Management consulting has the potential to alter the situation of any domain that it caters to, whether it be Inventory management, Operations management, or Financial Management. Similarly, Knowledge Management as a domain is taking shape due to expanding data science technology.
Information Overload, tedious data processing structure, and irrelevant data sources are a few areas where “Knowledge Management” is set to bring revolution in the coming decades. Read on, to know in detail about how it is going to make your life easier.
What is Knowledge Management?
Knowledge Management is a comprehensive process including creating, using, sharing, and managing the knowledge of the organization or an individual. It includes various levels of knowledge management that involve acquiring, processing, and storing information for easy accessibility and availability when needed.
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The goal of knowledge management is to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of an organization by making the most of its collective knowledge and expertise. This can be achieved through a variety of strategies and tools, such as creating a knowledge-sharing culture, implementing a knowledge management system, and using collaboration and communication technologies.
How Knowledge Management is going to make your life easier
The uses of Knowledge Management Systems are exhaustive within an organization. KM can address several problem areas within organizations, including:
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Overcoming Information overload with Knowledge Management
With the proliferation of digital information, it can be overwhelming for employees to access and process relevant information. Know more about information overload and how to deal with it here. Knowledge management helps by maintaining a knowledge base that works as a buffer for the following
- Data insights
- Training resources
- Customer analytics
- Product data, etc.
KM software helps filter and organize this information, making it easier for employees to access and use.
Dissemination of information
In large organizations, it can be difficult to ensure that all employees have access to the information they need to do their jobs effectively. KM can help to disseminate information more effectively, ensuring that everyone has the information they need when they need it. For this, AI-backed tools such as Intelligent Document Processing can help in a great manner to extract and read accurate data. Know more about IDP and how it’s going to help businesses here.
Leveraging knowledge
When employees leave an organization, they take their knowledge and expertise with them. This can lead to a loss of institutional knowledge and a decrease in productivity. KM can help to capture and preserve this knowledge, making it available to others within the organization.
Improving productivity
Without effective knowledge management, organizations can waste time and resources on inefficient processes or duplicating efforts. By streamlining processes and leveraging existing knowledge, organizations can save time and resources and improve productivity. Here is analytics about how an organization can increase productivity just by sharing knowledge accurately.
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Unlimited access to expertise with Knowledge Management
It can be difficult for employees to access the expertise of their colleagues, especially in large organizations or when employees are located in different locations. KM helps to connect employees with the expertise they need, enabling them to get the support they need to do their jobs effectively. Also, the I unorganized customer relationship domain can benefit greatly due to KM software.
A report by Harvard Business Review quoted that around 81% of customers prefer resolving their issues themselves. Such a wide customer redressal problem can be solved with the help of knowledge management software which will eventually help the brand with customer loyalty in the long run.
Practically, here are a few examples of how cloud-based KM systems can tackle routine business issues.
| Primary Problem | Cause | Domain |
| Consumer churn | Lack of Internal knowledge | Internal knowledge unavailability |
| Employee turnover | Lack of resources | Weak workforce management |
| Low performing website | Lack of quality content and products | Unoptimized website |
| Inefficient junior staff | Lack of relevant knowledge base | Unleveraged skills of seniors |
| High training costs | Repetitive training | High attrition |
Well, so in this scenario, it must be a competitive advantage for organizations to just leverage its information. The truth is, no not. While the KM process might seem like an ‘all-in-one” solution for all business problems, but still it’s useless in absence of the following:
- Exclusive information: If the collected information is being discussed or vague, it can’t really help with strategic decisions.
- Obsolete technology: It’s non-negotiable for the KM tool to be updated with the latest technology.
- Sharing by employees: The employees need to share every bit of information with the system the way they’re supposed to. According to a study by Forbes, “Fortune 500 companies lose roughly $31.5 billion a year by failing to share knowledge.
If not for these matters, strategic KM will lead to major drawbacks instead of leading toward efficiency.
Drawbacks of Knowledge Management
There are several potential disadvantages to KM:
Cost
Implementing and maintaining a knowledge management system can be expensive, especially if it involves investing in new technology or hiring additional staff.
Pluaris on the other hand is a cost-effective KM solution that once plugged into your company’s workflow, will provide exponential returns.
Resistance to change
Some employees may be resistant to using new knowledge management systems or may be hesitant to share their knowledge and expertise.
Complexity
KM can be complex and may require a significant investment of time and resources to set up and maintain. There are a few areas where knowledge management becomes a lot more tedious, which are:
- Legal Issues: There may be legal issues surrounding the use and ownership of knowledge and information within an organization.
- Privacy Concerns: Knowledge management systems may raise privacy concerns, especially if they involve sharing sensitive or personal information.
- Intellectual Property Rights: There may be disputes over the ownership and use of knowledge and ideas within an organization.
Incomplete or inaccurate information
If knowledge management systems are not properly managed, the information they contain may be incomplete or inaccurate, leading to poor decision-making or miscommunication.
Dependence on technology
If a KM system relies heavily on technology, it may be vulnerable to technical issues or data loss.
The Bottom Line
The drawbacks mentioned here can outweigh the benefits of KM due to even a minute error. They are so extreme that nothing less than due diligence is required to avoid impacting an organization adversely. That’s where a “Personal Knowledge Management” tool such as Pluaris comes in to help the organizations overcome these potential side effects of Knowledge Management.
Pluaris is a “Software as a Service” tool developed by Nowigence Inc. focusing on combining the power of data science and AI to extract and process data automatically. It’s an end-to-end solution for data management with the human capabilities of processing information at the speed and accuracy of a machine. Hence, it’s a pioneering tool in the KM industry.
