Knowledge management is the key to achieve numerous objectives in companies. What does it consist of ? How to implement it ? Which referential basis to consider ? This article will provide you with the answers that you are looking for.
The economic growth of companies and the increasing use of digital communication are making information systems and knowledge security management a necessity. Knowledge is not only an essential value in the production of goods and services, but also an asset for competitiveness.. The main challenge for companies is to spread that knowledge continuously within the organisation. Creating and spreading the knowledge is a good start, however, formalising it in a written document, or on any type of digital or non-digital database is crucial to be accessible by the whole organisation.
What is knowledge management ?
K.E. Sveiby, a finnish management theorist, defines KM, "Knowledge Management", as "the art of creating value by exploiting intangible assets". It is also linked to the value of intellectual capital, the growth of companies and the organisations’ needs to become smarter and more efficient. The expertise of a company or an individual is a quality that distinguishes them from the competition. Therefore, the foundation for continuous improvement of an organisation is based upon the consideration of individual and collective skills.
What are the benefits of knowledge management ?
Efficiency, collaboration and competition are the challenges of organisational knowledge. It could be considered as one of the greatest assets because :
- It encourages the decision making;
- It promotes process efficiency and continuous improvement;
- It generates resilience and adaptability;
- It creates competitiveness.
Where the knowledge is more accessible, the greater are the possibilities for professional development. Knowledge management is not a defined concept, it must be considered as an asset that must live and evolve with the company. It is also important to encourage a culture where knowledge is built and reviewed, which is essential for processes to create value. Then, organisations must have the technology to organise, review and transfer knowledge efficiently and safely.
ISO certification of knowledge management
ISO 30401: 2018 aims to help organisations develop a system that supports value creation through knowledge. This requires a commitment from management as well as measurement tools with indicators to quantify the performance of the system.
Unfortunately, changes generate new risks, especially when a single person is considered to be an expert in a field and their knowledge has not been integrated into the system. The benefits of sharing good practices, experiences and knowledge help in decreasing these risks. On the other hand, the standard states the importance of experience-based problem solving. This is one of the many benefits of knowledge management, it supports decision making and guides the actions to be taken.
Therefore, documented information is one of the requirements of this standard.
Traditionally, the means of accessing information has been through paper documents or office automation, with tutoring processes and other related information that are difficult to access. Today, there are digital platforms that not only make the system implementation easier, but also to be an ISO certified organisation.
Can digitalisation help with the establishment of the certification ?
There is no doubt that knowledge management has been accelerated by digitisation. Indeed, digitisation is helping companies to rethink their management practices, by centralising the data on a single platform. It's all about making use of the internal and external knowledge of the company's employees while working openly with all stakeholders. The role of digital tools is to efficiently process, store and communicate the system's information, making it visible to the entire organisation. A digital solution must be ergonomic and intuitive. It allows to obtain:
- A structured, intuitive and centralised information;
- A personalised and secure access for the entire organisation;
- An easy interconnection with other software ;
- Help the teamwork in the creation and diffusion of knowledge;
- An archive of documents and their life cycle ;
- The ability to monitor performance indicators in real time.
The establishment of a certification is accessible to any company that wants to improve its performance. It is possible to lighten the daily activities with a digital tool such as BlueKanGo. Henceforth, the management, the follow-up and the transfer of knowledge are a real economic leverage.
To go further
> Request a BlueKanGo knowledge management presentation
Thibaut GILLES
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