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Initially you can do knowledge management without technology but ultimately technology has a key role to play - simply because it connects disparate knowledge sources in a wide variety of ways. KM is definitely more about people and processes that it is about systems but for success all three elements are needed. You definitely can't buy a KM solution in a box (though there are numerous systems vendors who would have you believe otherwise), but you do need to make use of appropriate technology to make KM fly. Our expertise here is in helping you make sense of the technology options and in helping you to choose the most appropriate solutions.
We can help with:
Functional and user requirements
Reviewing and evaluating possible solutions
Planning and project managing implementation
Roll-out and user training
Systems Centric KM
Systems approaches tend to favour the leveraging of explicit knowledge - the knowledge that exists in documents, computer systems and processes. This situation is characterised by statements such as 'We already have a lot of knowledge in documents and processes we just need to be able to find it when we need it.' KM systems such as Livelink are effectively document management tools which have been re-positioned as knowledge management solutions. Many of these tools adopt cutting edge search algorithms in attempt to make sense of masses of unstructured data (data in files and documents rather than in databases). They offer a structured approach to cataloguing explicit knowledge. But they can't be a complete KM solution in their own right because a substantial amount of knowledge doesn't ever make it into a document or file - it stays in people's heads.
People Centric KM
People approaches tend to favour the leveraging of tacit knowledge - the knowledge that's in people's heads and which probably hasn't been written down (made explicit). These approaches focus on the facilitation or sharing of knowledge - put a group of people together and get them to focus on a particular issue and you will collectively leverage their knowledge. In KM jargon this is known as a 'community of practice' or COP. This approach utilises systems too - primarily to connect the right people across a network - but their role is primarily supportive.
A good solution would be to mix these two approaches, and though some KM implementations seek to do this they are usually focussed on one or the other.
The approach that you take depends upon the nature of your organisation and the benefits you are seeking to achieve in implementing KM.
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