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where the group is going and what it is doing. Consider projects that empower
people more with authority and accountability for measurable results.- Establish clear documentation, which defines roles, responsibilities, and
boundaries within AFMC. Create a detailed corporate plan on how business
is to be conducted in AFMC and with its customers. - Establish priorities with specifics that provide needed direction to be ex-
ecuted effectively. Have project contacts to call as subject matter experts.
Establish clear transition points of projects between groups. Require that
decisions be discussed at the appropriate leadership level prior to being
evaluated to upper levels of leadership. - Identify and change business processes that need to be changed so that
business can be run more effectively and efficiently. - Provide extensive training for all aspects of developed KM protocols.
- Create an AFMC knowledge market. The AFMC knowledge market concept has
knowledge “buyers” (seekers of specific knowledge) and “sellers” (suppliers of
specific knowledge) who negotiate to reach a mutually satisfactory price for the
knowledge exchange. Knowledge “brokers” (people who know who in the organi-
zation possesses the information sought) would make connections between
buyers and the sellers. Knowledge transactions occur because people expect that
knowledge helps them solve problems and succeed in their work. The knowledge
market design puts into perspective the sharing culture and provides a framework
for formulating actionable steps for building each category within AFMC.
In addition, the knowledge market will work more efficiently if places are created
where people can meet to buy and sell knowledge. Establish “talk rooms” where
researchers are expected to spend 20 to 30 minutes casually discussing each other’s
work. Several organizations have held “knowledge fairs” at which sellers display
their expertise for others in the organization. Intranet discussion groups provide
an electronic gathering place for people to share knowledge. - Establish a multidisciplined AFMC KM integration team. This team will work on
organizational and KM technical and continuous improvement teams. The initial
tasks assigned to the team will be to do the following:
- Organize in such a way that all AFMC interests and disciplines are repre-
sented. - Determine clear and measurable business and technical processes.
- Identify areas where activities overlap and create a business plan which
includes management and technical requirements, with metrics to measure the
success or failure of the effort. The metric system will be aligned directly with
the business case issues and the KM requirements such that it will access and
demonstrate incremental progress being made across the AFMC organiza-
tion. - Develop a reporting mechanism for continuous improvement item tracking to
keep record of items that have been successfully identified (based on data
collections) and resolved. Report the findings to AFMC management. Estab-
lishment of a clearly defined measurement process will provide the momentum
and sustainment of the KM program.