Knowledge Management has existed as long as records, many thousands of years, so why do so many initiatives fail?

Because, in the realms of IT Service Management, Knowledge is not just a library.

It is a living, breathing, life form (or at least it should be)

As with most relationships, maintenance is the key to ensuring an enduring partnership with your Knowledge.

Do:

• Make it easily searchable – one failed attempt will put off a casual user
• Modernise it – use content management systems and flexible addressing like tagging with metadata, do not lock it in a file structure.
• Write for humans, not robots – jargon will turn people off quickly
• Update regularly – Old information is as bad as no information
• Template it – consistency is your friend
• Govern it – Accountability ensures that the above takes place

Don’t:

• Dump documents and run – these wastes all the effort so far
• Write novels – Concise information, preferably steps to follow and ideally with pictures, wins the day

The adage is that Knowledge is power. The reality is that poorly created and managed Knowledge is service debt you really do not need and that can be easily avoided.

What is your biggest Knowledge challenge?

#ITSM #KnowledgeManagement #ITIL4