Beyond knowledge management to better management
Cynics sneer at what they characterize as the Kumbaya tone of some social media advocates. As far as these cynics (or as they prefer to say, realists) are concerned, only Pollyanna would make such rosy projections of network effects and community building. Exhortations to share and share alike, or to just give your personal intellectual... Continue Reading →
If you ask users, they might well tell you that in their experience of KM and IT implementations, the old saying sadly holds true: "There's many a slip twixt the cup and the lip." That saying captures what often happens when law firm knowledge management and IT personnel start building systems to "meet user requirements." ... Continue Reading →
When will tech conferences master technology? If recent experience is any guide, it appears that providing adequate WiFi access at tech conferences is as challenging as finding a cure for cancer. Is it just me, or does this strike the rest of you as strange and supremely ironic? At February's LegalTech 2009 NY conference, there... Continue Reading →
There are far too many snake oil salesmen in the social media business. If you believed their marketing claims, you might think that social media tools are the remedy for everything that ails you. Unfortunately, as more companies and individuals are finding out, that's simply not true. Equally, there are far too many uneducated consumers... Continue Reading →
At the Enterprise 2.0 workshop I attended yesterday, someone asked Livio Hughes of Headshift the following question: What's the worst mistake we can make with respect to law firm technology? His answer was interesting: Don't fall into the habit of thinking that problems can be solved only by launching a massive multi-year IT infrastructure project. ... Continue Reading →
What sets your law firm apart from its competitors? Your technology? Doubtful. In an interesting conversation today with Gil Yehuda and Livio Hughes on Enterprise 2.0, we discussed the rate at which companies are jumping on the Enterprise 2.0 bandwagon. Gil mentioned that recent figures indicated that anywhere from 25-40% of companies were either in... Continue Reading →
Pearls of wisdom sometimes turn up in the unlikeliest of places. In this case, I was sitting through yet another vendor presentation when the voice behind the PowerPoint slides said: "Make doing the right thing the easy thing." Brilliant. When we deploy new technology or knowledge management systems, we have enormous influence over the users. ... Continue Reading →
In knowledge management as in life, folks often come in one of two flavors: the mixologists and the bartenders. Not sure about the distinction? According to Jim Meehan (a bartender at PDT, an East Village speakeasy in New York City): Mixologists serve drinks. Bartenders serve people. The KM mixologists believe in their systems and theories. ... Continue Reading →
Verizon's ads about cellphone reception feature the tag line "Can you hear me now?" They are a great demonstration of the benefits of a good cellphone network. However, they do not represent the gold standard for knowledge management. In KM, it isn't enough merely to hear -- we actually have to listen. It's our inability... Continue Reading →
Silos are a common means by which farmers store the grain they have harvested until it can be taken to market. While silos make sense in agriculture, why are they so prevalent in non-agricultural organizations? Nearly every business has farmers or systems that gather and hoard data in information silos that are impenetrable for those... Continue Reading →
Above and Beyond KM 