Editor's letter

Welcome to the November edition of Inside Knowledge.

In this month’s profile, Sandra Higgison talks to KM guru Geoff Parcell about finding oil and saving lives. Most knowledge managers will at least be a little envious of the initiatives Geoff Parcell has championed and been involved in during his time at BP, the United Nations and beyond. Not only has he had a front-line role in shaping the oil and gas company into what many consider to be the knowledge-management benchmark, but he is also using this experience to support the global fight against some of the world’s most destructive viruses and diseases.

For Inside Knowledge readers attending Ark Group’s annual knowledge-management exhibition, KCC Europe, I hope you enjoy our three-day programme, which is packed with knowledge-sharing activities: the conference will deliver unbiased practitioner accounts; the community fringe will offer provocative new ideas and discussion; the expo will showcase the latest tools and solutions, and the masterclasses will offer advice from some of the most respected names in information management. Add to this some great networking opportunities and I am sure you will leave this year’s event with a wealth of new ideas and techniques, not to mention friends.

In our regular KnowledgeWorks column, Jerry Ash turns his attention to the dangers of silo working, while on page 30 our focus shifts to the first of a three-part masterclass on conducting a knowledge audit.

I hope you enjoy this month’s issue. As always, if you have any comments, questions or suggestions, please do not hesitate to contact me at jschofield@ark-group.com.

Jason Schofield
Managing editor

Features

Masterclass: Conducting a knowledge audit Free
Conducting a knowledge audit can sound like a monumental task. More often than not, such audits fail to get off the ground, while those that do often end in an unsatisfactory manner. What follows are some ideas about carrying out a piece of work that will bring benefits to the people who work in an organisation or those who interact with it as customers, suppliers or strategic partners. There is no single blueprint.

Case study: Fluor Corp Free
Fluor Corporation is one of the world’s largest, publicly owned engineering, procurement, construction and maintenance (EPC&M) services companies. The company is ranked in the top three of ‘The Top Design-Build Firms’ and ‘The Top 400 Contractors’ lists, which are compiled by Engineering News-Record (ENR) magazine.

Case study: State Records of South Australia Free
State Records of South Australia (SRSA) develops and administers the government’s records-management framework (the framework). It also helps state and local-government agencies interpret and apply the associated strategies, standards, guidelines and policies within it. From an SRSA perspective, the future of EDRM systems (EDRMS) in government rests with one key element: governance.

Cover story: Security and silos Free
Fighting the establishment has been a typical battle for most knowledge management (KM) pioneers in companies dominated by an environment of corporate secrecy, need-to-know knowledge sharing, vertical silos, cliques and cultural barriers.

Regulars

KnowledgeWorks: Silos and beyond Free
If knowledge management (KM) is a movement, it is up against some serious competition. KM leaders are hurling themselves like lemmings at solid structural entrenchments that have already survived business-process reengineering and security issues driven by legal and regulatory requirements. Suggestion: If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.

KM toolkit: Desktop search Free
A new generation of knowledge workers is entering the workforce, and from day one, they are making a single, uncompromising demand of their new employers, according to Lee Phillips, director of intelligence solutions at search engine company FAST: “Show me the tools that you will provide me with so that I can do this job to the best of my ability.”

The knowledge: Geoff Parcell Free
There can’t be many knowledge managers who aren’t but a little envious of the initiatives Geoff Parcell has championed and been involved in during his time at BP, the United Nations and beyond. Not only has he had a front-line role in shaping the oil and gas company into what many consider to be the knowledge-management benchmark, but he is also using this experience to support the global fight against some of the world’s most destructive viruses and diseases.

Trend tracker: Oracle OpenWorld Free
I spent three days at Oracle OpenWorld in September talking to senior executives about developments that have an impact on knowledge management. These cover a wide range of topics including collaboration, search and content management. Strong progress in these areas shows just how far Oracle is moving from its original stamping ground of databases.

Opinion: Oliver Schwabe Free
S.A. Armstrong Limited, a global manufacturer for nearly 70 years, turned to Toronto-based information technology specialists to design a system to take the complexity out of purchasing their pumps. The resulting application – RAPIDS – helped S.A. Armstrong to become one of the lowest transaction-cost companies in a highly complex configured world.

Thought leader: Introducing the employee knowledge lifecycle Free
Talking about personalising KM is nothing new. There was an article in this magazine about it last month, and Mick Cope has been talking about it for years. However, the employee-knowledge-lifecycle (EKL) model is a little different.