Knowledge management: issues and practical options for the DAC Network on Development Evaluation

Access is important, but successful knowledge management also requires care, attention and hard work to identify, collect and categorize relevant new knowledge assets.

Knowledge management policies can not be divorced from organizations (or a network of organizations) and their goals. While sharing knowledge (in the form of reports, methodologies or best practices) may be a commendable idea, there must be an underlying, widely accepted and well supported reason for doing so. Without such an overarching purpose, agreed to by all parties involved, knowledge management is likely to become a pointless, expensive exercise.

Today I came across this study by Rutger Engelhard - commissioned by IOB/BUZA for the DAC Network on Development Evaluation - which was produced for a meeting in January 2004. Although it must have been produced in 2003, I still think it is a really good study, looking at the relevance of KM for the Network. If I'm honest, I'm rather horrified that I haven't come across this before as someone with an (ostensible?) interest in KM and evaluation. Whoops! Perhaps I should look on the more positive side, however, that it is still possible to stumble across real gems, even if it's a couple of years late...

The 10 lessons from knowledge management are still very relevant a couple of years down the road:

1. Technology should not dictate knowledge management
2. Knowing what knowledge is relevant to users
3. Sharing knowledge is an unnatural activity
4. Mapping knowledge yields better access than centralized databases
5. Access is only the beginning
6. Knowledge management requires knowledge managers
7. Knowledge management initiatives need a knowledge contract
8. Knowledge management needs a purpose
9. Knowledge management requires attention to people and cultural issues
10. Knowledge management is political

I really recommend this and hope you enjoy it too.