The Top 5 Reasons you Need KM — Today
There are undoubtedly many projects on your corporate wish list, all tagged as “high priority.” Many of the projects sound good, some seem interesting and they all promise incredibly fast ROI. So how do you prioritize your opportunities and select the project that will deliver the most value?
While all of the projects you are considering offer varying levels of incremental returns, the difference with a knowledge management initiative is that it can offer exponential returns, due to its very strategic nature. Here are some compelling reasons to put it at the top of your list:
1. KM helps you capitalize on intellectual capital.
People (a.k.a. intellectual assets) are usually the first thing executives will cite as the true value of their company because of the detailed knowledge and hands-on experience workers possess in all areas of operations—technical, procedural, cultural, etc.
Intellectual capital is also first on our list because we agree that people are indeed the most treasured and critical assets of a company. If this is true, then wouldn’t it be prudent to implement a system that could harvest, store, protect, retrieve and distribute the knowledge that your people possess across the enterprise—as soon as possible?
2. KM addresses your growing knowledge needs. If you’re like most of us, your company is experiencing at least some, if not all, of the following symptoms: greater technical complexity, faster product cycles, increased customer demands, limited pools of qualified and experienced employees, and ever-increasing productivity and profitability requirements. The stress associated with considering these pressures is probably enough on its own to warrant a good look at implementing a KM initiative. KM can help relieve you of the ever-increasing pressures of today’s work environment.
3. KM benefits your budget (in an up or down economy).In good economic times, companies experience rapid growth, and we all know that hiring, training and bringing new employees up to speed are difficult challenges. KM can accelerate a trip through the learning curve for all employees and enable them to expand their ability to perform in areas beyond their traditional roles.
In poor economic times, companies are forced to closely watch expenses, operate with skeleton staffs and maintain productivity measurements. A robust KM system can allow a company to handle greater workloads, increase productivity and improve profitability without increasing staff size. KM is the ultimate hedge fund of projects.
4. Delaying a KM implementation puts you at a competitive disadvantage. The major competitors in your industry may already have a KM solution in place, or they may be working on it now. As such, many of your competitors are already taking steps toward becoming more effective, efficient and innovative. Their service levels are increasing while their support costs are shrinking. How long can you afford to wait?
What’s more, many of the companies that have already recognized the benefits of a KM initiative in one area are now looking to expand the initiative to the rest of the enterprise. KM is giving your competitors an advantage.
5. KM self-service saves money and makes customers happy. Certainly you’ve heard of self-service, and your company may already have it in place in some form. Knowledge-enabled self-service is allowing many companies to realize huge benefits. It makes a lot of sense, because some problems or queries are best suited for self-service and should not be handled by a busy call center agent.
For example, if I am a customer looking for a device driver for product XYZ, then neither of us really wants to deal with the extra administration of a phone call. I want to simply find the driver and download it. You want to allow me to obtain the driver that way, because it is at least $10 cheaper to have me self-serve rather than call in and talk with a live agent.
Now imagine a similar scenario in your company where a knowledge-enabled self-service solution would be cheaper and more efficient than a live support agent. Repeat this scenario hundreds of thousands of times. KM will enable both your savings and your customers’ satisfaction to grow exponentially. So what are you waiting for?
Make KM a priority in the call center, help desk and across the enterprise. The extensive benefits derived from a successful KM initiative can dwarf the incremental improvements that many other projects can bring. KM will help save you money, make customers happy, position you competitively, benefit your budget, address your growing knowledge needs and preserve your intellectual capital. KM will ultimately change, for the better, the way your enterprise performs.
ServiceWare is a leading provider of knowledge-powered customer service and support solutions that improve agent productivity and customer satisfaction while reducing operating costs. ServiceWare’s enterprise and departmental solutions enable all businesses to easily manage, share and access corporate knowledge to effectively answer inquiries through contact center, help desk or Web self-service interactions.
To learn more about ServiceWare solutions and services visit ServiceWare
As the director of business analysis at ServiceWare, Tom Tobin helps organizations evaluate the need for KM in their business centers. Tom has an MBA from the College of William & Mary, and a BS from the State University of New York. He is currently working on an advanced degree in KM at George Washington University.