Knowledge Management, Intranets, Portals & Web 2.0 New Jersey Law Librarians Association 2008 Annual Business Meeting & Program May 5, 2008 Debevoise & Plimpton LLP Where Do We Go From Here? Steven A. Lastres, JD, MLS Director of Library & Knowledge Management Patrick V. DiDomenico, JD Knowledge Management Manager

Agenda What is Knowledge Management? Types of knowledge General KM Benefits and Challenges Debevoise Intranet and Portal Overview & Tour Measuring Success Web 2.0 – The Future of KM Best Approach to Start a KM Project

What Is Knowledge Management? KM is the process through which organizations generate value from their intellectual and knowledge-based assets. “Knowledge management is the leveraging of the organization’s collective wisdom (know-how) by creating systems and processes to support and facilitate the identification, capture, dissemination and use of the organization’s knowledge to meet its business objectives.” Knowledge management is about working smarter.

Types of Knowledge Explicit (knowledge that is written) –Patents, trademarks, and copyrights –Business plans –Marketing research –Customer lists –Work product –Models and Forms Tacit (knowledge that individuals have stored in their heads) –Instant messaging – s –Contacts –In-house training –Business Referrals –Matter summaries

Differences Between IM and KM? IM interested in the “plumbing.” How they store information, how they back-it up, and how do they maintain a database. KM is focused more on how to categorize, retrieve and share information. KM uses the business record in a different way. They want to redact a document or categorize it differently to store intellectual capital of the organization.

General Benefits of KM Provides a competitive advantage (practice and business) Streamlines operations and reduces costs by eliminating redundant or unnecessary processes Increases efficiencies Increases productivity Improves client/customer service by streamlining response time Boosts revenues by getting products and services to market faster Improves practice support - we leverage what we already know Fosters innovation by encouraging the free flow of ideas Enhances employee retention rates by recognizing the value of employees' knowledge and rewarding them for it Aids in the development and training of the organization’s employees Aids in preventing organizational brain drain as baby boomers are getting ready to retire __________

Why Knowledge Management? The Lever and the Windmill

The Lever Source: “Knowledge management is the leveraging of the organization’s collective wisdom… Small force over long distance = Large force over short distance But, levers require work …

Leverage …the same amount of work…

Leverage Equation proving the disadvantage of leverage:

The Windmill The wind is already there…

The Windmill (without the work) …why not use it?

The Windmill Use existing data sources (i.e., the wind) to power other systems: The wind can be data from: HR Systems Records Management systems Documents in DMS Time and billing systems Enterprise 2.0 systems (more later) Other

The Windmill The wind can power: Document Retrieval Systems Expertise Location Systems FAQ Sites Knowledge Bases Financial Dashboards Business Decisions Other _________

KM Challenges Capturing tacit knowledge Creating a culture within the organization that values and rewards individual knowledge Fostering an environment of collaboration Finding champions to support KM initiatives Keeping content in KM program constantly updated and relevant Identifying business processes that can be made more efficient that require minimal new learning on the part of end user Making life easier for employees. If KM doesn’t, it will fail.

Library Services Records & Information Management It’s All Connected Knowledge Management

What does KM Look Like?

Debevoise Intranet and Portal Overview Intranet (DebWeb) Administrative Content Firm News & Announcements Links to office pages Picture Book Training Schedules General “Help” resources Firm Committees Office Manuals Library “What’s New” Language Skills database Portal Attorney Work Product – Analysis – Models, Samples & Forms – Practice Guides Community Information Contacts Court information Law Matter Summaries News & Alerts References Virtual Library

Portal Tour

Content Types

Leverage Librarian Know-How Taxonomy

Measuring Success Using Metrics to Measure Value

Web 2.0 – The Future of KM Web 2.0    Enterprise 2.0 How are Web-based technologies making their way into organizations?

Web 2.0 – The Future of KM Blogs Wikis Social Tagging RSS Collaborative Documents

Web 2.0 – The Future of KM Blogs

Web 2.0 – The Future of KM Wikis

Web 2.0 – The Future of KM Social Tagging

tag cloud my favorites

tag cloud Their favorites

Web 2.0 – The Future of KM RSS & RSS Readers (Really Simple Syndication)

Web 2.0 – The Future of KM Collaborative Documents

Best Approach to Start a KM Project Don’t label it as a KM project Start small Select a project that looks to foster an actual business goal or solve a specific pain point Develop a Business case with ROI analysis that clearly states the value (e.g. create a virtual library of vetted resources by practice group) Establish at the outset metrics that will prove your success Develop a good working relationship with the IT Department Communicate your successes and provide a Post Project Analysis so that you can build credibility for your next project

Communicating your value Reporting meaningful information Define your goals in terms of organization goals Report how you contribute to organization goals You can’t manage what you can’t measure Don’t just measure – analyze Review your methods, focus and outcomes regularly

The Future of KM?

Contact Information Thank you!