Introduction
The Knowledge Management (KM) Division of the Special Libraries Association (SLA) was formed in 2006. Members of the Leadership and Management Division recognized a growing interest in the discipline of knowledge management and petitioned the Association to form a new division.
The plan is intended to provide a direction for the Knowledge Management Division for the next three years (2007-2009). It is based on our research and investigation into the world of knowledge management: what other organizations are currently doing, what the "hot topics" in this field are, and what the trends are. We conducted a survey of over 300 members who had joined the Division by January 2007. Our own experience and background as practitioners (or, at the least, aspiring practitioners) of knowledge management have also informed our discussion and conclusions.
We have adopted the following working definition of knowledge management, which in our view is a comprehensible and practical summation of what the discipline of knowledge management is all about.
"... knowledge management refers to strategies and structures for maximizing the return on intellectual and information resources. Because intellectual capital resides both in tacit form (human education, experience and expertise) and explicit form (documents and data), KM depends on both cultural and technological processes of creation, collection, sharing, recombination and reuse. The goal is to create new value by improving the efficiency and effectiveness of individual and collaborative knowledge work while increasing innovation and sharpening decision-making."
This plan has been prepared by the Strategic Planning Committee:
- Susan Montgomery, A. T. Kearney Inc., Denver, CO
- Rikke Bisgaard, Linklaters LLP, London, UK
- Cathy Roberson, UPS Supply Chain Solutions, Atlanta, GA
- Rachel Watstein, IBM, New York, NY
- Charles Wenger, Independent Consultant, San Francisco, CA
- Teresa Wilkins, Buck Consultants LLP, New York, NY
SLA KM Division Action Items for 2007
Prepared by Rikke Bisgaard, Susan Montgomery, Chuck Wenger and Terri Wilkins, April 19, 2007
The Strategic Planning Committee recommends that action in the following areas should be the primary consideration of the Board for the remainder of 2007.
Fostering connection among the membership
The KM Division has a widely scattered membership - from Alaska to India, China, Australia and New Zealand. The first priority needs to be to create cohesion among the members and a sense of community.
Some steps have already been taken in this direction by setting up a blog, wiki and website for the Division.
Other steps which need to be addressed in 2007 are:
- Creating a database of members and their expertise, available to members via the website
- Investigating ways to facilitate the formation of interest groups within the membership (for example, by setting up "Nings"), establishing a process for interest groups to form, and publicizing this to members
- Setting up a process for making sure that every question posted by a member to the blog or wiki receives a qualified answer
Providing education and training opportunities for members
The KM Division has gotten off to a good start in this area by sponsoring or co-sponsoring a number of programs at the 2007 SLA Conference in Denver. Most of the training and continuing educations opportunities will need to be presented electronically.
Membership composition of the Division is split between beginners (57% have less than four years of experience and 35% less than one year) and highly experienced (43% have four or more years of experience) KM professionals., so it will be a challenge to present a program which appeals to all members.
- Plan program for the autumn/winter season
- Investigate options for providing virtual training courses via Click U and other delivery methods (such as Live Meeting or other webinar software)
- Record programs and post them on the SLA Division website for members to refer to
- Collaborate with other groups (both other SLA Divisions and external organizations) to deliver training of interest to members
KM Division eBulletin/ eNewsletter
Sixty-one percent of respondents to the survey supported the idea of a KM Division eNewsletter. A newsletter received higher ranking than a blog (52%) or a wiki (47%). Whereas blogs, wikis, and the website might be ignored, or only referred to occasionally, a good newsletter could provide an opportunity to reach out to members on a regular basis and could be seen as a tangible member benefit.
- Move forward with a regular eNewsletter to members: do the basic planning and feasibility study with the idea that publication would begin in 2008
Annual membership survey
A priority for the SLA KM Division is to encourage the continued participation of members in developing the strategy and setting priorities for the Division going forward. As knowledge management changes at fast pace, it is imperative that the Division focus on issues of relevance to members and be able to quickly adapt to changes in practice and requirements. The participation of members will be encouraged by regular polling of performance against set goals as well as efforts to assist the members in setting up networks for exchange of knowledge.
- Make plans to conduct the first annual survey of members early in 2008
Awards program
Seventy percent of members who responded to the membership survey indicated that they would be in favor of a Best Practices Aware to recognize outstanding accomplishment in the field of Knowledge Management.
- Consider instituting a KM Division awards program to be introduced in 2008: what are we recognizing, what are the criteria, do we have the resources?
