Knowledge management in 2018: the year in review

It’s been another outstanding year for RealKM Magazine in 2018, with continued growth in our readership and a host of insightful new articles published. Our number of monthly active readers is approaching 6,000, and we’ve now published nearly 900 articles, some of which have been viewed more than 1,000 times.

The year has also brought some landmark achievements, initiatives, and events for both RealKM Magazine and the knowledge management (KM) community.

An award-winning end to the year

One of the most exciting achievements for the year came at the very end, with RealKM Magazine winning the Knowledge and Information Award in the 2018 CILIP Knowledge and Information Management (K&IM) Awards.

The Knowledge and Information Award is one of five categories in the K&IM Awards, and was presented by CILIP K&IM Ambassador Paul J Corney.

With the RealKM team located outside the UK, we invited one of our most active London-based subscribers, Information Consultant Dr Beatrice Murray, to accept the award on behalf of RealKM Magazine. A very big thanks to Beatrice for this!

Welcoming the first RealKM Patrons

Another big highlight for 2018 has been welcoming our very first RealKM Patrons, following the launch of our Patreon crowdfunding campaign.

We’ve needed to broaden our financial support base to help secure the future of RealKM Magazine and continue expanding our reach. The ultimate aim is for RealKM Magazine to become self-sustaining and feature a wider range of content.

A very big thanks to our RealKM Patrons so far for being the first people to respond to the call for support! Thank you so much for your very generous support for RealKM Magazine:

• A very special thanks to RealKM Platinum Patrons Stephen Bounds and Dr Arthur Shelley. Stephen Bounds is Executive, Information Management at Cordelta and the founding editor of RealKM Magazine. Dr Arthur Shelley is the founder of Intelligent Answers, a specialist consulting firm with the vision to “Build capabilities and productive relationships through creative learning.”

• RealKM Gold Patron Patrick Lambe, www.straitsknowledge.com

• RealKM Silver Patrons Aprill Allen, Stuart French, Alex Thomas, and Bill Kaplan.

• RealKM Bronze Patrons Amanda Surrey,  Simon Møller, Kristen J Booker, and DCision Consult Sàrl.

• Our RealKM Patrons and RealKM Fans.

Knowledge Management Singapore (KMSG18) Conference

I was very honoured to be invited to participate in the Knowledge Management Singapore 2018 (KMSG18) conference on behalf of RealKM Magazine.

The conference was hosted by the Knowledge Management Society (KMS) Singapore, and held in August at Microsoft Singapore. The KMS is playing a leading role in KM in the Asia Pacific region and beyond through initiatives including the Knowledge Ready Organisation (KRO) Awards and the Knowledge Management Global Network (KMGN) which KMS actively supports.

The conference was an excellent event with a great range of presentations and discussions. My keynote presentation, masterclass, and panel participation were well received.

The big new things in KM

It’s certainly an exciting time to be involved in KM, with some big new things underway. In June, I wrote an article profiling these big new things. Considerable progress has since been made on a number of them, so they’ve become the focus of a RealKM special series. The seven big new things are:

• Better evidence-based knowledge management. The overall field of management is now embracing evidence-based practice, as are other management disciplines such as HR. With the support of RealKM Magazine, KM is also now starting to move to a much-needed evidence-based foundation. Find out more in the RealKM Magazine special series on evidence-based knowledge management.

• Establishment of an international knowledge professionals society. Under the guidance of RealKM Platinum Patron Dr Arthur Shelley, the initial foundations are being laid for the establishment of an international knowledge professionals society. As Arthur states, “Many passionate [knowledge managers] facilitate KM communities in different parts of the world … It’s time to connect these communities into a international society for the knowledge profession. Knowledge drives the economy, so it’s critical we show a collective voice to leadership.” Find out more in Dr Arthur Shelley’s RealKM Magazine article The opportunity to form an International Knowledge Professionals Society.

• Chartered Knowledge Manager status. Professional accreditation for knowledge managers is another key component of the corporate legitimacy of KM alongside the new ISO 30401 KM standard. In his role as CILIP Knowledge & Information Management Ambassador, Paul J Corney has been working with CILIP CEO Nick Poole to advance a proposal for this accreditation in the form of Chartered Knowledge Manager status. Find out more in the RealKM Magazine special series on the professional accreditation for knowledge managers.

• Comprehensive, accredited knowledge manager education. The RealKM Open KM Syllabus has been developed by RealKM founder Stephen Bounds in an attempt to systematically describe the themes and topics required for a fully-rounded education in knowledge management theory and practice. I have developed and taught two knowledge management university subjects drawn from the syllabus, and we’re now keen to hear from other universities that might be interested in implementing the syllabus.

• The open movement and working out loud. Working out loud (WOL) is a “growing movement that encourages employees to narrate their work and broadcast what they’re doing so others can interact, respond, learn, and apply that knowledge to their own work.” While a substantial evidence base is yet to be developed around WOL, it’s a logical and desirable extension of the open movement. Through open movement initiatives like WOL, open access, open innovation, and open educational resources, we’re seeing knowledge and information made more readily available to the people who need it. For this reason, knowledge managers should support as many of the open movement initiatives as possible, and knowledge management researchers should publish their research open access.

• Culturally aware knowledge management. There’s an assumption that knowledge management practices developed in western cultures can simply be transplanted into other cultures. However, this may not be the case. Further, biased views in regard to the perceived superiority of western management practices and structures also exist. As knowledge management is introduced into cultures that are substantially different from western cultures, an objective awareness of cultural differences and how to respect them will be needed. Find out more in the RealKM Magazine special series on cultural awareness in KM.

• Improved participatory decision-making. The controversy that erupted when the draft of the new ISO 30401 KM standard was released for public review and comment has highlighted the need for better open, inclusive, and participatory processes in KM. Find out more in the RealKM Magazine special series on stakeholder and community engagement.

ISO 30401 knowledge management systems

The other very significant event for 2018 has been the October publication of the new knowledge management standard, ISO 30401:2018 Knowledge management systems – Requirements.

The release of the earlier draft of ISO 30401 had been controversial, with criticisms of inadequate input and consultation, and concerns expressed in regard to the contents of the standard. Despite this, many knowledge managers hope that the standard can be widely supported and implemented.

Find out more in the RealKM Magazine special series on the KM standard – ISO 30401 knowledge management systems.

Thank you, and best wishes!

Thank you to all of our readers for your great support in 2018, and best wishes for 2019! Our heartfelt thanks also go to our contributors for their outstanding articles.

A special thanks goes to RealKM founder Stephen Bounds for his strong and enthusiastic support throughout throughout the year.

Don’t forget to subscribe to the RealKM Weekly Wrap newsletter, and follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook. You might also like to think about writing an article.

See also: Knowledge management in 2017: the year in review, Knowledge management in 2016: the year in review.