Playing at Work

“Never underestimate the vital importance of finding early in life the work that for you is play.  This turns possible underachievers into happy warriors.“ This quotation from Sir Ken Robinson’s book, The Element,  is a good reminder for a Friday, as we take stock of the work week that has just past.  Have we spent… Continue Reading →

A Clean Sheet of Paper

The Harvard Business School recently held an executive education session on the global economic crisis.  Amid all the depressing news and analysis came the advice of Professor Robert Steven Kaplan regarding three practical steps business leaders can take now to move things forward in a positive direction: Overcommunicate – Be visible, be vocal.  Remind all… Continue Reading →

Understanding Your Success

The path from success to bankruptcy is becoming distressingly familiar to increasing numbers of companies.  While most knowledge management departments won’t face bankruptcy, they can learn useful lessons from venerable institutions like the Waterford Wedgwood company, which was placed under administration (i.e., filed for bankruptcy) last week.  The company was founded by Josiah Wedgwood, a… Continue Reading →

Innovation is a Team Sport

A recent New York Times article touted the benefits of collaborating to innovate. Debunking the myth of the lone genius who creates in solitude, the article suggests that the best innovation comes about through collaboration — where many people and perspectives intersect to create and refine ideas. However, it isn’t enough just to put a… Continue Reading →

Best Practice vs Next Practice

Mark Gould’s comment on my previous post (Not Quite) Best Practices pointed me to Derek Wenmoth’s blog post on Best Practice vs Next Practice. Derek makes the interesting observation that while best practice is a snapshot of what we know has worked well in the past, next practice is an attempt to take that prior… Continue Reading →

What Went Right?

My last post rather morbidly focused on using KM Autopsies as a useful way of figuring out what went wrong with knowledge management projects. Sometimes, however, it’s much more effective to ask “What went right?” This apparently contrarian advice is rooted in the field of Appreciative Inquiry, which starts from the perspective that it’s ultimately… Continue Reading →

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