Enterprise Search: A Different Animal Enterprise Search: A Different Animal: "While knowledge management tools are becoming critical for businesses, enterprise search is taking on a new value, Google (Quote, Chart) officials said Wednesday.

Executives with the sultan of search were on hand at the KM World & Intranets trade show here to address the needs of businesses that need to store, retrieve and track digital information of all kinds. Enterprise search vendors made a strong presence at the show, set up alongside companies hawking digital rights and content management products, were other vendors reflecting the growing importance of search as an internal interface for corporate information.

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  The Global Leader in News Distribution The Global Leader in News Distribution: "Asian companies dedicated to growth through innovation and knowledge management are outperforming their competitors across a range of financial and non-financial metrics, reports Teleos in the '2004 Asian Most Admired Knowledge Enterprises (MAKE) Study.'

The 2004 Asian MAKE Winners were recognized before 1,000 business executives during a special Awards Ceremony at the 5th World Knowledge Forum in Seoul, Korea. Although Japan leads this year's list with 6 winners, India is rapidly gaining ground with 4 winners, followed by South Korea with 2 winners.

The 2004 Asian MAKE panel recognized Wipro Technologies for developing knowledge workers through senior management leadership (1st place), maximizing the company's intellectual capital, and transforming enterprise knowledge into shareholder value."  ¶ 13:34 0 comments

  Computerworld | NAB upgrades service through knowledge management Computerworld | NAB upgrades service through knowledge management: "Organizational changes sweeping through the National Australia Bank (NAB) continue to influence IT projects and the company intranet is being ramped up to improve knowledge management.

The bank will make organizational changes and will ensure all documents in its two data warehouses are web-enabled to improve availability of internal information to staff. The changes are expected to steadily increase the 25,800 static page documents on the NAB intranet."  ¶ 08:49 0 comments

  Research and Markets: Can Knowledge Management Help Governments Respond to Unexpected Challenges and Enable Delivery of Higher-quality Services to Cit Research and Markets: Can Knowledge Management Help Governments Respond to Unexpected Challenges and Enable Delivery of Higher-quality Services to Citizens?: "Around the world, governments are struggling to be responsive to unexpected challenges and to deliver the higher-quality services that their citizens now expect. In the private sector, knowledge management (KM) has played a key role in improving organisational performance. Can knowledge management perform the same role in the public sector? This report shows that it can."  ¶ 08:48 0 comments

  EContentMag.com EContentMag.com: "Not for one minute do I think that knowledge is not important, but I just don't think it can be managed along the classical definition of resource management, and it certainly can't be managed by throwing KM technology at the problem. I see the role of an intranet, and other technologies, as supporting knowledge exchange. One of the most perceptive observers of the way in which knowledge is used in organizations is Dave Snowden (www.cynefin.net), and he has set out three rules for knowledge exchange—in itself a term I rather like:

'Knowledge can only be volunteered; it can't be conscripted.'
'People always know more than they can tell, and can tell more than they can write.'
'People only know what they need to know when they need to know it.'

So can we stop using KM and start using KE?

One of the benefits of being a columnist for EContent and Intranets is that I receive a lot of books for review, and the ones that stimulate my thinking most at present are on issues like social network analysis, organizational learning, and supporting virtual teams. From an intranet perspective, the more we understand the dynamics of organizations and people, the better job we will do in building and supporting effective intranet platforms.

For some time now my friend and colleague Howard McQueen and I have been developing a triangle of related issues as the basis for intranet strategy development. We have placed content management and search/findability at the technology point [see EContent May 2002, p. 46 for all three points]. One knowledge management book I recently read included a chapter on content management and another on XML. At first I wondered what these were doing in a book on KM. Then the light dawned and I realized that I could see the triangle in a different way.

The focus on information/content management is the foundation. Without reliable content there is no basis on which to build knowledge. Knowledge does not exist in a vacuum; it is created through a complex blend of information analysis and synthesis and personal experience. So unless we get to the heart of good information/content management we are building on sand. (For a really concise set of information principles, go to www.rdg.ac.uk/evince/testbed.htm.)

Technology is important, but I am not sure that there can be such a thing as KM technology, which seeks to store and categorize knowledge in an abstract sense and without context. It goes back to a rule set forth by Snowden who thinks we need to be looking for technology solutions that provide a seamless interface between structured databases, unstructured text, and the ability to mine both repositories in a way that enables the user to become more knowledgeable. An important use of most intranets is to find documents that lead to people who have knowledge because there is no other way that the organization helps identify expertise and experience among its employees.

Finally comes governance, which is all about people, culture, relationships, and leadership. Only through understanding these can an intranet manager provide information platforms that individuals can use to build their knowledge base. As intranet managers, we need to be skilled in the techniques of organizational learning and social networks.

If you are reading this at KMWorld/Intranets 2004, then you see this triangle before your eyes in the way that almost any session could be in several different tracks. And you are here to exchange knowledge, not manage it. That exchange is built on a trust that you impart knowledge to both friend and stranger on the basis that they will use it wisely, give you due credit, and perhaps one day repay you. The trust element in any exchange of knowledge is crucial"  ¶ 09:02 0 comments

  Managing Information News Managing Information News: "SDD, an independent software provider specialising in tools that automate the management of corporate information, has announced the launch of OmniQMAX.

The launch of OmniQMAX meets the increasing demand for software that enables systems to form a 'conceptual understanding' of all types of text. At the same time, OmniQMAX is the first product of this type that is priced to meet the needs of the medium enterprise market and is 33-50% of the price of competing products.
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  ServiceWare Launches ServiceWare Enterprise 5.7 ServiceWare Launches ServiceWare Enterprise 5.7: "ServiceWare Technologies, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: SVCW), a leading provider of adaptive knowledge- powered support solutions, today announced new product additions and feature enhancements to its flagship product, ServiceWare Enterprise(TM), which is used by companies worldwide to improve customer satisfaction, enhance service quality and reduce operating costs. ServiceWare Enterprise 5.7 enables agents and end-users to quickly find accurate and consistent answers to even the most complex problems -- in the contact center, help desk or via Web self-service. ServiceWare's patented self-learning and self-organizing search technology, the Cognitive Processor(R), adapts based on usage. Its easy-to-use knowledge management tools allow agents to access both structured and unstructured knowledge sources and contribute new solutions in the workflow, ensuring a robust knowledge base solution."  ¶ 08:21 0 comments

  Convergenza: Knowledge Management Plays a Key Role in CRM Success destinationCRM.com: Knowledge Management Plays a Key Role in CRM Success: "CRM and knowledge management (KM) were once considered entirely different disciplines, with the two sharing little but perhaps the same data warehouse hardware and a vague understanding that both efforts were meant to improve business efficiency and customer satisfaction. It has become clear, however, that the two disciplines were really working toward the same goal, and that to deliver continuous improvement to business clients, they would have to start speaking the same language.

'Clearly, harnessing knowledge is important in a CRM environment,' says Mary Wardley, lead CRM analyst at IDC. Thus CRM, KM, and data search-and-retrieval solutions are converging--out of necessity and out of customer demand. 'These three markets are in concert, evolving next to each other, and sort of contingent on each other,' she says."  ¶ 08:20 0 comments

  Intellisophic and DFI Partner to Create Counterterrorism Portal Intellisophic and DFI Partner to Create Counterterrorism Portal: "Intellisophic, Inc. (http://www.intellisophic.com), the world's largest provider of taxonomic content, today announced a strategic partnership with DFI International, a consulting company providing research and analysis, information technology and knowledge management services. Intellisophic and DFI International have partnered to deliver an innovative knowledge management system that provides well-categorized, domain-specific open-source intelligence."  ¶ 11:05 0 comments

  Aureus Pharma Successfully Completes EUR3 Million Fund Raising Aureus Pharma Successfully Completes EUR3 Million Fund Raising: "Aureus Pharma, a leading knowledge management based company and a solution provider for the Life Sciences industry, is pleased to announce the completion of a successful EUR3 million private placement. The placement includes two new investors OTC Asset Management and AXA Private Equity as well as existing investors BIOAM and CDC Enterprises-FP Gestion."  ¶ 11:04 0 comments

  Managing Information News Managing Information News: "A new information management system, and the first online public sector knowledge-sharing infrastructure of such a scale in Europe, is going live on 12 November 2004.

38 local authorities in the West Midlands have collaborated to develop the new system, known as 'the Knowledge Engine' or 'KEN'. The web-based tool and one-stop information portal will allow 270,000 local government staff across the region to share their knowledge and experiences."  ¶ 11:03 0 comments

  ITBusiness.ca ITBusiness.ca: "Today, thanks to computers, we can manage our knowledge much better. At best, knowledge management is not just a technology but a whole strategy complete with a set of best practices. And when embraced by an organization there's a remarkable ROI. For instance, in a typical call centre operation, reports eGain, repeat calls and incorrect transfers drop 30 per cent; training of new operators takes 80 per cent less time; and the number of complaint calls that get 'first time fixes' rises by 24 per cent."  ¶ 09:36 0 comments

  Firsthand knowledge Firsthand knowledge: "The problem is not that law enforcement and homeland security agencies aren't effective at capturing and storing valuable intelligence and information, a point brought home during the recent 9-11 Commission hearings. Rather, 'the information is so highly segmented and compartmentalized that it's sitting somewhere untouched and unknown, rather than being available when and where it's needed,' he said.

Many of the agencies involved are increasingly looking to knowledge management systems as a way to track their intellectual resources. Such systems control how information is stored, categorized and shared. Officials from agencies ranging from the Homeland Security Department to the smallest local law enforcement organization are hoping the technology can optimize their abilities to get the right information to the right people at the right time."  ¶ 22:03 0 comments

  Primus Knowledge Solutions Recognizes AT&T Wireless, Microsoft Corp., and Orange for Providing Exceptional Customer Service and Enhancing the Overall Primus Knowledge Solutions Recognizes AT&T Wireless, Microsoft Corp., and Orange for Providing Exceptional Customer Service and Enhancing the Overall Customer Experience: "Primus Knowledge Solutions (Nasdaq: PKSI - News) today announced the 2004 winners of the second annual 'Primus Luminary Awards' including AT&T Wireless for Best Customer Service, Microsoft Corp. for Best Help Desk Service, and Orange for Best Electronic Communications Management Solution."  ¶ 07:21 0 comments

  Building the Smart Business: The Evolution of the Enterprise Portal | Business intelligence, data warehousing and analytics editorial from DMReview Building the Smart Business: The Evolution of the Enterprise Portal | Business intelligence, data warehousing and analytics editorial from DMReview: "Tying these pieces together, we can see two key trends. The first is that portal is a hot technology that is evolving from supporting knowledge management to the more complex world of providing a single interface to enterprise-wide content including corporate applications. The second is that as portal projects become more complex, care is required when developing the business case and in selecting products."  ¶ 07:39 0 comments

  Business 2.0 :: Online Article :: Barely Managing :: Management by Blog? Business 2.0 :: Online Article :: Barely Managing :: Management by Blog?: "Most of the companies I've observed using blogs are trying it on their customers before unleashing it internally on their staffs. The external need, apparently, is more pressing. Many businesses already have other systems in place for managing internal information, ranging from simple brown-bag lunches to overkill knowledge-management regimens. But companies are always looking for better ways to touch base with existing and potential customers, and there's no hotter way to communicate on the Net than via a weblog."  ¶ 07:36 0 comments