Corporate Memory
Louise Goswami
Head of Library & Knowledge Services Development
Health Education Kent Surrey & Sussex
18 October 2013
Corporate Memory
1. Official company documentation:
a. Board papers
b. Procedures and policies
2. Well organised (logically) e-documents &
folders
3. The “Why” as well as the “What” & “How”
“.. individuals and corporations both lose important data and
forget significant details. Corporations forget through employee
attrition and as they evolve through mergers, acquisitions,
consolidations and successive generations of information
storage…..
….The only way to institutionally “remember” mistakes and
achievements is through knowledge management”
Joseph Lipari. (2012)
The value of knowledge management programs. Risk Management 59(7), p18
Case Studies
• Continuity and Connectivity
• Institutional Memory
• Never tear down a fence until you know why it
was put there
The Knowledge Management
Framework
Learning Before
Facilitated
Learning
Before Action Review
Peer Assist
Join a CoP
Collaboration
Knowledge
Assets
Identify and communicate with
subject experts (SMEs)
Access knowledge assets or relevant
information sources
Learning During
Learning After
After Action Review
Retrospect
Interact with peer and
subject expert network
Contribute learning to the
CoP or network
Access knowledge assets
Plan build of knowledge
assets
Build and share knowledge
asset
Retrospect
A facilitated, forward looking team
meeting providing time to reflect,
understand and analyse the objectives,
achievements and disappointments of
a piece of work. Learning is expressed
as recommendations and advice for
future projects.
Its about...
 Capturing knowledge and experience from those
with the know-how and making it available for
those who may want to know
 It’s all about a team leaving a knowledge legacy
after they finish a piece of work and is for their
future benefit and for the benefit of others
Retrospect – Four Steps
What were the objectives
of the work?
What did we or didn’t we
achieve? Why?
What were the
disappointments?
Why? How can we or others
avoid them in the future?
What were the successes?
Why? How can we or others
repeat the successes in the
future?
Marks out of 10 for the
work as a whole?
What would have made it a 10?
Retrospective Reviews: Step One
What were the objectives of
the work?
What did we or didn’t we achieve?
Why?
Participants:
• Re-gel as a team
• Remember
• Analyse
Overview focus
• Planned Objectives achieved
Agree | Why? | Recommendations
• Unplanned achievements
Agree | Why? | Recommendations
• Disappointments
Agree | Why? | Recommendations
Retrospective Reviews: Step Two
Detailed focus
On ‘post-its’ ask each participant to
write
• Work area
• Key success
• Recommendation to replicate
Cluster work areas
• Read, analyse, agree
recommendations, cluster
What were the successes?
Why? How can we or others repeat
the successes in the future?
Participants:
• Agree and celebrate
successes
• Recognise causes
• Agree actions to replicate
Retrospective Reviews: Step Three
Participants:
• Agree what could have
been done better
• Recognise causes
• Agree actions to avoid
What were the
disappointments?
Why? How can we or others
avoid them in the future?
Detailed focus
On ‘post-its’ ask each participant to
write
• Work area
• Key disappointment
• Recommendation to avoid
Cluster work area
• Read, analyse, agree
recommendations, cluster
Retrospective Reviews: Step Four
Overall project focus
• Write on post-it marks out of 10
and why
• Reveal in turn
• What would have made it a 10
• Discuss and agree
• Actions for anything new
Participants:
Agree key learning and
recommendations
Marks out of 10 for the
work as a whole?
What would have made it a 10?
Exercise
For a recent piece of work you have been
involved in
• Identify one success
• Identify one disappointment
• Express each as a Recommendation that is
Specific and Actionable
• Identify one knowledge beneficiary
Knowledge Retention &
Transfer
When people leave or move post
Contacts, how to.. , last time we did this….
Knowledge and Experience is lost
Knowledge Retention & Transfer
•
•
•
•
•
What do they know
Who do they know
How do they do it
Why do they do it
When do they do it
Just when people leave?
•
•
•
•
Good working practices
Shared knowledge rich contact lists
Calendar of events
Know-Why - context documentation
Exercise
Key Operational Information
• What are the key factors contributing to the
successful carrying out of your job?
• Is there key documentation that you find particularly
useful in your role?
• Are there any immediate issues specific to your role
that in your view need to be resolved in the longer
term?
• Are there any dormant issues specific to your role
that in your view need to be resolved in the longer
term?
Health and Social Care
KM Wiki
•
•
•
•
•
Based on the KM Specialist Library
Aiming to include case studies
Do you have a case study to share?
What else would people like?
Please join the KM discussion list
http://lists.libraryservices.nhs.uk/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/km
Useful websites
NHS KM E-learning Module
http://www.ksslibraries.nhs.uk/elearning/km/
Health and Social Care Information Centre: Knowledge Management
http://systems.hscic.gov.uk/icd/knowledge
KNOCO Knowledge Management Library
http://www.knoco.com/knowledge-management-FAQ.htm
British Council Lessons Learned Toolkit
http://episerverdev.britishcouncil.org/new/freedom-of-information/informationguide/decisions/lessons-learned-toolkit/
Coming soon NHS Health and Social Care KM Wiki