Assessment Item: Submission Date: Word Count: 2 26th May, 2011 3600
Knowledge Management Audit Report
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Hewlett Packard (HP) is a leading multinational organization providing products and services in many IT related technologies such as computer hardware and software, printers, scanners, storage devices etc. In 1995, the company decided to introduce knowledge management in its organization that will make its systems, processes, outcomes superior with organized and systematic knowledge handling and storage. HP faces severe competition and thus has to be ahead of the market using many strategies, one of which is application of Knowledge Management (KM). With over 600 business units located globally in a decentralized structure, the idea was to integrate knowledge within, across all streams of organization and beyond. HP started its KM campaign defining its vision, creating the design for KM and then beginning the transition (Martiny, 1998). HP has made a concerted effort to keep the KM strategies aligned with The Australian Standard AS5037-2005 that provides guidance on what are the principles of knowledge management and the parameters of implementation that can be adopted using a flexible framework. Knowledge audit case study of HP reveals that KM is conducted through 5 guidelines: share, innovate, reuse, collaborate and learn (Garfield, 2007). Further main components of KM remained people, processes and technologies. HP makes use of KM tools such as knowledge mapping that creates new actionable information, project snapshots and forms learning communities. At HP, the culture is highly relaxed with open cubicle physical structure that enables information sharing easily. At the same time a learning ambience is maintained through the organization that is also driven with a problem solving mind frame. Leadership at HP has been very successful both during transition and during transaction in order to integrate the new KM
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