The New World of
Knowledge Management
Why Knowledge Management
Is More Relevant than Ever
the
company
The New World of While these tools are highly useful, the real issue is not finding
and indexing content, but really using information and content
Knowledge Management to solve specific business problems. Following are the primary
uses we found in recent interviews with large companies.
Why Knowledge Management Is
More Relevant than Ever
The Four Applications of Knowledge
Intangible assets - intellectual property, software, patents, and
Management
services - have become the most valued assets in business.
While companies once valued themselves by looking at Consider an engineer who needs to design a bridge, as in
inventory, cash, or other physical assets, today more than 85% the example of Mott MacDonald (see case study). Let’s step
of the market capitalization of the U.S. stock market is based on through the four ways KM can be used.
intangible assets – knowledge, skills, and information. • Acquire knowledge: We need to capture information. We
To categorize, organize, and manage all this information, just finished a whole series of bridge building projects.
companies embark on knowledge management. The concept As part of our work, we developed design specifications,
of knowledge management has been around for decades, and pricing models, contractor specifications, building plans,
it typically covers areas such as content management, content and testing plans. I want other people to be able to reuse
libraries, document tagging, information search and indexing, this information. How do I index, store, and categorize all
and taxonomy tools. this knowledge so others can use it?
The concept also encompassed “human knowledge” – creating • Share knowledge: I know something I want to share. I
expert directories and topic-focused communities and other personally learned a lot in my career, and I want to share
HR practices to help companies manage employee skills, it with others. I know people in my company are working
categorize their expertise, and share their innovations as the on similar efforts, and they sometimes reach out to me.
company grows. How can I share the details of what I know, collaborate
with others, publish or record my own expertise, or share
It’s a very big market. In 2020, the market for knowledge
stories, examples, or other best practices?
management products and services was estimated at $366.8
billion and forecasted to grow to a staggering $1.1 trillion by • Use knowledge: I need to make a decision. I am starting
2027. In a world where knowledge is everything, this might
1 a new project to build an even bigger and more complex
not be surprising. bridge than we’ve ever done before. How do I look at the
work others have done, learn from their experiences,
What is all this money being spent on? The biggest portion of
and make sure I’m not reinventing the wheel or perhaps
spending is on tools to capture, categorize, index, and organize
making a mistake others have learned from?
content. These include search engines, portals, and tools that
index text, audio, video, and other forms of content. While a • Develop knowledge: I want to learn and grow. Learning
lot of the investment was dedicated to software, a significant needs to be part of the everyday work. People shouldn't
amount of human effort was still required. have to wait for their schedules to clear to develop new
skills. I want to spend time improving my own capabilities
In the learning industry, for example, there is a myriad of new
so I can get promoted to be the VP of engineering or
systems for learning experience management, each of which can
head of bridge engineering. What are the topics I need to
index videos, courses, websites, and documents. These tools try
dig into? What is the best order or path of information I
to identify skills and topics across learning resources and then
should seek out? How do I test what I’ve learned? How can
use this information to recommend offerings to employees.
I become certified in this new information?
1 https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2020/08/26/2083835/0/en/
Global-Knowledge-Management-Industry-Outlook-2020-2027-with-Global-
Competitor-Market-Shares.html
2 THE NEW WORLD OF KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT
In the new world of knowledge management, we don’t just A Massive Opportunity to Tap into
want to store and index information, we want to design a set of
Unconscious Knowledge
technologies and systems that address these four critical use
cases. This is how we make knowledge powerful, useful, and New solutions for knowledge experience are much better at
ever-more valuable over time. managing conscious knowledge through intelligent, context
searches in the flow of work. They are more engaging and
“The goal is to surface just-in-time knowledge and just-in-time
natural, offering knowledge-sharing opportunities through
information to people where they need it, when they need it.”
discussion threads or through capturing videos in platforms
Simon Denton, Productivity Engineer, Mott MacDonald
like Microsoft Stream, which makes them easier to find.
Old New
Content-centered Integrated and human-centered
Acquire • Conscious: Categorize, index, and • Conscious: Share via video (e.g., Stream), capture
Capturing information store documents in a knowledge and index structured and unstructured content
repository (e.g., SharePoint Syntex)
• Unconscious: No ability to bring • Unconscious: Knowledge gets extracted from
topics to users if they don’t know my work (e.g., topic discovery in Microsoft Viva
about them Topics)
Share • Conscious: Submit documents to • Conscious: Discuss in collaboration platforms,
Sharing information content databases and tag augment suggested topics with expert views
• Unconscious: No ability to identify • Unconscious: My expertise gets extracted from
unconscious shared knowledge my conversations and communities (e.g., surface
conversations in Yammer to Viva Topics)
Use • Conscious: Navigate content • Conscious: Intelligent search in the flow of work
Making decisions and solv- databases to find needed content/ (e.g., contextual search with Microsoft Search)
ing problems knowledge • Unconscious: Knowledge comes to me when and
• Unconscious: No ability to where I need it, in my flow of work (e.g., topic
introduce needed or available cards in Viva Topics)
knowledge that the user isn’t
aware of
Develop • Conscious: Navigate Learning • Conscious: Intelligent search in the flow of work
Learning and growth Management System to find topics (e.g., related learning based on inferred skills
I should learn about needs)
• Unconscious: No ability to bring • Unconscious: Suggested learning comes to me
needed learning to users if they where and when I need it, without me having to
don’t know they need it look for it (e.g., Microsoft Viva Learning)
Figure 1: How Knowledge Management is Evolving
3 THE NEW WORLD OF KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT
However, studies show that about 95% of all knowledge is So don’t expect a miracle with these new technologies. Do
unconscious – we don’t know there is something to know or expect to put in a lot of discipline and careful thought to train
we don’t realize we have something to share. In the old era of and develop a solution and to embed it into your work processes.
knowledge management – the world of content databases, As we talked with various companies who piloted knowledge
navigating to documents and manual tagging and indexing – management in Microsoft 365, SharePoint Syntex and
unconscious knowledge remained untapped. Microsoft Viva Topics, it became clear that identifying a
What really will make a huge difference in the new era of business owner for this work is key. Although technology is
knowledge is that smart technologies can now tap into an enabler, knowledge management can’t be an IT-driven
unconscious knowledge in the following ways: solution. Knowledge management at its core requires a deep
Pull unconscious knowledge from conversations, discover understanding of the workflows and experiences of the
it in documents, and identify it in communities. We think of workforce. The most successful knowledge leaders are those
this as knowledge, topic or expertise discovery. For instance, who have been in the role of the workers they support because
engineers may be participating in various communities they understand the work and the knowledge required.
for different bridges, discussing specific requirements via
Microsoft Teams or answering questions. Microsoft Viva Getting Started with Knowledge
Topics can now find this knowledge to add to its Topic
Management
Center. Engineers who may not realize the value of the
information they are discussing, don’t have to do any tagging or How can you get started managing knowledge in a human-
categorizing. centered approach? Here are some steps to follow:
Push unconscious knowledge to those who need it but don’t • Define the problem. Start small, define where knowledge
realize they need it in their flow of work. For example, in matters most, and identify what topics, content, and
Microsoft Viva Topics this is done with Topic Cards that bring expertise to address. For example, you might want to
insights about people, content, and information related to a start with client-facing areas of the business or in areas
specific topic to the person who needs it, when they need it, involved in developing products and solutions.
and how they need it. Rather than hoping the engineer will • Define and measure success criteria: Establish what
realize they need to find new information about a specific success will look like, determine baseline measures,
subject, the technology serves up relevant insights and offers and then measure and iteratively improve. For example,
experts to connect with to find out more. metrics could be around faster speed to delivery of
Today, with technologies like Microsoft Viva Topics, this vast projects, fewer errors, higher quality, or increased
area of unknown expertise and human knowledge can finally customer satisfaction or employee engagement.
be surfaced and made available to people to learn and do their • Define personas: Understand who the users of the
work more efficiently and effectively. knowledge are likely to be by segmenting the knowledge
areas into distinct groups. For example, you could create
groups of engineers working on different construction
Too Good to be True?
projects.
All this happens with new algorithms, machine learning, and AI.
• Identify topic owners: Determine who has expertise and
But not by magic.
knowledge in the identified knowledge areas and assign
As with any algorithm, machine training is an important part of them the role of topic owners to drive the curation and
machine learning. Without teaching the machine what problems classification of knowledge in their areas. For example,
to solve, what “good” looks like, what topics or knowledge areas a topic owner could be an engineer for a specific type of
belong together, which ones are noise or irrelevant, the best bridge or an engineer in a specific geography.
technology might only surface a mess.
4 THE NEW WORLD OF KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT
• Define use cases: Topic owners define use cases and Where Knowledge Management
develop scenarios where knowledge will be needed in the
Is Going
flow of work. Based on these use cases, they identify and
curate knowledge and define how it gets integrated into Knowledge management is at the cusp of a new era. The
workflows. technology is already here and getting better every day.
Organizations that combine structured and disciplined
• Form communities: Topic owners establish communities
approaches with smart technology to solve problems will
in which people can volunteer to participate. Participation
emerge as winners in knowledge management. In turn,
in these communities should be voluntary but the value of
they will be better than the competition, increase customer
participation should be constantly highlighted.
satisfaction, and improve engagement and retention of their
• Use technology: Apply technology like SharePoint Syntex workforce.
and Microsoft Viva Topics to accelerate knowledge
Managing knowledge is at the heart of organizational learning,
acquisition, sharing, and application. Organizations should
putting knowledge in the flow of work is converging with
not start with the technology to drive the process but
learning in the flow of work. Organizations with a learning
rather finish with it.
culture will excel in both.
• Iterate, improve, and scale: Start small, testing and
iterating to improve the process before scaling.
Knowledge is contextual and organizations that miss the
context of specific workflows will confuse users rather
than help them improve.
5 THE NEW WORLD OF KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT
LESSONS FROM THE FRONT LINE
Mott MacDonald Curates Knowledge
for Excellence in Engineering
The Mott MacDonald Group is an engineering consultancy Content and topics are surfaced based on historical searches
headquartered in the United Kingdom with 16,000 employees and most recently based on Microsoft Viva Topics. This is
worldwide in 150 countries. helping engineers see new topics that communities might not
At any given time, Mott MacDonald has about 10,000 projects have considered before. Importantly, topic owners and experts
running concurrently, ranging from designing bridges to curate and validate the topics and content the technology
tunnels to buildings. An engineer usually works on four to five suggests and then classify the information with a three-level
projects at the same time. Managing the massive amounts of rating (bronze, silver, gold). When people search for content,
knowledge that is created through these projects is paramount they see the classification, helping them understand the value
to the success of the company. and relevance of the content.
The company’s mission is to create opportunities through Similarly, when an engineer looks for a colleague with a certain
connected thinking by connecting people to content — and expertise, they see the self-rating of people on capabilities,
content to people — all in the flow of work. So, the company which helps them understand the level of competence a
started with communities in which people can volunteer to colleague might have and determine whom to reach out to
participate. Currently, Mott MacDonald has more than 60 for help. To tap into the unconscious knowledge created in
communities, each focused on different types of projects or the 10,000 projects, Microsoft Viva Topics pulls suggested
other topics. Every employee is expected to be part of at least learnings from everyday work systems and adds them as
one community to share knowledge and learn from others. suggestions into the topic center where experts review and
While these communities certainly help the company increase classify them.
profits and reduce losses, they are focused on improving the The combination of human experts with machine learning
knowledge, skills, and capabilities of employees. and suggestions is critical to the success of knowledge
“Enterprise knowledge is the heartbeat of the organization,” management at Mott MacDonald. The company is on a journey
said Simon Denton, productivity engineer for Mott MacDonald. to embed knowledge sharing and capture into everyday work.
The company has been using SharePoint Syntex and Microsoft Its next step is to push knowledge into workflows. Explaining
Viva Topics for 18 months to complement its existing rules- to people how the technology works and being transparent
based content classification system with suggestions on what about its use and limitations has been key throughout the
topic areas to consider. process. “People need to trust the technology and understand
we are using it to make work better,” said Denton.
Each person is required to rate their expertise on defined
capabilities on a five-point scale, from beginner to world-class,
and to re-assess quarterly. They also indicate their interests.
SharePoint Syntex and Microsoft Viva Topics suggest other
areas of interest that might be relevant for the individual,
along with inferred skills based on the experiences people have
developed through similar projects. What’s important is that
the user is in control of adding interest areas to their profile
or leaving them off. Based on the information submitted,
employees are then assigned to communities where they need
to actively participate to increase their own knowledge and
that of others.
6 THE NEW WORLD OF KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT
About Josh Bersin
Josh founded Bersin & Associates in 2001 to provide research and advisory services focused on
corporate learning. He expanded the company’s coverage to encompass HR, talent management,
talent acquisition, and leadership and became a recognized expert in the talent market. Josh sold
the company to Deloitte in 2012 and was a partner in Bersin by Deloitte up until 2018.
In 2019, Bersin founded the Josh Bersin Academy, a professional development academy that has
become the “home for HR.” In 2020, he put together a team of analysts and advisors who are
now working with him to support and guide HR organizations from around the world under the
umbrella of The Josh Bersin Company. Recently published research covers topics such as hybrid
work; HR technology market trends; employee experience; and diversity, equity, and inclusion. He
is frequently featured in publications such as Forbes, Harvard Business Review, HR Executive,
The Wall Street Journal, and CLO Magazine. He is a popular blogger and has more than
800,000 followers on LinkedIn.
About Kathi Enderes
Kathi is the vice president of research at The Josh Bersin Company; she leads research for all areas of HR,
learning, talent, and HR technology. Kathi has more than 20 years of experience in management consulting
with IBM, PwC, and EY and as a talent leader at McKesson and Kaiser Permanente. Most recently, Kathi
led talent and workforce research at Deloitte, where she directed many research studies on various topics
of HR and talent and frequently spoke at industry conferences. Originally from Austria, Kathi has worked
in Vienna, London, and Spain and now lives in San Francisco. Kathi holds a doctoral degree and a master’s
degree in mathematics from the University of Vienna.
7 THE NEW WORLD OF KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT
