge value is now understood. In today’s well-managed company, enterprise leaders connect information management, knowledge management (KM), and strategic learning – the convergence referred to as “knowledge services” – as the driver for a new management emphasis in the company.
Making that connection re-shapes the organization as a knowledge culture, a workplace environment in which KD/KS is practiced as well as it can be practiced. A company built as a knowledge culture uses collaboration, open communication, and excellence in KD/KS to achieve its mission.
The organization’s most valued employee is the knowledge strategist, the firm’s knowledge thought leader. For knowledge workers seeking to take on more responsibility in developing and implementing knowledge strategy, here are ten steps:
- Focus on personal and professional goals – is taking on the role of knowledge thought leader a job you want?
- Does the organization need a knowledge thought leader?
- How do things “work” in the company? How is KD/KS managed now?
- Has KD/KS – as a process – been worked on before? What were the results? What resources were required?
- Can you make a case for improved (better) KD/KS?
- The knowledge strategist is a leader, and KD/KS leadership starts with change management. Can you “think big”?
- Are you willing to conduct a thorough KD/KS assessment (“knowledge audit”)?
- Are you willing to learn everything you can about strategy, so you can develop the corporate knowledge strategy?
- Are you enthusiastic? You will be required to raise awareness about the company’s knowledge strategy.
- All things considered, are you willing to take on the challenge of moving the organization to a knowledge culture?
Guy St. Clair teaches at Columbia University in the City of New York. His subject is knowledge services, an approach to managing intellectual capital that merges information management (including technology management), knowledge management, and strategic learning. He is the author of Knowledge Services: A Strategic Framework for the 21st Century Organization (Munich: De Gruyter, 2016).
Posted by Nora Martin at the LinkedIn Special Libraries Association Group:
KM is essentially about bringing people together, creating connections and human-to-human interaction rather than human-to-computer links. An innovative culture, information quality, accountability and strategic connections all make an unerring and major contribution to knowledge sharing.
The ‘soft’ benefits of knowledge initiatives include better team work and enhanced collaboration as well as improved responsiveness to clients. Overall, the fundamental themes that emerge are innovation, collaboration and sharing.
Mentoring and coaching of staff can play a significant role in any KM strategy. This practice would assist new staff learn from longer serving staff, impart knowledge and cultivate attitudes of cooperation and support. It is crucial when hiring new employees to select people who want to learn and share information, as this is a key facet of creating and fostering a knowledge-sharing environment. Finally, the focus of knowledge management is the value of an organisations human resources or social capital.
At the same group, Jamal Cromity commented:
Good points Nora. It really does take “sharing” to build on knowledge management and that is difficult for information professionals when the information they share does not directly benefit their work.
Edwin K. Morris at LinkedIn’s KM/Knowledge Services Group write:
I would love to find the organization/culture that actually want a thought leader!
At the same group, Julio dos Anjos comments:
Most usually don’t… I’m still looking for one who wants a Knowledge Manager, in a deeply recessive economy like mine.
I say the this should push Organizations toward Knowledge Management even more, as Organizational Memory is a big time and cost saver… but I’m preaching in the desert…
I would just like to find a Portuguese organization who wants to develop its “self awareness”, “strategic vision” and “market positioning” through the creation or development of a KD/KS function, in a frozen economy. They could call me whatever they wanted… even “mad guy on the basement”…
But “KM Evangelist” is the smartest thing I’ve ever seen on a Organizational chart…
Julio continues:
“…[in the enterprise] silicon processors never have ontological responsibilities… only carbon processors do.”
Jan L.G. Dietz, “Enterprise Ontology: Theory and Methodology”
That’s why no Data Processing or Information Management can do what KM does for the organization!
Guy St. Clair responds: Thanks to Edwin and Julio for these thoughtful comments. Very provocative. Now I’ll be thinking about this for a while (and perhaps I’ll even give it to my students to think about! – bet they’ll have some good ideas.)
Posted by Kathy Hagen at the KM-Forum LinkedIn Group:
Excellent piece, Guy. This is such a good reminder for people. It takes courage, persistence, self-reflection, and authenticity to lead through this type of organizational change. It is no small feat for an organization to build the discipline and habits (in addition to infrastructure and processes) required to strategically manage and utilize their hard-won knowledge. Not everyone is well suited to lead the endeavor but everyone can play a critical role. Thank you for this well considered piece, I’m sure your talk was stimulating and thought provoking.
Guy responded:
Thanks for the kind words, Kathy. Yes, the talk was very well received, and what’s even more gratifying for a speaker, the Q&A following the presentation was stimulating and provocative. Apparently many people don’t realize they have a choice – and often some influence – when they want to move a company or a firm into a stronger position as a knowledge culture, and I think our discussion got some people making plans for their law firms.
Posted by Helen Clegg at the LinkedIn Special Libraries Association Group:
I think it’s all about enabling people to share their insight and knowledge, through connecting them with the right processes and effective tools. It’s not about managing knowledge, because you I don’t I don’t believe you can. Enablement is the key.
Guy responds:
Point well taken, Helen, but one of the things we promote so much in teaching about knowledge strategy development and the KD/KS (knowledge development/knowledge sharing) process is that it is through connecting people with the right processes and effective tools that knowledge workers become enabled. And you’re absolutely right: enablement is the key. It’s just that I tend to think of well-managed KD/KS as the first step to enabling workers, with the emphasis on the sharing. So KD/KS becomes a form of managing knowledge, doesn’t it? Thanks for sharing.