KM: Cases, Complexities, Competencies
Case Studies - Library Centric

Cases

• Library-Centric:
  • Professional Services Firms
  • Owens Corning
• Sales-Centric:
  • Cadence Design Systems
• Why these?

Professional Services: Coopers and Lybrand

• Knowledge Strategies Group (what they say they are doing):
  • research, analysis, information procurement
  • identifying & leveraging knowledge to differentiate C&L
  • developing knowledge-based products & services
  • acquiring internal & external content
  • global management & development of tools, communications & processes to enable information access to external sources & internal knowledge assets

• Knowledge Curve
  • Cooper & Lybrand's Intranet
  • CyberLyb - virtual library / electronic library - provides access to external information links to selected Internet sites
  • 1-800-KnowHow: services of information professionals @ Content Helpdesk
  • Internal communications, databases: Briefings, Practice Guides, Benchmarking...
  • Client information, markets
  • People, expertise
  • Policies

Owens Corning: Knowledge Resource Services

• InfoMap: Intranet knowledge navigational tool
• blend of internal network resources, links to Net content sits & enterprise subscription content sources (EiVillage, IAC, Dow Jones etc...)
• document delivery, electronic TOC's
• electronic "reference desk"
• information mapping crucial 1st step

Nancy Lemon's approach

Nancy Lemon is the Leader of Knowledge Resource Services at Owens Corning. For the full story about the Owens Corning Corporate Library, see Nancy Lemon's article, 'Climbing the Value Chain: A Case Study in Rethinking the Corporate Library Function', Online, November/December 1996.

• out-source the routine, stop the "step and fetch"
• focus on the valued aligned knowledge consultants with work teams (Bain's approach as well)
• find & link in internal information pockets - career development, policies, product catalogs, etc...
• integrate records management (Bain, CIBC)

Their Learnings

• Speed beats beauty: 3 clicks & you're out!
• Quality beats quantity
• KISS: Keep it simple & streamlined
• Feedback IS a gift! (Stay in touch with stakeholders and users.)
• Relationships are critical:
  • Strategic Technologies Group
  • Cross-functional teams
  • Vendors
• License negotiating both internal & external. (Make-or-buy considerations apply to databases also - pay for a database of the company's patents or create one?)

Cases - Sales

Presentation by Rebecca Jones, November 13 1997
HTML prepared by G. Harris, December 19, 1997