The (other) top five KM myths

The previous Source for KM featured the top five myths of KM, from Ed Rogers, chief knowledge officer at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center.

This issue, to complete the list of 10 myths featured in the last KM Review, and after numerous comments about them, here's a countdown of the other five myths.

10. Culture change can be mandated from the top
Myth: Writing reports, hiring consultants and issuing directives or slogan campaigns will significantly change behavior.

Fact: Behavior is modeled not dictated.

You can: Find more ways for people to see their leaders leading, making good decisions and reasons to have faith in their future to apply themselves within their communities. Get senior leaders involved in the training and development of personnel by sharing.

9. Collaboration effort can be "purchased" or "sharing can be rewarded"
Myth: Award plaques, $50 cash, or loud clapping will make otherwise uncooperative people collaborate.

Fact: Collaboration is a conscious choice based more on perceptions of non-tangible benefits and learned reciprocity than token rewards. Collaboration is usually widespread at the local work level.

You can: Look for ways to avoid discouraging natural collaboration among programs and departments and try not to trivialize sharing with simplistic band-aids.

8. Knowledge management efforts can be outsourced
Myth: Large organizations believe they can solve KM with the right contractor and tool suite.

Fact: Adding more tools can actually exacerbate a lack of collaboration by reducing learning. The message of tools can be dehumanizing.

You Can: Designate a senior executive champion for KM and establish an outside board of KM advisors to keep the focus on meaningful, long-term methods instead of quick fixes. Assume it will take hard work and commitment of leaders.

7. Anybody (who isn't busy) can do knowledge management
Myth: KM is a good activity for people who are in between assignments or in need of a rotational detail.

Fact: People who don't understand KM make most of the same predictable mistakes as the group before them did – little learning occurs. Hit, miss and restart efforts build cynicism towards KM.

You can: Provide a plan with a consistent direction of KM efforts to make progress integrating KM with risk management, information management, safety, engineering and project-management processes.

6. Knowledge management can be solved with the right software
Myth: Buying a software tool or developing one from scratch will solve the loss of knowledge and make people share.

Fact: The most important knowledge is retained in people and doesn't need to be captured. The most effective way to preserve it is to transfer it person-to-person not store it in digital systems.

You can: Help KM catch on by keeping it focused more on sharing knowledge among people instead of capturing it from them.

Best regards,

Alex Manchester
Editor
Alex.manchester@melcrum.com

P.S. Keep an eye out for Melcrum's new social networking community, The Communicators' Network, where a KM group awaits your thoughts.

This list was excerpted from "The Top 10 KM myths" by Ed Rogers, in the May/June issue of KM Review.

WE WANT YOUR FEEDBACK! If you have any comments or opinions on The Source for KM we'd like to hear from you! E-mail me at: alex.manchester@melcrum.com

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