“Knowledge management will never work until corporations realize it’s not about how you capture knowledge but how you create and leverage it.” – Etienne Wenger
It should suffice to say “Knowledge is Power” – but we need to go beyond that to tell you that it becomes easier to build a strong business through knowledge. It’s not a revelation or something that you did not already know but let’s just look at this subject some more. Every business already has a repository of knowledge – the skills, talents and experience of their own staff, knowledge got from industry circles and the huge amounts of data that customers leave and share. All these forms of knowledge when used diligently and effectively can help anyone build a strong business. It really is up to the company how they gather, assimilate, analyse and put this information to good use meaning building a strong business through knowledge which ultimately will be the measure of their success. With knowledge and information becoming more easily available and accessible, no company can claim these to be their dominion, irrespective of how large they are and how many years they have been in business.
What do you think it means to say that it is possible to build a strong business through knowledge? Using and applying knowledge is about devising top class strategies, implementing processes for daily operations, creating innovative products and even being effective while providing customer service. It is also about being resourceful with the sea of knowledge that exists within your company and when these sources are looked at carefully they can help build a strong business. The employees you hired brought with them experience and skills that have got enhanced while working with your company – you can build a strong business through knowledge that they possess. Your company can benefit from the on-line information, data from social media, knowledge got from taking feedback from the market and customers – really, knowledge exists everywhere. The test for any company would lie in being able to harness the power of this knowledge and leverage it to be able to build the kind of business that is successful and sustainable for a long time. Give your company (employees, customers and other stakeholders) the gift of a strong business through knowledge and the advantages it brings for you.
Let us elucidate further the kind of knowledge bases that exist for a company and how to build a strong business through knowledge.
- We shall explore the knowledge that exists with your company’s ‘first customers’ – your employees. Companies are mistaken if they believe that they can derive knowledge only from the senior levels and top brass. There is nothing more far removed from the truth than this. Your employees – irrespective of level and department – hold a lot of potential since they would have ideas, experience and talents unique to them and from experience you would know that none of these things can ever go waste. Your customer service employees for example can provide vital clues about how your customers perceive the company since they deal with customers daily and gain valuable insights from the customers. A company that regularly seeks feedback and opinions of their workforces are better placed to build a strong business through knowledge that exists with their employees. Keep your employees happy and take care of them – if they leave they also take with them invaluable information, skills, talents, aptitude – the kind of knowledge that is hugely important for any company.
- Customers love providing feedback and do so formally and informally – only if companies would pay attention. We have explored that customers leave a lot of information and data and it is the onus of businesses to utilize this information to their advantage. We know that businesses can only be successful when they can meet and exceed the needs of their customers and to do this they must know the customers well. Focus on building good and mutually beneficial relationships with your customers if you want to gain from their knowledge and insights.
- Keeping abreast with the industry information within which you operate and also the industries that your customers are from, will help you build a strong business through knowledge that abounds within this realm. An understanding of what is taking place in the industry will help your company to keep an eye on what the competition is doing, new companies that might be emerging and products and services that can be bettered and upgraded as the customer’s preferences.
- It is vital for companies to also keep a close watch on the external factors that could either prevent their growth or spur it on. These factors include socio-economic, political, technological advances and any changes in demographics. Build a strong business through knowledge of these changes by closely monitoring them on an on-going basis.
The sources of knowledge mentioned are not exhaustive and every company must learn and discover their own knowledge base and use it to their advantage. When you use the knowledge available through the various sources you can improve on the offerings of your company, increase the levels of customer satisfaction and experiences, keep a stronghold on your vendors, improve the overall productivity and efficiency of your company and be able to constantly improve on the existing strategies and methods of operation of your company.
To build a strong business through knowledge, make the collection and garnering of business a key component of your company. Reward and recognize employees that work well consistently and also those who provide valuable and implementable suggestions on how to improve the working of the company and also the service provided to customers. Elicit suggestions and feedback from a set of your most loyal and trustworthy customers – they will provide you with unbiased and undiluted truths and information, which proves to be like a ‘magic potion’ for any company. Ensure that you have stringent checks in place to prevent the leaking and misuse of your proprietary knowledge base and key operating procedures, given that building a strong business through knowledge is every company’s right and should be leveraged. Knowledge is power – therefore it must be treated so since if the ‘power’ of your company is exploited and or misused it could prove highly devastating for any business. As a company you have gathered and stored information over the years, to be used as future knowledge base, and so it becomes your right and responsibility to judiciously guard this knowledge for your own advantage. Develop systems and practices for the discreet retrieval and usage of this repository of knowledge and ensure that all your staff members understand the criticality of preserving this knowledge base – most companies get their employees to sign a non-disclosure agreement or confidentiality agreement that specifically deals terms to prevent the misuse of and dissemination of knowledge without permission.
Companies must make it a practice though, to share relevant and useful information and knowledge with all their employees so that they are clear about whatever is taking place in their company. This prevents rumour mongers from taking advantage by spreading incorrect information and also keeps employees at rest and willing to work with the company longer. When companies share knowledge with their customers and employees, these two sets of ‘partners’ are more than willing to contribute to the development and success of the company.
However you decide, building a business through knowledge cannot follow any ‘tried and tested’ method meaning no fixed pattern. You could learn from the past but it is essential to learn new things every day and keep your employees and the company as a whole as updated and armed with current
