Knowledge Management 2.0

Hunting and gathering – the new way
Nowadays, the resource primarily responsible for a company’s success is not work or land or capital; it is knowledge. Current, useful, applicable knowledge – the latter being particularly important.

This type of knowledge is a living commodity. It comes into being between people, not machines, and as such demands more than just setting up databases and maintaining expert systems. Dynamic knowledge management centres on an active, open culture of sharing, networking and cooperation. Why do industrial enterprises advertise their innovation projects on the Web? Why do brand manufacturers invite their fan bases to help develop new products? Why is it essential to maintain an ongoing dialogue with employees, partners and customers? The answer is that the knowledge required for commercial success is evolving at an increasingly rapid pace.

Knowledge in flux
The upshot is that we are on a kind of collective treasure hunt. We all want to be well equipped. Those in the know talk about infonauts and “T-shaped professionals” – people combining both general and specialist expertise, able to apply in-depth knowledge across a broad spectrum of situations. And these people all want to link up with one another. So we establish knowledge communities, assemble problem-solving think tanks across departments and companies, and interact in multiple networks simultaneously. Needless to say, the Internet has played a huge role in enriching, accelerating and intensifying the exchange of knowledge. However, we only achieve our full potential as knowledge creators through personal contact.

The prime opportunities for exchanging knowledge and experiences occur where people meet face to face, experts mingle with users, generalists and specialists find common ground … in short, where knowledge is enriched with new perspectives. And initiating this process again and again is the role of today’s international congress sector.

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