KM Processes and Governance

Governance, Roles, and Organization Design

Governance deals with the “how” questions of knowledge management: How should KM be organized, monitored, and managed for successful outcomes? To address these issues, Iknow works with clients to define and build the structures, roles, and governance processes required to fully enable effective knowledge management in their organizations. This could include leadership positions, KM steering/advisory groups, and business-unit knowledge management roles.

Business Value

Success with knowledge management depends critically on both leadership and effective support resources. A well-designed combination of dedicated management roles with networks of part-time advisors and facilitators can ensure efficient use of resources to meet KM objectives, while enhancing broader organizational involvement and buy-in.

Deliverables

Iknow’s deliverables typically include an organizational strategy, role descriptions for both permanent and advisory/committee positions, staffing and training plans, as well as draft communications for describing the new roles to the rest of the organization.

Iknow also offers assistance for implementing governance, roles, and organizational design recommendations.

Processes, Policies, and Procedures Development

To ensure that knowledge management becomes a permanent and self-sustaining organizational capability, Iknow helps our clients define and implement KM processes, policies, and procedures. For example, process guidelines are often developed for managing content throughout its lifecycle (i.e., content submission, review and approval, retention, and expiration). Standardized business processes may also be created in areas such as content summarization, external content selection and review, access rights to specific content repositories, and ongoing KM performance measurement.

Business Value

Well-developed processes and policies simplify KM implementation, accelerate organizational uptake and buy-in, and strengthen ongoing maintenance processes for knowledge management. Once established, these foundational elements of KM can “run in the background,” reducing management burden and improving KM outcomes.

Deliverables

Iknow’s Processes, Policies, and Procedures Development deliverables take many forms. Draft policies and procedures are prepared and submitted to senior management for their review and acceptance. Graphical process maps describe future-state work flows for the key KM activities. The process maps generally include activity descriptions, roles and responsibilities, automation opportunities, and potential branches and loops depending on the outcome of each process step. These maps are helpful for developing detailed role descriptions, communicating the vision to the organization, and training.

Iknow also offers assistance for implementing new KM processes, policies, and procedures.

Subscribe to KM Processes and Governance