Knowledge Management YouTube and KM Published on 31 March 2009 - Revised on YouTube a KM Platform?? Are you out of your mind? Thats probably the first reaction you had when you read the title of this post. Honestly? I dont blame you, I was having the same thoughts a while ago, but then as you know when an idea takes hold it takes a while to shake off. So I asked myself this very simple question, What makes a good KM platform? and then started listing the points down one by one. This is what i’ve come up with so far ( this is a very basic list, so bear with me) . Communities of Practice Expertise Map Great Search feature Collaboration Information Repositories The whole idea behind institutionalizing KM anywhere is to for people to get to the right information at the right time. While there are hundreds of applications out there ( open source and otherwise ) the fundamental success factor for any KM initiative is to establish a self sustaining knowledge sharing culture that uses the platform to facilitate collaboration. Something YouTube has excelled at, now whether this fits your corporates definition of a KM tool is question that we shall tackle on another day. Right, back to the question at hand. Analyzing what YouTube has to offer gives us a pretty good insight on how the knowledge ( headbanging teens and American idol wannabes ) is stored and structured. Here you can get to any information using a category tab, a great way to structure your information. Tags are another huge feature here which makes structuring and subsequently locating information a lot simpler. Channels allow you to subscribe to your favourite information sources and receive a steady stream of information without searching for it. Finally and most importantly a Community section which gets people of similar interest together to discuss about information / interests that they have in common. As with any self respecting KM tool the option to rate information is a must, YouTube accomplishes that with aplomb. Users are allowed to rate videos, post comments and so on enabling the “weeding” out of less desirable content. Information like which are the most viewed videos, favourited videos and such add as a bonus to the information seeker as it gives him/ her the opportunity to feel the pulse ( so to speak ) of the community. Statistics on how many videos were viewed /submitted by individual users can be pulled up very easily enabling ( further down the line ) a creation of an “expertise map”. Rate this article: No rating Print Arjun Thomas Arjun is a consultant with expertise in areas like Strategy and Operations within the field of Knowledge Management, Enterprise 2.0 and Social Media. He is an Architecture and Design Specialist with expertise in the area of Knowledge and Enterprise Portals and Web 2.0 tools and services. He has a background of implementing large scale Social Networking and other Web 2.0 tools that are now being used rather extensively to promote Knowledge Management within most organizations. Full biography Full biography Arjun is a consultant with expertise in areas like Strategy and Operations within the field of Knowledge Management, Enterprise 2.0 and Social Media. He is an Architecture and Design Specialist with expertise in the area of Knowledge and Enterprise Portals and Web 2.0 tools and services. He has a background of implementing large scale Social Networking and other Web 2.0 tools that are now being used rather extensively to promote Knowledge Management within most organizations. x Contact author Linked In
Quigley & Lauck's Expert Column Project Procurement and the Project Manager - Part 2 Effective risk management in procurement is critical for ensuring a reliable and resilient supply chain. Anticipating procurement-related risks, such as supply chain disruptions or vendor performance issues, requires proactive planning to... By Jon M. Quigley & Steve Lauck10 Dec 2024 min read
Quigley & Lauck's Expert Column Project Procurement and the Project Manager Identifying and evaluating the right suppliers in a competitive market can be challenging. The market often presents various suppliers, each with different capabilities, price points, and reputations. It can be difficult to discern which... By Jon M. Quigley & Steve Lauck26 Nov 2024 min read
Quigley & Lauck's Expert Column Change Management: Common Problems and Effective Solutions Project management is often a turbulent endeavor, change is inevitable. Whether driven by evolving client needs, the myriad emerging events, market conditions, or internal organizational shifts, managing change effectively is crucial for project... By Jon M. Quigley & Steve Lauck20 Nov 2024 min read