Why KM in the Cloud May Be Right for You
Deploying knowledge management (KM) in the cloud might be the right strategy if your organization is looking to further expand into digital services for customer engagement. It might also be the best strategy if your current system is three versions behind and you are concerned about the high upgrade costs. But, how do you know for sure? Let’s take a look at some of the business benefits of cloud KM. A few distinct advantages are unique to deploying cloud KM.
Removing organizational silos. Knowledge sharing between departments is often hindered by outdated management practices where knowledge ownership was tied to KM system ownership. As a result, multiple KM systems may operate within your organization at multiple locations. Leading KM systems provide author workflows and security that easily allow knowledge articles to be restricted where necessary, but shared and available to other departments. With cloud KM, location and type of device—laptop, tablet and smartphone—are no longer barriers to having knowledge access anytime, anywhere.
Simplified integration to other cloud systems. While very common to find a Web-accessible KM system operating on employee devices and company websites, your organization may have other cloud systems where people benefit by having access to your KM articles. Many cloud CRM systems have interfaces so you can easily integrate your centralized cloud KM system, thereby eliminating the need to manage duplicate information or browser tab switching. Social KM is a young but promising related practice area. Cloud KM works extremely well delivering social KM, which is a mixture of traditional social media, virtual workgroups and gamification to promote community created knowledge.
Knowledge networks. Interoperating with partners and suppliers usually involves at least three KM systems—your internal KM system, a subset of KM information that is managed separately in a partner portal and the partner’s KM system. While each KM system is independent, cloud integration eases interconnection and knowledge sharing. The resulting knowledge network encourages the collective intelligences formed within each organization, subject to appropriate rules and safeguards. Additionally, cloud KM provides several financial benefits.
Faster time to value. While an on-premises KM system may be the right decision for your organization, implementation times can be longer than using cloud KM. While the on-premises technology is being implemented in parallel with the business and process aspects of design and planning, your team may make inaccurate assumptions because you do not have hands-on access to a system. Despite lowering the risk by hiring consultants, your team will still need to test assumptions. With cloud KM, your team typically has access to the system at the start of your implementation project.
Reduced infrastructure costs. Cloud KM can help eliminate or reduce several infrastructure costs, such as management, IT personnel, data storage, real estate and power. Additional cost savings can occur through cloud providers absorbing the expenses associated with software patch installation, and software and hardware upgrades. If your organization has mandated the move to cloud services, one of the reasons may be to reduce capital IT expenditures. While this may not always equate to saving money over a three-or-five-year depreciation period, cloud KM as an operating expense typically provides financial flexibility.
Responsive to customer demand. Many organizations have seasonal volume increases. If you work for an online retailer, interaction and transaction volumes spike in November and December. If you work at a government revenue agency, February through April may be your busiest season. As a result, the system capacity of an on-premises KM system is typically built for the seasonal spike, resulting in excess server, networking equipment and other IT capacity remaining dormant for most of the year. With a cloud KM deployment, the cost and headache of managing capacity and scalability is the responsibility of your service provider.
Access to experts. Many cloud KM providers have consultants you can hire who have business experience and expertise in their KM system. Often called “business managed services” and purchased as an ongoing service, these experts can ensure your organization maximizes the capabilities and value derived from the cloud KM system. Cloud KM, combined with business managed services, allows you to focus on your core competencies.
Many additional benefits can be achieved through cloud KM, including process efficiency, reduced time and cost of training, and system reliability and availability. From a broader perspective, the rapid and massive accumulation of information requires the application of big data practices to KM. Combined with the ability to crowdsource and refine knowledge across departments, customers and partners, cloud KM is likely your best approach to manage knowledge in a highly distributed and dynamic environment.