| | Knowledge management
solutions are now the
most important strategic
technologies for large
companies, according to
a new report and survey
of European executives
by the Economist
Intelligence Unit,
sponsored by Tata
Consultancy Services. In
the survey, 67% of
companies cite knowledge
management/business
intelligence solutions
as important to
achieving their
strategic goals over the
next three years. This
compares with 63% that
accord the same level of
importance to new CRM
solutions, and 35% that
see mobile/wireless
technology as vital.
The findings,
published today in a new
report: Know how:
Managing knowledge for
competitive advantage,
are based on a survey of
122 executives
representing large
companies in a
cross-section of
industries. The survey
reveals that, despite
huge investments in
corporate IT, executives
currently feel unable to
exploit large amounts of
corporate information.
Two-thirds of companies | |
|
| | in the survey complain
that while their IT
systems generate huge
volumes of data, much of
it is not actionable.
The report says
executives are now
looking for IT tools
that enable them to
filter, prioritise and
analyse corporate data.
The key findings of
the report are:
Too much
information impedes
decision-making. Over
half (55%) of executives
say that IT’s failure to
prioritise information
is the main barrier to
effective
decision-making.
Consolidating
information and
providing consistent
performance indicators
are regarded as the most
important step firms can
take to improve the
speed and quality of
decision-making.
Good customer
information remains
elusive. Knowledge
about customers, their
preferences and their
behaviour is the
overwhelming focus for
improving the quality of
information in large
organisations over the
next three years. The
focus of CRM initiatives | |
| |
| | executives say that
internal barriers
between departments
hamper information
sharing. Ignorance of
what knowledge exists,
or of where to find it,
is another major barrier
according to 41% of
respondents. In some
cases, a simple solution
such as keeping a
regularly updated record
of who knows what can be
more effective than
throwing IT at the
problem, according to
the report.
Effective
knowledge management
pays. Executives
increasingly see
knowledge management as
a vital tool for
competitive advantage.
One case study in the
report shows how
Schlumberger, an oil
services company,
achieved a return on
investment of $200m in a
single year from a
recent knowledge
management initiative.
“Corporate knowledge
is notoriously difficult
to manage, but it is a
problem worth solving,”
says Daniel Franklin,
editorial director of
the Economist
Intelligence Unit. “As
this research shows, a | |
|
| | growing number of firms
now believe there are
tangible rewards to be
gained from sharing
knowledge effectively.”
“This research
underlines our belief
that knowledge
management is about more
than effective IT. It
has three critical and
complementary
components: people and
culture; infrastructure
and technology; and
processes and
information flow,” said
Mr S Ramadorai, CEO and
MD at Tata Consultancy
Services. “Without
addressing corporate
culture as well as IT,
or using technology to
make information
actionable, knowledge
management projects are
likely to fail. It is
therefore imperative
that businesses work to
architect and implement
effective and
comprehensive knowledge
management solutions
that enable them to make
high-impact decisions in
a timely manner.”
Know how: Managing
knowledge for
competitive advantage
is available free of
charge from
www.eiu.com/KnowHow. | |
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