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KM & Counter-Terrorism Redux
In the August 2004 issue of Directions,
we ran an article on this topic, expressing surprise that so little attention was being paid to the Knowledge Management problems that were clearly at the root of the September 11 attacks. Anyone
familiar with KM would recognize the classic symptoms in The 9/11 Commission Report: a classic blend of incompatible technologies, convoluted processes and cultures based on competition rather
than collaboration.
The good news (perhaps) is that things seem to have changed. This article at Government Computer News explicitly gives KM some of the credit for the fact that there have been no successful attacks on the US in the last ten years. It also acknowledges advances in the background technology, with the emergence of social networking and the growing popularity of collaboration platforms, which allow instant, horizontal communication among interested parties. The Defense Department is replacing its Defense Knowledge Online database with a more open portal based on Microsoft SharePoint. The Defense Information System Agency is working on a secure system to share information with authorized mission partners, and the Army is expanding the role of communities of practice.
These new systems are integrating access to both people and information to support a more flexible, blended approach to Knowledge Management. Still much to be done, but progress is being made.
Apple & KM
In the early days, Knowledge Management was often criticized for being overly academic. Its core principles
are easy enough to understand, but its actual benefits are hard to quantify. KM sounds like a good idea, and there's a certain intuitive appeal. But the degree to which its value depends on faith makes
business people uncomfortable. That's why we were interested in this article about KM at Apple.
You might be surprised to learn that Apple is even engaged in KM, since it's so often described as a manifestation of Steve Jobs' singular creative vision. His reputation as a micro-manager involved in
every aspect of the business seems poles apart from the democratizing, collaborative concepts of KM. In fact, though, Apple is a strong advocate of the Net Promoter Score, a customer loyalty metric that's an alternative to traditional customer satisfaction measures. It's a tool for listening to your customers and measuring how well
you're doing. And Apple listens very closely.
Apple's retail stores are also part of its KM framework, since they're designed as much to stimulate interaction as move product. If you've never visited one, you might be surprised at the controlled chaos of the experience. Lots of people moving around, talking and interacting. The staff doesn't wait behind counters, but circulates constantly, answering questions, giving advice and showing how things work. It's subtle, but this kind of customer focus is certainly one of the things that's contributed to Apple's success.
Doodlers Unite!
We always stress the importance of using multiple modes in a communications program, since different
people absorb information in different ways. Some do best with the written word, others like to listen or watch. And some people learn best when they can visualize information with their own pencil and
paper: they learn by doodling. That's the opinion of designer and author Sunni Brown, in any case. She believes doodling can be used to improve
cognitive performance, enhance information retention and even lead to new and innovative ways of thinking.
Learning systems need to accommodate more than text and verbal information, and a recent article in Science suggested that drawing should be recognized as an educational element along with reading, writing and speaking. If you find this intriguing, you can watch a video and read her article at CNN.com, buy her book, follow her on Twitter or just look at some doodles on her website. You're loaded with options!
Google+ Follow Up
After we pondered the possible future of Google+ last month, one of our readers was kind enough to send us an invitation. So we've now had a few weeks to experiment, and definitely feel it's a step up from Facebook.
We like having it there on the Google menu bar, since we drop in at Google several times a day. We like the ease with which you can categorize contacts as Friends, Family, Colleagues or Whatever.
You can do that in Facebook too, but everyone starts as a "friend" until you build your own groups to manage them. You can filter your posts so they go to only one (or all) of your
"circles," and you can follow people, Twitter style, without having to "friend" them. Plus, you have all the usual options as far as posting images, videos and links and such. We
haven't played any games yet, but we never did on Facebook, either. Probably the biggest difference is the lack of advertising. That's nice, although it may not last forever.
So in the end,
it's a better interface, with more control, more privacy and a nicely integrated design. The migration issue remains. If we could drag all our Facebook friends over to Google+ (or some of them, at least)
we'd happily say good bye to Mr. Zuckerberg. But with so many folks so deeply invested in their Facebook networks, it may have an unassailable position.
If you'd like to take a look at Google+
yourself, just drop us a note via return email. We have some invitations to share. (Thanks, Frank!)
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