KM Asia 2009

http://www.kmasia.com/

employees are not children

Employees are not children so don't treat them like they are and they will be much more productive, and happy.  This is something that has very much been on my mind lately for several reasons that I won't go into.  The eWeek article below looks at how 37Signals goes about getting things done in what appears to me to be a pretty efficient and people friendly way.  http://www.eweek.com/c/a/IT-Management/37Signals-Breaks-Free-of-Rigid-Work-Culture-464279/?kc=EWKNLCSM11102009STR1

Why is it that so many companies think they need to be parents to their employees?  Instructing employees on what to do, where to do it and when to do it.  Some even going to the level of creating events to *reward* casual dress days.  If you treat your knowledge workers with respect and trust you don't need to be parents or the benevolent master.

pure Orwellian prattle

Do Businesses Hate Their Workers? (Income Disparity Myths Edition) over at Naked Capitalism.  Yves hits the nail squarely on the head with this statement: “Our employees are our greatest asset” is pure Orwellian prattle; most companies treat employees as liabilities, doing everything they can to minimize labor costs, getting rid of workers whenever possible.

Naked Capitalism comes at things from an economic perspective, but there is clearly KM applicability in this article.  If companies truely value their employees they would be more focused on providing mechanisms to leverage the collective knowledge of the organization in a way that benefits not just the organization but the workers.  In this context organizations need to put their money where their mouth is; not just with regards to compensation, but investing in mechanisms that benefit all stakeholders.

LEGALTECH

LEGALTECH at the Hiltong New York.

Management World Americas

Management World Americas conference (8-10th December, Orlando, Florida), TM Forum's 10th annual event for the Americas.

Gen F vs. Corporate Mentality

I think Gary Hamel has done a great job of  succinctly bringing forth principals that encourge knowledge sharing and genuine conversations within an organization.

http://blogs.wsj.com/management/2009/03/24/the-facebook-generation-vs-the-fortune-500/

Gary's 12 characteristics of work relevant online life are counter to what we generally see and experience in many (most?) organizations today:

• HR departments run amuck - creating the grand parade of lifeless packaging, where every employee must be categorized, standardized, within a 'fair' range


• Managers who reward behaviour that is counter to corporate "goals"


• The status quo gets rewarded


• Precieved "fairness" wins out over skill, aptitude, and working smarter


• Value Networks exist but aren't recognised


• Communication tends to be a one way street

Truths of Enterprise Social Interaction (Collaboration)

1. Collaboration tools do not need to be complex, costly, or fully integrated into the organizations other business tools to provide value.


2. The value of Collaborative technologies often cannot be quantified.


3. The “mom test” should be applied to collaboration technologies.
   
   
   
   • David Coleman of Collaborative Strategies defines the mom test as: “…tool needs to be easy enough for my mom to use for it to be successful.”
   
   
   
   


4. Collaboration doesn’t need to be managed, just fostered.
   
   
   
   • Provide people the freedom to share their thoughts, ideas and experiences in a way that can be applicable to the organization.
   
   
   • Collaboration will grow organically if it is left alone - free from management meddling.
   
   
   •  People must be given the ability to converse with limited constraints (within acceptable usage parameters).
   
   
   
   


5. Trust is developed through genuine interaction not edict.


6. Successful organizational collaboration is evidenced through cross-functional interactions.


7. Collaborative technologies will expose the hidden networks within an organization.


8. The hidden networks are where the real work of the organization takes place and value derived.


9. Collaborative technologies empower individual contributors.


10. Productivity enhancing collaboration does not always have to be 100% business focused.


11. Context is a determining factor in the value derived from conversations.


12. Self organization and policing occurs where collaboration is free of artificial constraints.