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Part 3  Implementation

Objectives of knowledge management

The reasons for moving to knowledge management are highlighted by a 1999 IDC survey 

from when the approach first came to prominence. The main reasons, which you can see are 

still relevant today, given by 355 US IS manager respondents were:

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Improving profit/growing revenue (67%)

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Retaining key talent/expertise (54%)

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Increasing customer retention and/or satisfaction (52%)

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Defending market share against new entrants (44%)

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Gaining faster time to market with products (39%)

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Penetrating new market segments (39%)

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Reducing costs (38%)

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Developing new products/services (35%).

It is evident that although employee retention is important, knowledge management is also 

seen as a competitive force for acquiring and retaining customers. Unlike other digital busi‑

ness initiatives cost reduction is relatively unimportant.

Sveiby ( 1997–  2000) identifies an evolution of knowledge management objectives through 

time starting with a realisation around 1992 that many companies were reinventing the 

wheel by not applying the experience acquired through previous, similar projects. Sharing 

knowledge was achieved by using  best‑  practice databases using groupware such as Lotus 

Notes. Later the database was again the focus as companies aimed to learn more about their 

customers through data warehousing and data mining. The third phase is, he says, associated 

with  sell‑  side e‑commerce and learning more about interactions with customers through 

 web‑  based forms and online purchases.