Knowledge Management - new kid on the block or old news?

In my previous article,I have been discussed on the issue of sharing and creating knowledge.So,for this article I will discuss a little on the knowledge management in the construction industry.

Knowledge management relies on the use of simple applications that can make a real impact. The application should allow for how construction firms work, and how they work with other organisations. When it comes to technology, the industry is more cautious in the wake of the dot.com disaster. But knowledge management will eventually play a larger role in the construction industry. There is a mass of information on projects buy contractors are missing opportunities because they cannot access it. They need to collect information on project management and costing faster and store it in specifically allocated locations so that it can be mined, retrieved and used when it is needed. With the exception of isolated cases in more informed companies, this is not happening.

Two significant hurdles that knowledge management must clear are the time and cost of implementation. With a mechanistic knowledge tool, the whole process should be defined before it allows a user to make changes "in real time" and record those changes.

People will resist entering information twice and project managers do not have time to input all the lessons learned. Cost is also a barrier. There is little payoff in the short-term and so it is important to calculate the likely long-term profits before investing. A project-management tool that incorporates knowledge management would help. Despite reservations, the future of knowledge management is not entirely bleak. Knowledge management tools exist to some level within products, and more and more are on the horizon. Much like other technologies adopted in the construction market, knowledge management will most likely start within large companies and trickle down to smaller firms.

One solution is that problems or issues do not have to be specially recorded; they are stored in a fully-searchable database that captures all types of files. A user can run a search before starting a project and access information that will show if and where problems or changes existed on a similar project. However, many contractors have only just started using project-management tools, so their files are not extensive and many people are not accustomed to reviewing recorded knowledge. It will take time to change.

Companies are aware of the difficulties involved in capturing tacit, or personal, knowledge and find it hard to believe that an IT system can capture it. When knowledge is stored as personal knowledge, it is important to store the details of the people involved in each project. If a company can distribute this knowledge, they can minimise cost and the impact of personnel turnover. The challenge lies in putting in the extra half mile in order to ensure the tacit knowledge is recorded - particularly when the benefits will only be reaped in the longer term.

Some companies have tried implementing a "Lessons Learned" system but this still depends on the individual taking time out to record their personal experiences at the end of a project, often in their own time.