denotes premium content | Dec 2 2008 Inside Knowledge Magazine /Knowledge Management Magazine Archive
Volume 6 Issue 10
Inside knowledge
Knowledge management in Asia
This month we set off on a KM world tour, with the first of four issues dedicated to exploring the impact of knowledge management in a particular region of the world. In the next edition, we head down under, with case studies and features from leading KM practitioners in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. In October, we move to the Americas, before heading to Europe in November to coincide with the fourth annual KM Europe exhibition. Each month, we will feature case studies of companies that are leading the way in terms of KM implementation, plus articles exploring the history and future development of knowledge management in the region as a whole.
We begin this issue in Asia, a vast area of course, but one in which knowledge management is steadily gaining a higher profile. Naturally, the degree to which this is happening varies enormously from country to country, and the articles contained in these pages offer little more than a snapshot of current implementation trends. That said, all the companies and initiatives we feature offer lessons about good KM practice that practitioners in any region of the world can learn from. India’s Tata Steel is a previous Most Admired Knowledge Enterprises Asia finalist; the Rice Knowledge Bank is a pioneering project that aims to bridge the gap between scientific research and ground-level agricultural activity; and, the forward-thinking Singapore Prison Service has shown just how much of an impact KM can have in a tough organisational environment. Our exploration of the evolution of KM in Asia begins on page ten.
As a bonus to subscribers this month, the July/August edition also features a special supplement on the business case for collaboration. Together with features and opinion from the likes of Karl-Erik Sveiby, Eric Woods of Ovum and representatives from Autonomy, Business Collaborator, Documentum, Intraspect and SiteScape, we also bring you the results of our industry-wide survey looking at the expectations and objectives that relate to collaboration-based technologies. This is the first in what will become a series of technology-focused supplements to be distributed with the magazine, so any ideas for future topics are welcome. In the mean time, I hope you have a wonderful summer.
Features
Your say: Knowledge management in Asia
Levels of KM adoption differ enormously throughout Asia, but there is no question that knowledge management is rapidly gaining ground in countries right across the continent. Simon Lelic talks to KM practitioners in Hong Kong, India, Japan and Singapore, and explores how knowledge management has evolved so far, and what the future holds for KM in the region.
Forging ahead with KM
Over the past few years, Tata Steel has developed a blended strategy to knowledge management based both on codification and on personalisation. The former approach is heavily dependent on technology and is used primarily for the deployment of knowledge, while the latter focuses on creating and deploying new knowledge within the organisation. Ravi Arora and Rajiv R. Sinha explain how the firm utilises a balanced-scorecard system and its uniquely designed KM Index to integrate and deploy these two approaches.
Knowledge in the field
The International Rice Research Institute plays a vital role in rolling out scientific breakthroughs made in the lab to those who will benefit most by learning from and applying these advances at the ground level. Albert Dean Atkinson describes the impetus behind the IRRI’s decision to create the Rice Knowledge Bank, as well as outlining the key features of what has become an invaluable information and educational resource to all those involved in rice research and production.
Regulars
On the web: Getting to grips with growing content
In keeping with the goals of the Office of the e-Envoy, which sets out that all government services should be available by 2005, the DWP has recently launched its intranet future-development programme. Bernie Bowker outlines the aims of the programme and the key challenges that he and his team had to overcome to ensure successful implementation.
Five minutes with… Northamptonshire Police
Jacquie Bran, project manager with the Knowledge Management, talks to Graham Cheeseman, e-services manager at Northamptonshire Police, about his experiences implementing a knowledge-management programme in a dynamic and demanding environment.
Book review: Making a World of Difference
Lee A. Spain reviews Making a World of Difference: IT in a Global Context by Geoff Walsham.
Country focus: Malaysia
Simon Lelic talks to Ming Yu Cheng about the evolution of knowledge management in Malaysia.
The knowledge: Arie de Geus
Through his work at Shell, the World Bank and numerous corporations and government departments around the world, Arie de Geus has helped to revolutionise the way organisations operate on a day-to-day basis. Here the author of The Living Company talks to Simon Lelic about his unique career so far, recounting how he overcame widespread cynicism and doubt to put organisational learning on the managerial map.
