Background Questions

• Do we understand the intangible assets of the enterprise?
• Why have intangible assets become important to the viability of our organization?
• How is the management of intangible assets different from that of tangible assets?
• What are the implications of this framework for measurement?
• Where does knowledge and learning fit in this framework?

Developing the business case:

• How does one formulate the business case for a knowledge strategy to be put in place?
• What are the key drivers?
• What are the possible key areas of business impact?
• Is knowledge a top-line or a bottom-line contributor to the business?
• To what extent is there a link between the knowledge strategy and objectives for business growth?

Developing the Knowledge Strategy:

• What do we consider to be the key components of a knowledge strategy? Does it imply a sequence or a “building block” approach?
• What is the relative emphasis placed on explicit versus tacit knowledge?
• To what extent is the strategy “technology” versus “culture” driven?
• Is the strategy based mostly on supporting more effective individual work or on supporting collaboration across individuals and teams?
• Is the main feed of knowledge internal or external to the organization?
• Is the strategy mostly oriented to a “knowledge as a stock” view (i.e. access and retrieval) or “knowledge as a flow” view (i.e. interaction, relationships and communities of practice)?
• To what extent is the strategy oriented to enhance “internal capability” as opposed to enhance the interface with customers/suppliers?
• Is our strategy best characterized as “grass root” or as “coordinated from the center”? What is the balance between creating the overall infrastructure and architecture and building discrete knowledge initiatives to serve specific business needs?

Issues in Implementing the Knowledge Strategy:

• Do the implementation plans explicitly take into account the “absorptive” capability of the organization?
• What role does the senior leadership of the organization play in increasing receptivity to the knowledge strategy?
• To what extent should the implementation approach take into account the main drivers/inhibitors for the implementation of the knowledge strategy in the organization?